When Life Hands You Lemons...

Now I know that when life hands most people lemons they will make lemonade. But me, my friends, when life hands me lemons, well, I add some sugar and some butter and make myself some lemon curd! Trust me: if you’ve had lemon curd before, then you understand my obsession I’m sure. And if you haven’t… well, you need to try some STAT! Lemon curd is the world’s most perfect blend of sweet and tart. So tangy and creamy… I have dreams about this stuff!

I love lemon curd in the late Spring and early Summer. Lemon curd is the warmth of the sun plus a still-cool breeze and minus the dripping humidity to come. Lemon curd means garden tea parties full of cucumber sandwiches and fresh fruit and scones. All of this eaten on impossibly pretty and dainty plates and accompanied by a choice of fruit-scented teas. Oh, and of course in order to partake of the fare one must be adorned in a flowery frock and a very large, very pretty, very over-the-top hat. I simply and utterly adore lemon curd. I love it on scones the best, but it’s equally sublime spooned onto fruit, spread onto toast, or as a filling for a simple tart. It’s a great cake filling, donut filling… and, well… eaten right out of the jar with a spoon. If you’re me, that is!

But, if you’re like me you are simply not willing to spend $5 plus on a teeny-tiny jar of the stuff that would be eaten in one sitting before it even made it onto a scone. And, if you’re like me, you’re not willing to stand over a hot stove patiently watching and stirring the lemony concoction. But you still need to feed your addiction to this ambrosia… what to do? Well, people I have a solution to both shelling out the big bucks and standing over a hot stove. I have a recipe for lemon curd made in the glorious microwave! It is so easy, and so delicious that it’s really easy to overlook the overwhelming amount of butter involved! And trust me, once you try this… the amount of butter won’t matter at all because you’ll be too busy eating it to care!

Remember to always use organic ingredients if they’re available; they make a difference!


Lemon Curd

1 stick butter, melted
½ cup lemon juice (about 4 lemons)
1 ½ teaspoons lemon zest (about 2-3 lemons)
1 cup sugar
4 egg yolks

In a microwave-safe mixing bowl whisk together all of the ingredients really well. Place in the microwave and cover with a paper towel. Zap at one minute intervals, whisking well in between, until the mixture is thick enough to coat the back of a spoon. This can take anywhere from 2-5 minutes and usually takes me three. Don’t worry if it seems a little thin, it’ll thicken up as it cools. Pour into a bell jar or a Tupperware container and store in the fridge. Simple and delicious!

Note: if you cook it a bit too long and there are cooked egg bits in it, just push it through a strainer. It’s a pain but it will save your concoction!