Lemon curd

I have talked before about my desire to have an eternally fruiting lemon tree in my backyard. I do have a lemon tree, which I was given as a wedding present (well, my husband was given it too), but it spends most of the year ripening just one or two lemons. But Janet, at work - her lemon tree is a different story! She brought in two massive bags this week filled with gorgeous, ripe, almost orange lemons, and invited everyone to take as many as they wanted. I was lucky enough to score eight lemons. And I told everyone who took lemons too that if they wanted, they could give me their lemons and a jar and I would turn them into lemon curd.

It's been some years since I made lemon curd, so today I thought I better turn the lemons I took into lemon curd so I can be sure I can fulfil my promise!

Ingredients
140g butter
1 cup caster sugar
3 large eggs
200ml lemon juice
1 tblsp lemon zest

1. Melt the butter in the top of a double boiler. You can use one small saucepan sitting in a larger one half filled with water if you don't have one.
2. Add the sugar to the melted butter and stir until the sugar has dissolved. This takes some time - about 15 minutes, and even then the sugar might not fully dissolve. Just do your best here, but if it doesn't fully dissolve, don't worry.
3. Crack the eggs into a bowl and beat with a fork. Pour them into the butter mix through a sieve. You need to work quickly here because once the eggs touch the hot butter they will begin to cook. Stir the eggs into the butter mix and ensure they are fully combined.
4. Add the lemon juice and lemon zest to the butter mix and stir to thoroughly combine.
5. Continue cooking over a low heat for 15 minutes until the mixture thickens. You will be tempted to stop at around the five minute mark - trust me, keeping going the full 15 minutes will make a huge difference to the quality of your lemon curd.
6. Pour into a glass jar and allow to cool. Serve on buttered scones, in tarts, or as a sauce with yummy puddings. Or, just eat it with a spoon straight from the jar!

Note: if you find you have flecks of cooked egg in your curd don't panic! When the curd is finished cooking, just blitz it for 45 seconds with a stick blender and the problem will be solved. Tap the curd bowl on the bench top a couple of times to pop any bubbles that may have formed. or you can strain the curd through a sieve. It will take out any large bits of lemon zest too, which I think is what a French Chef would prefer. Store the curd in the fridge. It will keep for about two weeks.