A lot of people like to associate lemons with summertime. A nice, cold glass of lemonade is the official drink of the summer. Yet when I think of lemons, I think winter. It is in the winter when lemons are in season. And it's the only time of year when you can find my favorite type of lemon - the Meyer Lemon. These lemons are kind of a cross between a lemon and a tangerine. They still pack that lemon punch but with a sweeter and improved flavor. To me, they are the suprerior lemon. I love using them in recipes that just called for regular lemons. One of those recipes I tried out this week was a lemon curd one by Alton Brown (bet you never saw that coming!). In case you haven't tried a lemon curd before it's a custard that uses eggs (in this case just the yolks), sugar, and the juice and zest of lemons (or you can use other citrus family members. It's velvety smooth and can be used for anything you would use jam or jelly for. Below you will find my notes from this recipe. For the full recipe, visit Food Network's website.
1. Like I said in the beginning I used Meyer Lemons instead of the traditional ones. Even thought they are sweeter, I didn't change the amount of sugar in the recipe. I found the end result to have the perfect balance of sweet and tart.
2. To zest your lemons, I really recommend this Microplane Zester
. It works so well and comes with a plastic case that is perfect for collecting the zest.
3. Making lemon curd is all about technique. You need to stir, stir and stir so more. I would do this when someone else is in the house that can help you stir if your arm starts feeling like it's going to fall off.
4. Knowing when to stop stirring takes experience. I have made custard based ice cream, tons of times, so I have an idea what thick enough looks like. It should easily coat the back of a spoon.
It's how a few simple ingredients can make a delicious, sweet, tart, smooth, velvety treat. It's all through the power of sugar and eggs working together along with some flavors. Now it's time for me to come up with some good uses for the curd. The first thing I tried it with was some popovers, another simple ingredients, delicious treat. I am looking forward to experimenting using it in other ways.
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