Hello,

Does anyone have a lemon curd recipe that does not use lemon zest? My husband can't stand the after taste of the zest, but I still want it tart. I have tried making it using the zest without the white pith underneath the rind that makes it bitter, but there is still an after taste ... BTW I have been using Ina Garten's recipe on foodnetwork ...

I plan to use it for a filling so I don't wan't it to be too runny either ...

Thanks so much in advance!!!

Have you tried making the curd without the zest but with something like a LorAnn oil or emulsion?

http://shop.lorannoils.com/search.aspx?searchstring=lemon

AJust leave it out. I accidentally forgot it once and it was still quite tart.

Thanks so much for your replies!

Okay, I will try to make lemon curd leaving out the zest. I tried the LorAnn Oil (Lemon flavor) for icing once and found it to be way too mild of a flavor, so I don't think it will add the boldness needed for Lemon Curd.

Wanted to ask if anyone has tried the Lemon Curd from America's Test Kitchen, Martha Stewart, or Ina Garten? I have only tried Ina Garten's ....

How do they compare?

FYI here are all three:

Lemon Curd (America’s Test Kitchen)

Recipe: America’s Test Kitchen Family Cookbook
Serving Size: 12 (maybe a lot more)
NOTES: This really takes no time to make and it’s SO much better than the store-bought type. I also like this recipe because it’s not teeth-achingly sweet. It’s “just right.”

7 large egg yolks
2 large eggs
1 cup sugar — + 2 tablespoons
2/3 cup fresh lemon juice
1/4 cup lemon zest
1/8 teaspoon salt
4 tablespoons unsalted butter — cut in 1/2 inch pieces
3 tablespoons heavy cream

1. Whisk the egg yolks, whole eggs and sugar together until just combined. Whisk in the lemon juice, zest and salt.
2. Transfer the mixture to a medium nonreactive saucepan, add butter, and cook over medium-low heat, stirring constantly, until the curd thickens to a thin sauce-like consistency, about 5 minutes.
3. Strain the curd immediately through a fine-mesh strainer into a clean nonreactive bowl and stir in the cream. Cool and chill completely.
Per Serving (probably high as I think this will serve more than 12 scones!): 163 Calories; 9g Fat (48.8% calories from fat); 3g Protein; 18g Carbohydrate; trace Dietary Fiber; 175mg Cholesterol; 37mg Sodium.

Martha Stewart's Ca. 1995 Best Lemon Curd

Read more: <a href="http://www.food.com/recipe/martha-stewarts-ca-1995-best-lemon-curd-429040?oc=linkback">http://www.food.com/recipe/martha-stewarts-ca-1995-best-lemon-curd-429040?oc=linkback</a>

6 egg yolks, beaten (adding whites makes it lighter and less rich)

1 cup sugar
1/2 cup fresh lemon juice, strained
1/2 cup unsalted butter (COLD and cut into small pieces to melt faster )
1 tablespoon lemon rind, grated
Directions:

1
Beat the egg yolks until well blended and lemon yellow in colour. Strain the egg yolks through a sieve into a medium-size heavy saucepan. (Sieving removes any shells or albumen; heavy saucpan prevents curdling.).
2
Add the sugar and lemon juice, stir to combine, and cook over low heat, stirring constantly, for about 10-15 minutes. DO NOT HURRY THE PROCESS OR THE EGGS WILL CURDLE!
3
Cook until the mixture coats the back of a wooden spoon. Remove from heat and immediately pour through another sieve to catch any "scrambled egg bits". Pour into a heat proof 4 cup measuring cup and stir in the cold butter pieces, which cools down the mixture quickly.
4
Add the rind, continue stirring until well-blended.
5
Transfer to whatever storage container you want: either a large one or several samll ones.
6
Shelf Life: MUST BE REFRIGERATED! Keeps 2 weeks.
7
Variations:.
8
Lime Curd: substitute lime juice and increase grated lime peel to 2 tablespoons.
9
Orange Curd: Use orange juice, decrease sugar to 2/3 cup. 1 tablespoon orange peel.
10
Grapefruit Curd: Use grapefruit juice, same sugar and zest as lemon curd.

Read more: <a href="http://www.food.com/recipe/martha-stewarts-ca-1995-best-lemon-curd-429040?oc=linkback">http://www.food.com/recipe/martha-stewarts-ca-1995-best-lemon-curd-429040?oc=linkback</a>

Lemon Curd - Ina Garten

Ingredients
3 lemons
1 1/2 cups sugar
1/4 pound unsalted butter, room temperature
4 extra-large eggs
1/2 cup lemon juice (3 to 4 lemons)
1/8 teaspoon kosher salt
Directions
Using a carrot peeler, remove the zest of 3 lemons, being careful to avoid the white pith. Put the zest in a food processor fitted with the steel blade. Add the sugar and pulse until the zest is very finely minced into the sugar.

Cream the butter and beat in the sugar and lemon mixture. Add the eggs, 1 at a time, and then add the lemon juice and salt. Mix until combined.

Pour the mixture into a 2 quart saucepan and cook over low heat until thickened (about 10 minutes), stirring constantly. The lemon curd will thicken at about 170 degrees F, or just below simmer. Remove from the heat and cool or refrigerate.

Read more at: http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/ina-garten/lemon-curd-recipe/index.html?oc=linkback

AI don't want to sound snobby or anything, but are you using organic lemons? The aftertaste might not be from the lemon zest as much as it is from pesticide residue if you are using non-organic lemons. Just a thought.

These are not always available, but if you can Find Meyer lemons, they are a little less bitter and make a great lemon curd.