I would say the average person thinks lemons/citrus are summer fruits. They are crisp and tangy, add a lot of flavor without a lot of heaviness, which is typically a warmer weather preference. Lemonade, lemon bars, seems fourth or july-ish no? But now, when meyer lemons are in season, they are what take over my fruit basket. I may have been a bit greedy and bought 12 at the market last visit. Apparently I don't use lemon as much as I thought I did, because I still have too many. There is this fine line of having too much of a good thing, and in this case, it has caused me to experiment a bit. Alas, a simple lemon curd to use up some of that sweet citrus.
Of course, this time of year, it would make a wonderful and different gift. It keeps in the fridge about one week. You can re-use mustard jars or buy small mason jars at your local craft store. I used David's recipe, because the man knows sweet things. He mentioned that it would be good folded into fresh whipped cream. I plan on putting it on toast myself, and giving a small jar as a hostess gift.
MEYER LEMON CURD // Makes 1ish Cups
Recipe from David Lebovitz
The sweet to tang ratio is perfect, I wouldn't change it. He notes that if you can't find meyer lemons, you can use normal lemons, and use a bit more sugar.
1/2 Cup Fresh Meyer Lemon Juice
1/3 Cup Natural Cane Sugar
2 Eggs
2 Egg Yolks
6 Tbsp. Organic Butter
pinch of Salt
1. Place a mesh strainer over a bowl, and set aside.
2. In a medium saucepan, whisk together the lemon juice, sugar, egg yolks, eggs, and salt.
3. Add the butter cubes and set the pan over low heat, whisking constantly until the butter is melted.
4. Increase the heat a VERY LITTLE bit and cook over moderate heat, whisking constantly, until the mixture thickens and just begins to become jelly-like. It’s done when you lift the whisk and the mixture holds its shape when it falls back into the saucepan from the whisk. For me, this took about ten minutes in a 12'' pan.
5. Immediately press the curd through the strainer. Once strained, store the lemon curd in the refrigerator.