Meyer Lemon Curd

We are officially in those tough few weeks between the dead of winter and seeing the first sprouts of green life appear again on the bare tree branches.

The sky is overcast, giving off a slight mist and making it especially difficult to chose which thickness of coat is appropriate for the commute to the office.

I miss the sunshine on my face.

Wednesday's weather was particularly sullen; I longed to be laying on a beach somewhere with a margarita in my hand.

After a frustrating morning at the office, I decided to escape on my lunch hour to the Whole Foods.  Holding a pineapple was about as close as I was going to get to paradise today.

And then I saw a small barrel of sunshine.  Or at least, something that was so blindingly yellow that, in my depressed mood, it might as well have been the sunshine.

I was drawn in.  A slight squeeze gave way to the flesh, just a bit, of these beautiful, juicy, tender meyer lemons.

I stood in awe.  And then I bought a pound of them.

After much thought and consideration, I concluded the best use of these delightful fruits would be to make them into a sweet Meyer lemon curd.

Curd.  What an awful name.

I began by zesting all of the lemons.

Then I cut them in half to reveal their beautiful fruit.

I juiced the lemons through a small strainer until I had 1/3 cup of juice.

I prepared my mise en place ("everything in it's place").  Juice, eggs, egg yolks, butter, zest, sugar and salt.

Combine everything but the butter in a mixing bowl that is wide enough to fit over the opening of a saucepan with boiling water.  The bottom of the bowl should not touch the boiling water.  This creates an easy double boiler for making the curd.

Whisk everything together...

...and then place the mixing bowl over the boiling water.  Reduce the heat to low to keep water just simmering.

Whisk, whisk, whisk.  About five minutes of whisking; this has to be a continual process to ensure the eggs do not scramble.

It starts thickening up rather quickly.

Nice and thick and creamy.  Now for the butter.

The recipe said to put the cubes of butter in only a few at a time.  But I think my cubes were tinier than the recipe was accounting for.  In the end, I threw all of the butter in, just to ensure the curd still had enough heat to melt everything together into a smooth concoction.

Smooth baby.

I transferred this into a canning jar to let the mixture age for a few days.  I need some time to decide just how I want to serve this extra special treat.

I already have a few ideas.

Meyer Lemon Curd
adapted from Bon Appetit, March 2009

We are quickly approaching the end of peak-season for Meyer lemons.  Make enough of this to brighten the rainy spring days ahead.

Ingredients
2 large eggs
2 large egg yolks
1/3 cup sugar
1/3 cup fresh Meyer lemon juice
1 tablespoon (packed) finely grated Meyer lemon peel
1/4 teaspoon kosher salt
6 tablespoons unsalted butter, cubed

Preparation Instructions
Whisk eggs, egg yolks, sugar, lemon juice, lemon peel, and coarse salt in medium metal bowl to blend well.

Set bowl over saucepan of simmering water (do not allow bottom of bowl to touch water).

Whisk constantly until mixture thickens and instant-read thermometer inserted into mixture registers 170°F to 172°F, 5 to 6 minutes.  Do not allow the mixture to boil.

Remove bowl from over water. Whisk butter into curd, 2 to 3 cubes at a time, allowing butter to melt before adding more and whisking until curd is smooth.

Press plastic wrap directly onto surface of curd and refrigerate overnight.