gourmetbebe: Lemony New Year!

I was recently blessed with a bag of Meyer lemons from Edward and Veronica's yard (so many thanks!). I would say they might be the best Christmas gifts I received this year if it wasn't for the Moe's Bacon Chocolate Chip Pancake Mix that my kids got me. And while they technically arrived prior to the start of what I know is going to be a phenomenal year, they are the thing I went to 1st - on the 1st - to begin my culinary year.

Determined to try something beyond my usual lemon bread and lemon sorbet, I decided to try Meyer lemon curd. I've never made it before and now I can't imagine why not. It couldn't be easier (thank you Ina, Goddess of the Kitchen) and the results are nothing short of excellent. Creamy lemony deliciousness with a fresh, bright taste you just can't find in a jar you nabbed off the shelf in some fancy-pants gourmet market. And I should know - I've nabbed more than my share of jars off the shelf at fancy-pants markets too numerous to count. You can find the recipe I used here. I cut the sugar to 1 cup since I knew the lemons would be sweeter than regular lemons and I prefer a nice tart curd (that doesn't sounds quite right). I think I could have reduced it even further and it would still be delicious. I also used large eggs because that's what I had. I managed to stop myself short of just eating it all with a spoon and started giving some thought to what I would serve it with....

But before I could decide, my daughter reminded me that she wanted to return to school with homemade fudge for her teachers. Including a vegan fudge for her chemistry teacher who, as she put it, "is teaching me chemistry in a way that I am actually liking and learning it." How do you say no to that even if you DO think the concept of vegan fudge is downright wrong?! So, we made one batch of traditional fudge and one vegan. The traditional recipe is my Mother's and the vegan one Natalie found here. I found the vegan margarine at Berkeley Bowl, naturally. And I have to say, it's not terrible. The texture is almost right and the flavor is definitely chocolate. And yet... it's just wrong. Plus, it seized up so quickly I ended up with those unsightly droppings blobs you see below. Thank goodness Natalie has a vegan friend as well so we can give the rest of it to him!

Back to the curd. After a bit of soul searching, some online research, and the dawning realization that I'd forgotten to buy the heavy cream that would be necessary to make scones, I decided on the "very" thing to pair with the curd: a rich wintery gingerbread cake. How fortuitous, as well, that I happened to have molasses and crystalized ginger on hand! (I nearly ruined it all when I momentarily forgot that I was doubling the recipe...) I found the recipe here, read all of the reviews and decided I would double the ground ginger and add about a 1/2 cup of minced crystalized ginger. It's dense, dark, and delicious. But I'm not convinced it's the "very" thing for the curd. Interesting combination, but they are both strong flavors and compete with each other too much. The cake just needs sweetened whipping cream and the curd just needs fresh scones. Jack thought it was great, though. Good son. I'm already thinking about how I can make lavender lemon curd and perhaps give it as Christmas gifts this year.... Also thinking about candied lemon peel....