How to make lemon curd?

This was meant to be a "How to make lemon curd" post that left me with some egg whites that I didn't have the heart to throw away. I usually keep the leftovers in the fridge for later use (which never happens anyway). However this time, the egg whites came to good use. The lemon curd, the crushed meringue and some whipped cream made a simple yet satisfying dessert. It's relatively easy to make and I have tried to be as detailed as I can but if there is anything that is not clear, let me know.

For those of you who are not familiar with lemon curd, it is like custard but less sweet with an intense flavour from lemons. It's also sometimes described as lemon-flavoured butter. Whichever way you look at it - it is delicious! The only downside is that they can't be refrigerated for too long (generally upto one week). Feel free to taste and adjust the amount of sugar in the lemon curd. Since I had the lemon curd with meringue, which is very sweet, I made mine very tangy.

(About 6 servings)
Lemon Curd:
3 large egg yolks
50 g unsalted butter (at room temperature)
2 tbs caster sugar (for the lemon syrup)
1/3-2/3 cup caster sugar
3 tbs fresh lemon juice
1/2 tbs lemon zest

Meringue:
3 large egg whites
2/3 cup caster sugar
1/4 tsp salt or cream of tartar

To assemble:
2/3 cup whipping cream (I used 40 %)
4 tbs icing sugar/confectionar's sugar
1 tsp vanillin sugar/vanilla extract
Fresh fruits or berries (for garnish)

Method:
To cook the lemon curd you could use a double boiler or place a glass bowl with 1 inch of water on the stove. Make sure that the bowl on top does not touch the water underneath. I personally prefer not to cook the lemon curd in a double boiler or metal bowls because the lemon reacts with metals (resulting in a strange aftertaste). The best option is to use a heatproof glass bowl to cook the lemon curd in.

Separate the egg yolks from the egg whites and place the egg yolks in a heat-proof glass bowl or double boiler. When you separate the egg whites from the egg yolks, make sure that there is no trace of egg yolks in the egg whites (that you need to make the meringue). Place the egg whites in a clean and dry bowl, cover and refrigerate until needed. Cut the butter into small sticks and let it come to room temperature. Mix the lemon juice with the sugar (needed for the lemon syrup) and the lemon zest. Whisk the egg yolks until smooth. While whisking the egg yolks, gradually add the lemon syrup into the egg mixture. Place the glass bowl with the mixture on top of the cooking pot with the water (that should be on a simmer). Keep stirring the mixture until it thickens at very low temperature (on simmer). The lemon curd is not suppose to boil and get bubbly. If the water underneath is too hot, the lemon curd can start curdling and that's why it is cooked over simmering water that shouldn't touch the bowl on top.

Once the lemon curd has thickened (or reached the consistency of hollandaise), taste and add some more sugar as preferred and then add the butter sticks and stir until the butter has completely melted. Take the bowl away from the stove. Strain the lemon curd to get rid of the lemon zest and any lumps that may have formed. Allow the lemon curd to cool to room temperature first, stir and then transfer the lemon curd into a clean and dry jar. Cover and refrigerate for a couple of hours or overnight, until thoroughly chilled. Generally, you can keep the lemon curd refrigerated for upto one week.

To make the meringue, take the egg whites out of the fridge and let them come to room temperature. Preheat the oven to 150 C (about 300 F). Please don't use a bowl that is too wide to whisk the egg whites. Start whisking the egg whites with a handmixer at low to medium speed until foamy and bubbly. At this stage you can add the salt or cream of tartar. Continue to whisk and then add the sugar gradually when the meringue is at the pre-soft peak stage to make sure the sugar gets fully dissolved and now you can start whisking at medium speed. Soft peaks mean peaks that curl downwards when you remove the whisk from the mixture. The peaks that appear at the soft peak stage are still soft and not firm (unlike stiff peaks that remain stiff and straight when you remove the whisk).

Once you have added the sugar you will notice that the mixture gets really glossy, white and dense as you whisk. You have to stop whisking from time to time to check what stage you are at. It is only when you remove the whisk from the meringue mixture, you will be able to see what kind of peaks are formed. Once you have reached the stiff peak stage, you can stop whisking. At this stage the peaks should be stiff and somewhat, if not completely, straight when you remove the whisk. You will also notice that, the meringue mixture is so firm that even if you turn the bowl upside down, the mixture wont move. Take some of the mixture and rub between your fingers and check if the sugar has been completely dissolved.

Line an oven sheet with parchment paper. It's also a good idea to take some of the mixture that is left on the whisk and place them on the underside of each corner of the parchment paper to prevent the paper from sliding. Carefully spoon 12 cookies (or so) out of the meringue using two tablespoons onto the parchment paper. Don't try to flatten the meringue as you do this. Handle it gently. The meringue can sometimes deflate in the oven, if not handled gently. Once the oven is hot, lower the temperature to 90-100 C (about 200-210 F) and place the meringue in the center rack of the oven and allow it to bake for 1 hour and 10 minutes. Halfway through, open the oven and rotate the oven sheet so that all of them are evenly baked. Turn off the oven and let the meringue rest in the oven for some 4-5 hours or so, or overnight. Store them at room temperature in a clean and dry container.

The lemon curd and the meringue is best done a day ahead or at least 4-5 hours ahead of serving because the lemon curd has to be chilled and the meringue has to rest once it has been baked. To assemble the dessert, whip the cream with confectionar's sugar and vanilla extract/vanillin sugar until stiff peaks, ahead before serving and keep it covered and refrigerated until needed. Assemble the dessert in 6 wine glasses, by first placing whipped cream at the bottom of the serving glass. Even out the layer of whipping cream around the edges, so that the lemon curd doesn't sink through the holes to the bottom. Spoon in a small layer of lemon curd over it. Crush the meringue cookies and spread on top of the lemon curd (this will turn out a little messy). Repeat the process until you have lemon curd on the topmost layer (I noticed that it was difficult to make the lemon curd "stay" there. I would probably skip this step next time). Alternatively, you could also place the cream in a piping bag and pipe it out on top and keep it as the topmost layer. Garnish with fruits and/or berries, I served mine with physalis/ground cherries. For more variation, you could also layer with some crumbled pound cake and/or fruits, you could layer pound cake between the cream and the lemon curd. Serve immediately and cold!

Butterscotch Ice Cream

Happy Father's Day to everyone! It feels great to be back blogging after a some break. Thank you and a big hug to everyone who checked on me during my absence. Even though I made this really delicious butterscotch ice cream from smittenkitchen a couple of days ago, I have been in two minds about whether to post it here. Photographing ice cream is more difficult than I thought it would be. I put the ice cream outside to defrost and when I came back, the ice cream looked like soup. I hope you can look beyond that, because the butterscotch/caramel flavour is simply out of this world. This ice cream is very rich in flavour. If you love butterscotch/caramel, you've got to try this recipe.

Masala Chai - Masala Tea

Sometime back, when I was grocery shopping with my mother, she was looking at the ginger-flavoured Lipton tea packages. She typically only drinks green tea, apart from the regular tea. I spontaneously asked her why she wanted to buy ginger tea when she could make it at home? She then placed back the ginger tea. I suddenly felt awful for having dissuaded her and said "No, no. You buy it if you want to", to which she replied "No, it's better to make fresh ginger tea at home after all".  

 

I am actually the only one in my family who doesn't drink tea at all. Well, I do but only once in a blue moon and when I do, I always opt for flavoured teas like strawberry tea, blueberry tea or so. The idea of drinking a cuppa of warm tea is rather inviting when you have a runny nose in this harsh winter cold. So I decided to give it a shot. In addition to the ginger, I also added other spices and made a masala chai or spiced (masala) tea. I gulped down two cups of masala tea with a baguette for breakfast and quite enjoyed it. 

 

Ingredients:

1 1/2 cup water
1/2 cup milk
1 tsp black tea powder
2 cardamom pod
1 cinnamon stick
1-2 clove
1 tsp fresh chopped ginger
1 1/2 tbs honey or sugar (adjust)

Method:
Chop fresh ginger finely. Lightly crush the cardamom, cloves and cinnamon with a mortar and pestle. Add all the spices and the tea powder in a cooking pan and boil with water. Then add the honey and the milk and allow to boil for another minute, while stirring. You can use sugar instead of honey, if desired. Remove the cooking pan away from the stove and strain the tea with a tea strainer. Pour the tea into mugs or cups and serve the tea warm!

Tiramisu

Typically the winter season is a depressing one for me, with nothing much to look forward to, except the Christmas holiday, but that too passes away as quickly as it comes. Luckily this winter has not been so severe and in the blogosphere there are always some fun and eventful happenings that keeps you upbeat and on your toes. Even if you don't win a give-away, you always win a few friends. The whole experience of participating and interacting with other bloggers and readers from keeps you in good, cheerful spirit. 

Although blogging can be addictive, it has turned out to be a rewarding learning experience for me in many aspects. Like many others in the blogosphere, ever since starting this blog, I have tried my hands at making some recipes and combinations that I otherwise would not have thought of or cared much for. I have even started to show some interest in learning some traditional recipes and methods from my mother, that I hadn't earlier. While some experiments go terribly wrong and the food goes wasted, leaving you in a state of discouragement and guilt, other experiments go extremely well, making you feel on top of the world.

My most recent experiment is Tiramisu, which had been on my mind for a couple of months now but for some reason I kept postponing it. This one needs no introduction, I think. You have probably seen and read about it in umpteenth food magazines, blogs, food programmes etc. This is a classic dessert but one that I have never tasted before. Tiramisu literally means "pick me up" in Italian, supposedly from the kick you get from all the caffeine in the coffee and the cocoa powder.

I was not too keen on trying the recipes that call for using raw eggs in the cream, so I finally made up my mind on Carminantonio Iannaccon's recipe. Since Carminantonio is an Italian and a chef, and this recipe was posted in Washington Post and featured in the"Daring Baker's Challenge" last year, I felt this recipe was a safe bet. It was much easier to make tiramisu than I had thought. The most difficult and brutal part of making it was to wait for it to set. I started making the zabaglione and the pastry cream on Monday and let it get chilled overnight. Made the whipped cream and assembled the tiramisu on Tuesday and then put it back in the fridge to set overnight. I got to eat it first for breakfast today, as I could not hold myself anymore. :) The tiramisu was very creamy and spongy and tasted quite refreshing mostly from the lemon. Unfortunately, the tiramisu started to melt when I was taking pictures.

Zabaglione:
2 large egg yolks
3 tablespoons sugar
1/4 cup Marsala wine (or coffee)
1/4 teaspoon vanilla extract
1/2 teaspoon finely grated lemon zest

Pastry cream:
1/4 cup sugar
1 tablespoon flour
1/2 teaspoon finely grated lemon zest
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 large egg yolk
3/4 cup whole milk

Whipped cream:
1 cup chilled heavy cream
1/4 cup sugar
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract

For the assembly:
2 cups brewed espresso, warmed
1 teaspoon rum extract
1/2 cup sugar
1/3 cup mascarpone cheese
36 store-bought ladyfingers
2 tablespoons unsweetened cocoa powder

Garnish:
Shaved nougat or chocolate (optional)

Method:
Begin by making the zabaglione. Have ready a double boiler. If you don't have a double boiler, place a pot with 1 inch of water on the stove. Place a heat-proof bowl on it and make sure the bowl does not touch the water beneath. Combine the egg yolks, sugar, Marsala wine (or coffee), vanilla extract and lemon zest in a large mixing bowl. Whisk together until the yolks are fully blended and the mixture is smooth. Transfer the mixture to the top of a double boiler or place your bowl over the pan/pot with simmering water. Cook the egg mixture, stirring constantly, at below medium heat for about 8 minutes or until it resembles an airy, lightly thick custard. It will bubble as it reaches that consistency. Continue to whisk and incorporate air into the custard. For me it took about 15 minutes. Let cool to room temperature, then cover and refrigerate for at least 4 hours or overnight, until thoroughly chilled.

Next make the pastry cream, by combining the sugar, flour, lemon zest and vanilla extract in a medium heavy-bottomed saucepan or pot. Add half the milk and the egg yolk. Whisk until smooth. Place the saucepan or pot and cook at below medium heat, stirring constantly to prevent curdling. Add the remaining milk in small amounts, stirring. After about 12 minutes the mixture will be thick, be free of lumps, beginning to bubble. (If you have a few lumps, don't worry; push the cream through a fine-mesh strainer.) Transfer to a bowl and cool to room temperature, then cover and refrigerate for at least 4 hours or overnight, until thoroughly chilled.

For the whipped cream, combine the cream, sugar and vanilla extract in a mixing bowl. I prepared the whipped cream on the second day, just before assembling the tiramisu. Beat with a large whisk, hand mixer or immersion blender until the mixture holds stiff peaks. Put it in the fridge till you need it. Have ready a large rectangular serving platter to make the tiramisu. Combine the espresso, rum extract and sugar in a shallow dish, whisking to mix well. Set aside to cool. Meanwhile, in a large bowl, beat the mascarpone cheese with a spoon - this will make it easier to mix without any lumps. Add the refrigerated zabaglione and pastry cream carefully, blending until just combined. Gently fold in the whipped cream. Set the cream mixture aside.

Working quickly, dip the ladyfingers in the sweetened espresso, about 1 second per side. They should be moist but not soggy. Immediately transfer each ladyfinger to the platter, placing them side by side in a single row. Spoon one-third of the cream mixture on top of the ladyfingers, then use a rubber spatula or spreading knife to cover and even out the mixture, all the way to the edges. Repeat to create 2 more layers, using the ladyfingers that are left and the cream mixture for each layer. Clean any spilled cream mixture on the edges of the platter; cover carefully with plastic wrap and refrigerate the tiramisu overnight.

To serve, carefully remove the plastic wrap and sprinkle the tiramisu with cocoa powder using a fine-mesh strainer. Cut into individual portions. You can garnish the tiramisu with shaved nougat as I did, or some shaved chocolate. Good luck! I am sending this as my entry to New Year - New Dish by UK Rasoi and Midweek fiesta 8 by Amy.

Almond milk - Badam paal

Badam milk is a very wholesome drink enjoyed by people of all ages. This is a nourishing and soothing drink that is perfect to be consumed around this time of the year. Since many people suffer from dry skin during the winter season it's not a bad idea to consume it regularly once or twice a week. This recipe makes about 4 servings.

Ingredients:
3 1/2 cups milk
1/2 cup almonds
1/4 cup water
3 tbs sugar
A pinch of saffron powder
A pinch of cardamom powder

Method:
Blanch the almonds. You can either bring some water to boil, add the almonds and boil for about 4-5 minutes and then blanch the almonds or let the almonds soak in warm water for a couple of minutes and then peel the skin off. Slice the almonds. Slicing them before grinding makes it easier to get a fine paste. Grind them in a food processor or in a wet grinder with some of the milk and grind into a fine paste. Grind it as finely as you can. I think the food processor grinds it more coarsely than the wet grinder. If you like it more nutty, you could use the wet grinder. 

In a cooking pot, add milk and the almond paste and bring it to boil in below medium heat while continously stirring. This might take about 15-20 minutes. Then add the sugar, saffron powder and cardamom powder. Stir for about 5-10 till the milk gets a nice colouring from the saffron. Typically the badam is made over the stove till it thickens somewhat. The milk that you get here tends to have more water in it. If you want it thick, you can stir till you get your desired consistency. Take it away from the stove and pour it into glasses or another bowl and allow to cool. Serve this drink cool.

Lemonade

I had a craving for lemonade today. In Sri Lanka, you typically prepare lemonade with lime. You just blend fresh lime juice, water and sugar (and sometimes salt) with a spoon and consume it fresh in the hot months. There's nothing like a home-made lemonade. It's so refreshing and you always end up craving for one more glass.

1 large lemon
2 cups water
1/3 cup caster sugar (adjust)

Roll the lemon on the kitchen counter with your palms, to loosen up the lemon cells. Cut it into halves and squeeze the lemon juice. I pressed out the juice with my hands intially and then used a manual juice squeezer to squeeze out as much as possible. Boil the sugar and the water at below medium heat till the sugar dissolves and stir continuously. Add lemon juice and stir. Taste. Add more sugar if needed and stir but don't keep the lemonade on the stove for too long after adding the lemon juice. Let it cool before serving.

Pomegranate smoothie

Smoothie:

2/3 cup vanilla yoghurt
3/4 banana
3 tbs pomegranate seeds
Sugar (if needed)

In a mixer, add sliced bananas and vanilla yoghurt and mix until the mixture reaches your desired level of smoothness. Add the pomegranate seeds and mix. Taste the smoothie. If needed, add sugar (as required). Pour the smoothie in a glass and serve immediately or place it in the fridge if you want to serve it later. Smoothies can be enjoyed as part of breakfast or evening snack.

This smoothie was featured on Midweek Fiesta 6. Thank you for the badge, Amy.



Panna cotta

This is a white chocolate panna cotta recipe. Panna cotta means cooked cream and it is a classic Italian dessert, seen and shown on many food programmes and magazines around the world. I did not bother to try panna cotta for long simply because I did not find it tempting enough. It kind of looks like frozen yoghurt. It doesn't make your mouth water and tempt you like many other desserts do. However, I love white chocolate, so when I came across this recipe on ICA's website, I had to give it a try. Since panna cotta is quite heavy, it's usually served in small portions and this recipe makes about 4 servings.

Pannacotta:
1 cup fresh cream (35-40 %)
3 tbs milk (3-4 % fat)
125 g white chocolate
1 tsp gelatine powder
1 vanilla pod

Chop the white chocolate. Heat the milk and put it in a small bowl, add the gelatine powder and whisk vigorously till there are no lumps. Put it aside to cool. Slit the vanilla pod and scrape the vanilla out. In a pan, boil the cream and vanilla along with the vanilla pod. Stir continously till it starts to boil. When you see the first few bubbles appear in the cream, take the pan away from the stove. Take the pod out and add the gelatine and the white chocolate and whisk until everything melts and gets dissolved in the cream. Pour the panna cotta carefully in four small cups or glasses. I let the panna cotta cool for awhile in room temperature and the put it in the fridge for about 1 hour. Serve the panna cotta cold with fresh fruits or berries!

Avocado sorbet

This avocado sorbet tastes a bit like kiwi, because of the lime. But since the avocado flesh has a tendency to turn brown, you can't exclude the lime.

500-600 g avocados (brutto weight)
1 ripe lime (not more than 1/2 tbs)
3/4-1 cup icing sugar
1/2 cup cold water

I used the blender to make my sorbet and it did a wonderful job. Blend the flesh of each avocado separately and add the blended flesh in a bowl. Put all the avocado flesh in the blender again with half the amount of cold water and powdered sugar. Squeeze the lime juice and some flesh and add in the blender as well. Blend. Place the half-done sorbet in a food storage box with lid on and place it in the deep refrigerator. Let it cool for one hour.

After one hour, blend it again with the remaining amount of water and icing sugar. Blend on and off until it gets a thick and smooth texture. Place the sorbet back in the same food storage box and put in the deep-freezer for 8-12 hours. Let it defrost a little before serving, if it is too icy. This is a wonderfully creamy avocado sorbet that you should finish up in 2-3 days.

Crepes

Some eat these for breakfast, others for dessert. In Sweden, people eat these crepes for lunch and dinner. The thing is, these crepes taste just as good any time of the day and you can use any filling of your choice. This recipe produces about 8-10 crepes.



Crepes:
2 eggs
1 1/2 cups milk
1 cup flour
1 tsp vanilla sugar/extract
1/2 tsp salt
1 tbs sugar (optional)

Filling:
Fresh sliced fruits/jam and whipped cream/ice cream/custard.

Melt the butter and let it cool. Beat the eggs and milk together. Add the butter. Mix flour and sugar and sieve into the egg mixture. Mix well without any lumps. Let the batter rest for about 1 hour in the fridge. Heat a pancake or crepe pan and oil/brush the pan evenly with it. Pour some batter and spread/thin it out evenly on the pan by taking up the pan and swirling it. Bake both sides of the crepes. You can fill the crepes with typically anything you want. I usually eat mine with whipped cream and jam. Enjoy!