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Homemade Lemon Curd Recipe

Help! My lemon curd won't thicken. With this handy recipe, you'll never have that problem again.

You're going to think I'm nuts.

For breakfast every morning, I have 5 pieces of toast. FIVE!

The bread I buy is Nature's Own 100% whole grain, low sugar, blah-blah, so I like to pretend that the "everything in moderation" rule doesn't apply. It's also from the dollar store and is the best deal ever - important when you're eating several loaves per week! On each piece of toast, I have a different topping. My assortment this morning was Vegemite, peanut butter, raw honey, "super jam" (yes, you read that right. It's a surprisingly good concoction of every jam and jelly I had in the fridge, blended to oblivion in the Vitamix), and simple, homemade lemon curd.

I guess you could call this blog post a toast to lemon curd. (Hee, hee.)


Don't fret if you've never made your own lemon curd. It's fairly foolproof. Real cooks will hate me for saying this, but if for some reason your lemon curd won't thicken, just add a little cornstarch mixed with cold water. I've made it with and without cornstarch and both ways taste the same to me.

Homemade Lemon Curd
Makes 12 ounces
  • 1/2 cup lemon juice (I mix 1/4C from 4 freshly squeezed lemons and 1/4C bottled lemon juice)
  • 1/2 cup sugar
  • 1/2 a stick of butter
  • 1 egg
Whisk together all ingredients and bring to a boil. Reduce heat to medium, stirring frequently. Your lemon curd should be ready in 15-20 minutes and should coat the back of a spoon.

Not thickening? Mix 1.5 Tbsp of cornstarch with 1/8C cold water. Add 1/2 the mixture to your lemon curd while whisking vigorously.

And yes, I'm sure Ina Garten never uses bottled lemon juice for her lemon curd and she certainly never, ever thickens it with cornstarch. This is budget style for the cooking-challenged/impatient and it's still darn good!



Now that you have your lemon curd, you just need to gather 4 other toppings and you'll be all set for your breakfast of crazy champions! Or, better yet, you can make my Baked Lemon Ricotta Donuts recipe.

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