Olive Oil Lemon Curd Recipes

OLIVE OIL LEMON CURD

Steps:

• In a medium, heavy bottomed, nonreactive saucepan , whisk together the sugar, lemon juice, eggs, lemon zest, and salt.
• Place over medium heat and continue to stir with the whisk until the sugar dissolves, about 5 minutes. (Don't worry if you see bits of cooked egg white-you'll be straining them out.)
• Switch to a spoon, and continue to cook the mixture, stirring periodically, until the mixture thickens and tiny bubbles begin to break the surface. Stirring constantly so that the mixture does not boil, cook for 1 to 2 minutes more, or until the mixture coats the back of a spoon.
• Slowly add the olive oil 1 tablespoon at a time, mixing after each addition until the oil is fully blended into the curd. Run a finger down the back of the spoon-if a clean line on the spoon remains, the curd is ready. (In total, the curd will take about 10 to 12 minutes to cook.)
• Place a fine mesh strainer over a clean nonreactive bowl or wide-mouthed glass jar. Pour the curd through the strainer to remove any solids.
• Allow to cool slightly, then refrigerate, covered, until ready to use. The curd will thicken as it cools.

OLIVE OIL LEMON CURD

Steps:

• Place the lemon juice, sugar, eggs, egg yolk, lemon zest and salt in a blender, and blend until smooth, about 30 seconds. With the motor still running, slowly pour in the oil until just combined.
• Fill a medium saucepan with about an inch of water and bring water to boil over high heat. Transfer lemon mixture to a metal mixing bowl that can nestle into top of the saucepan without touching the water. Reduce heat to medium-low and, using a potholder or towel to protect your hands, whisk constantly until the curd thickens and looks like mayonnaise, 6 to 10 minutes. Do not overcook. (If you have a double boiler, you can use that here instead of the pot and the bowl.)
• Remove bowl from the heat and inspect the curd. If you see hard bits of coagulated egg, strain the curd through a fine mesh sieve, pressing with a rubber spatula. (If it looks smooth, you can skip this step.) Transfer curd to a container and press a piece of plastic wrap against the surface to create an airtight seal. Let the curd cool to room temperature, then refrigerate until cold, at least 1 hour.

LEMON BARS WITH OLIVE OIL AND SEA SALT

Steps:

• Heat oven to 325 degrees and line a 9-by-9-inch baking pan with enough parchment to hang over two of the sides (to be used as handles later to lift the bars out of the pan).
• To make the shortbread base, pulse together the flour, granulated sugar, confectioners' sugar, lemon zest and salt in a food processor, or whisk together in a large bowl. Add butter and pulse (or use two knives or your fingers) to cut the butter into the flour until a crumbly dough forms. Press dough into prepared pan and bake until shortbread is pale golden all over, 30 to 35 minutes.
• While the shortbread is baking, prepare the lemon curd: Grate 1/2 tablespoon zest from lemons and set aside. Squeeze lemons to yield 3/4 cup juice.
• In a small saucepan, whisk together lemon juice, sugar, eggs and yolks, cornstarch and fine sea salt over medium heat until boiling and thickened, 2 to 5 minutes. Make sure mixture comes to a boil and stays there for 30 seconds or so; you should see it thicken up before you take it off the heat. But once it boils do not cook for longer than 1 minute or you risk the curd thinning out again. Remove from heat and strain into a bowl. Whisk in butter, olive oil and lemon zest.
• When the shortbread is ready, take it out of the oven and carefully pour the lemon curd onto the shortbread base; return the pan to the oven. Bake until topping is just set, 10 to 15 minutes more. Allow to cool to room temperature, then refrigerate until cold before cutting into bars. Sprinkle with confectioners' sugar and flaky sea salt right before serving.

LEMON CURD TART WITH OLIVE OIL

Steps:

• Make tart shell
• Pulse the almonds with the flour, sugar, and salt to a fine powder in a food processor. Add the butter and pulse until the mixture resembles coarse meal with some small (roughly pea-size) butter lumps.
• Add the yolk and oil and pulse until just incorporated and a very soft dough has formed. Spread the dough evenly over the bottom and up the side of a 9-inch round tart pan with an offset spatula. Chill until firm, about 30 minutes.
• Preheat the oven to 425°F, with the rack in the middle.
• Line shell with foil or parchment and weight it with dried beans or pie weights. Bake the shell until golden brown all over, about 13 minutes. Transfer to a rack to cool completely, about 30 minutes.
• Make lemon curd
• Grate enough zest from the lemons to measure 1 tablespoon, then squeeze 3/4 cup juice from the lemons.
• Whisk together the lemon zest and juice, sugar, cornstarch, and whole eggs and yolks in a medium saucepan. Bring to a boil over medium heat, whisking constantly, and boil, still whisking, for 2 minutes. Remove from the heat and whisk in the butter and oil until smooth.
• Assemble tart
• Pour the lemon curd into the cooled shell and chill until set, at least 2 hours.
• Do ahead
• The TART SHELL can be made 1 day ahead and kept, loosely covered, at room temperature.
• The ASSEMBLED TART can be chilled up to 4 hours.