when life gives you lemons

Forget lemonade--I make lemon curd. I make it in honor of a lot of people: for my grandmother, for my best friend, for past love. Even though I never made this for them, or even with any of them, this custard in particular just makes me feel all warm and fuzzy, as if I have all of their love scooped into every spoonful. There is something about the sweetness of a lemon that cuts through the sharpness to create a really nice, bright hybrid flavor. It reminds me that no matter what happens, there will always be a ray of sunshine peeking through, and if I'm not feeling that sunshine-I make it myself.

It's also pretty versatile, but as a pick me up, I prefer to eat it just as it is: no frills, no fuss. Simple done well trumps all for this one. It has a wonderfully smooth texture that hits the spot when I need a smile.

I don't have any lemons now, but I can assure you I'll be picking some up later today. It's been a while since I made it last, but it's long overdue.

This particular recipe is taken from the Epicurious app, but there are many incarnations out there.

Ingredients:
3-4 lemons
1/2 cup sugar
2 eggs
1 stick of butter, unsalted

Equipment:
Knife
Cutting board
Pot& metal bowl, or double-boiler
2 additional bowls (of any kind, large enough to hold the lemon curd though)
Whisk
Mixing spoon
Fine sieve/strainer

Procedure:
Begin by setting up a bain-marie, or a pot of water with a metal bowl sitting on top. A double boiler would also work. Keep the stove set to medium heat, no higher. Cut the butter into cubes, and place inside the bowl/top of the double boiler-in order to melt the butter while you prep the rest of your ingredients.

In another bowl, zest your lemons by grating just the yellow of the peel (no pith!). Then, cut your lemons in half and squeeze all of the juice out. Add the 1/2 cup of sugar to this bowl, and crack your eggs in here as well. Whisk together immediately, to avoid "burning" the eggs with the sugar.

Once combined, add this bowl to the melted butter bowl, and stir occasionally. You will feel the custard get a bit thicker, and in order to test for doneness, take a spoon, dip it into the custard, and draw a horizontal line across the back of the spoon. If that line holds (as in, if the custard doesn't drip down immediately) for at least 5 seconds, you're all set. If you're concerned about temperature, you can also ensure that you cook the custard to at least 160 degrees Fahrenheit.

Carefully remove the bowl from the pot, and strain out the lemon zest into an empty bowl. This step will also remove any bits of yolk that may have  been over-cooked or burned by the sugar.

You can eat this while still warm, or let it cool before digging in. It always comes down to a question of patience for me-whether I want to wait for it to cool or not.

Bon appetit mes chers.