Homemade Lemon Curd (N/A)

 

I know this recipe isn't something you typically eat plain, but it is a recipe in the "pastry" portion of their website I've been dying to try. You see, I love all things lemon. But making lemon curd is a pain in the rear, and I've yet to find a canned variety that holds a candle to the homemade version. So when I saw this recipe I thought " YES!!! Forget solving the problems of the world! Someone has figured out how to get lemon curd into my mouth in less than 10 minutes. Faith in humanity restored!" It was a hopeful moment.

I made a half batch of the curd (since my sole intent was to eat it with a spoon) and decided to use an 8 cup microwave safe bowl. It was a good choice. This boils up like CRAZY. 

The methodology for this couldn't be simpler. I combined all the ingredients in the bowl. I whisked until combined. I placed it in the microwave and used a rubber spatula to stir on the minute, every minute, for four minutes. You must reach a temperature of 185, and mine was at 190.  At that point it was slightly thickened (it will continue to firm up in the fridge) and done cooking. I ran it though a sieve to get out any little bits of cooked egg, of which there were a few.

Then I placed it into the refrigerator, An hour later it was fairly set and definitely cool enough to try. I generally like to add lemon zest to my curd, but wanted to give it a try without. It has plenty of zing without any zest. I was pleasantly surprised. 

The next day however, I saw that even though I had cooked to an appropriate temperature, it was not firm set.  For most applications, this would not be a problem. There was, however a larger problem, The curd had become very gritty. See on the spoon there? All that grit? It's a very unpleasant texture. 

After some googling, it would seem that anything above 185 makes your curd over cooked, and the result it a grainy texture. Wish i would have known that before. The real problem here is that every microwave is going to run at a different power. Every container will probably cook at a different rate as well. The answer to this problem is to eliminate all variables:

1. Make the same amount of curd in each batch (always a double batch, or half batch, etc.)

2. Make the curd in the same container each time

3. Make sure your ingredients are the same temperature each time you begin

4.On the initial run, check the temperature of the curd much more frequently than just once a minute. By the time you get a couple batches under your belt, you'll know it takes 3:28 to reach 185 degrees, or something like that. 

And then maybe, just maybe, you can get good curd with regularity. Perhaps 'easy' microwave lemon curd is just too good to be true. I guess I'll get back to solving the problems of the world. 

https://www.kingarthurbaking.com/recipes/easy-microwave-lemon-curd-recipe