It's winter.
I don't eat enough vegetable in the winter.
It's too cold for salad.
I make things like stew and soup and meat and potatoes and occasionally I'll throw in a handful of spinach, green beans, or broccoli just for color. What does that have to do with Scottish sweets? I think my lack of vegetable eating has got me craving Lemon Curd. I may or may not be experiencing a vitamin c deficiancy. This is the only reason I can think of that I would be craving Lemon Curd in the month of February. When I crave Lemon Curd, I CANNOT go and buy it at the store! I crave real Scottish Lemon Curd and I have to make it myself. Even though I'm not Scottish, that I know of. My cravings were increased when I was grocery shopping the other day and found Meyer's lemons at the store. I LOVE MEYER"S LEMONS!!! I can't always get them here so I grabbed 2 bags and I determined that I would make me some Lemon Curd very soon.
But.....I'm lazy and....I'm good at procrastinating....and I'm creative....and I don't like making things that require a double boiler. So, I may or may not have just peeled a lemon and dipped the slices in sugar to abate my craving for Lemon Curd. Sometime later, I may or may not have opened a can of sweetened condensed milk and ate it by the spoonful while alternately popping lemon slices into my mouth. I may or may not have mixed lemon juice and grated lemon peel into the sweetened condensed milk and ate that by the spooonful as well. IF I DID do all of those things over the course of a week and still craved Lemon Curd then I would HAVE to make some real Lemon Curd myself.
I looked to my trusty Betty Crocker, red and white cookbook. I found a recipe for Lemon Curd but it called for cornstarch and I had a feeling that it wouldn't be truly Scottish if it had cornstarch in it. It didn't sit well with my authentic cooking conscience. So, my SWEET Scottish-American friend Christine came to mind!
Christine and I, 2003, Luxembourg
I thought she would surely have the answer to my Lemon Curd dilemma. Alas(a lass ;)).....Christine informed me she doesn't eat Lemon Curd! -------- WHAT!!?? I may be suffering from scurvy here, I need help!--------She kindly directed me to a website with authentic Scottish recipes and I was successful in making my own Lemon Curd!!! Yay ME!!! Thank you for saving me Christine. Here's the recipe I used.
Lemon Curd
12 oz caster sugar(white sugar)
4oz butter
Finely grated rind and juice of 3 lemons
8 egg yolks
makes about 1 1/2 lb
Place sugar, butter, lemon rind and juice in heatproof basin and place over saucepan half filled with simmering water, ensuring bottom basin does not touch water. Alternatively use double saucepan. Over low heat, stir mixture until sugar has disolved and butter has melted. Add lightly beaten egg yolks, and continue stirring until mixture is thick enough to coat back of wooden spoon. Pour into 3 small prepared heated jars or containers and leave to cool. Cover, seal and label in usual way. Store in a cool place. Once opened transfer to refrigerator.
(note to self*don't use Grandma Huie's pink depression glass plates in food photos. They don't photograph well.)
I simply poured my Lemon Curd into a couple of classes, covered and refridgerated them. I will use the left over curd to make lemon tarts very soon. I served my Lemon Curd for breakfast one morning along with some Oat Scones, which I found the recipe for on the same website as the Lemon Curd. I enjoyed it emmensely!! It was soooooo scrumpcious.
My craving for Lemon Curd was satisfied!! However, after visiting the Scottish recipe website, I got a craving for...... Sticky Toffee Pudding!!!
So, I made some.
Then I introduced it to my coffee and they fell in love and got married and lived happily ever after!
Blessings,
Poppy
