Citrus Curd

 

I discovered lemon curd a couple years ago - around the same time I started learning how to make French macarons.  The pretty jar called out to me at the local grocery store and I wondered if it would make a lovely filling for macs.  When I got home, I tasted a spoonful of the curd and was not really blown away by it.  Honestly, I didn't know what all the fuss was about. 

Perhaps that's why I've avoided making a citrus curd at home all this time.  That, and the thought of all those egg yolks scared me.  But being someone that makes macarons as often as I do, I'm always stuck with many yolks left over - so the natural thing would be to make curd, pastry cream, or ice cream.  My first inclination is always towards pastry cream because I love the stuff but this weekend I found myself with a bunch of citrus that were close to seeing their end. So, citrus curd it was - oranges, limes and lemon to be exact. 

I know you want me to say that homemade citrus curd is OMG-good but it isn't... not until four days after! What's that saying about how things get better with age? It's quite true... but enjoy this within one week - if it lasts that long. 

Lillian's Notes: Adapted from Joy the Baker's Tangerine Lemon Curd - I doubled her recipe in order to use up all of the citrus I had - a combination of oranges, lemon and lime totaling 2 teaspoons zest and 3/4 cup juice.  I also omitted one egg by accident, but the curd turned out just fine. Curd is not the best filling for macarons because it's not as stable but fill and chill them in the fridge until ready to serve.  Or you can mix a couple tablespoons into swiss meringue butter cream.