Lemon Curd

As the fruit bowl was almost empty apart from some tired looking lemons, I decided to remove all the shrivelled grapes and apple stalks that seem to fall to the bottom.  And then came my eureka moment,”I’ll make lemon curd”.  I immediately went to my tatty, stained cookbook to dig out Mum’s ancient recipe for I remembered an explosion of sweet and sharp, smooth but tangy flavours bursting out of her sunshine yellow mixture.  Just 30 minutes later, the house was redolent with citrusy fragrance and I’d a bowl of thick, golden, curd ready to pot up and share. Mmmmmmm

Ingredients

8oz granulated  sugar

4oz  butter, cut into chunks

Finely grated zest and juice of 4 large lemons

4 eggs

Preparation

1 Place the sugar, chunks of butter, lemon zest and juice, into a bowl over a pan of simmering water. Stir with a wooden spoon or whisk until the butter has melted.

2 Whip the eggs lightly with a fork, then stir gently into the lemon mixture.

3. Stir the mixture regularly, for about 10 to 15 minutes, until thick and it coats the back of the wooden spoon. (Remember to check the pan of boiling water below isn’t boiling dry)

4. Remove the bowl from the pan and stir occasionally as it cools. Pour into warm clean jars, seal and cover. It will keep for a fortnight