Lemon Curd

I am obsessed with scones and lemon curd. I think it probably started when my Aunt and Grandma started taking me to high tea in San Francisco as a little girl. We would go somewhere (I can't recall the name. It might have been the Ritz) and we would drink tea and eat alllll the little snacks. The cucumber sandwiches, the cookies, the petit fours, and most importantly the scones that I would slather with clotted cream ad lemon curd.

Then, when I was 20, I moved to England for six months, and there are scones everywhere in England. Scones, clotted cream, and lemon curd everywhere, and I ate them so much. I came back, and I never tried to recreate lemon curd, but I did start making scones. I stopped making scones for awhile because I had to stop eating flour. But then I made my flour, and I started making scones. I make scones at least once a month, but usually two or three times a month. I really have nailed the scones.

So, in order for me to have dairy-free lemon curd, I have to make it myself. Which is TOTALLY fine, because my lemon curd is really quite good and tastes just like anything from England or anywhere else. I also refuse to eat scones without it, so, as you can guess, I will be making scones in the near future. :)

My partner's mom sends us true British black tea from England, so it's always takes me back to my England days of drinking black tea, eating scones with lemon curd, and enjoying life. And luckily, I have someone who enjoys it just as me, if not more.

You have to make the curd the night before you want to eat it. You have to cook it, and then in order for it to set, you have to put it in the fridge for a good 8-10 hours. It thickens up and the lemon tastes so good. One of the problems with lemon curd, is that if you cook it too long on the stove top, your lemon curd will taste like nasty egg. Yes, I've experienced, and yes, it really is god awful.

I use more lemon than most, because I like my lemon curd to be really lemony. The first time I made it, I only used a half cup of fresh squeezed lemon juice, but since I have made this so much, I usually up the lemon juice to a cup. But, if you're looking for something not so tart, stick with the half cup. 

While you're mixing everything up in the blender, it will look chunky and gross. The lemon juice doesn't necessarily curdle the egg, sugar, and vegan butter mixture, but it does something to it that makes it weird. I am sure it has to do with the acidity in the lemon. 

But once you start to heat it up, the sugar starts to melt and it becomes this beautiful yellow sauce. As I mentioned before, please be extremely careful when cooking this. It can turn on you in an instant. If you have a candy thermometer  I suggest you pull it out. You want this to get to 160 and then immediately stop cooking it. If you don't, I have noticed that cooking it for 8 to 10 minutes is perfect.

Once you're done cooking it, I would suggest putting it directly in jars. I use canning jars, but with this recipe, you're gonna have a little extra, so I use just a miniature jar we have laying around in our glass jar stash. The way we eat this is with scones, but it also tastes really good with shortbread cookies, toast, and in cakes as a filler. Feel free to experiment!

Lemon Curd
1 stick of butter at room temperature
1 1.5 cups of sugar
1/2 cup of freshly squeezed lemon juice (more if you're wanting something tart)
4 eggs

Blend the butter and sugar on medium speed until it comes together. Add the eggs one at a time until they are combined with the sugar mixture. Once eggs are combined, add the lemon juice.

Once these are all mixed together, transfer to a medium size pot and turn the stove top to medium-high (I usually put it between 4 and 5). Cook, stirring constantly until the mixture has changed to a brighter colour, has gotten a little bit thicker. This will take between 8-10 minutes or until you reach between 150-160 on a candy thermometer.

Pour into jars immediately and let cool at room temperature for two hours or so (if you have more time, that's fine). Cover jars and place in the fridge overnight.