Lemon curd cream

This lemon cream (not a normal custard!) is taken from Dorie Greenspan's cookbook Baking: From my home to yours. This pale yellow lemon cream would typically be used in a lemon tart, but it would be equally delicious on a lemon cake or eaten with a spoon.

Makes enough for 1 9-inch tart and some extra

Ingredients

• 1 cup (200g) sugar
• Finely grated zest of 3 lemons
• 4 large eggs (60g each)
• 3/4 cup (180 ml) lemon juice (from 4 - 5 lemons)
• 300g (2 sticks or 10.5 oz) unsalted butter, at room temperature and cut into tablespoon-sized pieces

Necessary equipment

• an instant-read food thermometer
• a strainer
• a blender or food processor

Method

1. Put the sugar and lemon zest in a large metal bowl that can be fitted into the pan of simmering water. Work the sugar and zest together between your fingers until the sugar is moist, grainy and very aromatic.
2. Whisk in the eggs, followed by the lemon juice.
3. Bring a few inches of water to a simmer in a saucepan.
4. Set up the blender and place the strainer at the top of it.
5. Fit the bowl with the mixture into the pan (make certain the water doesn’t touch the bottom of the bowl) and cook, stirring with a whisk. Keep whisking until the cream thickens and reaches 82°C (180°F). This can take up to 10 minutes.
6. As soon as you reach 82°C (180°F), pull the cream from the heat and strain it into the container of a blender (or food processor); discard the zest. Let the cream rest at room temperature, stirring occasionally, until it cools to 60°C (140°F), about 10 minutes.
7. Turn the blender to high and, with the machine going, add about 5 pieces of butter at a time. Scrape down the sides of the container as needed while you’re incorporating the butter. Once the butter is in, keep the machine going—to get the perfect light, airy texture of lemon-cream dreams, you must continue to beat the cream for another 3 minutes. If your machine protests, let it rest occasionally.
8. Pour the cream into a container, press a piece of plastic wrap against the surface to create an airtight seal and chill the cream for at least 4 hours or overnight.
9. Storing: The lemon cream will keep in the fridge for 4 days and in the freezer for up to 2 months.