So I tried making lemon curd yesterday…and it came out gross! The butter hardened in little lumps in the curd, and it just wasn’t right. The recipe I used called for ALL the ingredients to be cooked together, including the butter. It also called for egg yolks only, no whites.
However, this recipe http://www.joyofbaking.com/LemonCurd.html calls for the butter to be whisked into the other ingredients after they have been cooked, so the butter can melt into them. I want to try it again, b/c I love the stuff, and want to be able to make it myself. Any advice? Do you think that melting the butter in will be better than cooking it with the other stuff?
Also, what about lime? I have lime juice, and was thinking that must taste yummy. However, it is just the juice I have in my apt, not fresh limes. What about other citrus fruits? Orange or grapefruit curd, maybe?
I’ve never heard of cooking everything together; I’d try the Joy of Cooking recipe. That said, I don’t think the butter was hardening into little lumps. Are you sure it wasn’t little lumps of cooked egg, or else lumps of corn starch?
As for lime etc. curd, you can do it, but other citrus juices have more sugar in them, so you should decrease the sugar in the recipe. Look for a recipe for these specific curds online. Finally, splurge on fresh limes: the zest will add a lot to the flavor, as will fresh juice.
well, I know at least SOME of the lumpiness was butter, because some were hard and greasy. You know if you melt butter, but don’t clarify it and remove the solids, it just separates and some of it hardens into a whitish greasy nastiness? It was like that, so I’m pretty sure it couldn’t be anything else. I think I’ll try the joy of baking recipe tonight, i’ve still got plenty of lemons.
It probably split because the heat was too high. I’d whisk the butter in, too. I’ve made lime curd and it’s wonderful. Use the same ingredients as for lemon curd. Very tasty.
Making curd is pretty much the same as making hollandaise, and you whisk the butter gradually into that, too.
