Spring is now in full swing and everyone seems to be celebrating this bright season with a variety of yummy citrus-based recipes. The most popular citrus flavour floating about the baking community seems to be lemon – Lemon Blueberry Cupcakes, Lemon Pull-Apart Cake, Lemon Cookie Cheesecake Bars, Lemon Sugar Cookies, Lemon Meringue Pies... It’s pretty hard to miss!
Most of the lemon recipes call for lemon curd. Up until writing this blog post, I had only tried lemon curd once last year and completely fell in love with it. I remember standing at the kitchen countertops with the jar and a spoon, completely omitting the toast. Who needs toast when it tastes so great on its own? (I feel the same way about Nutella – ditch the toaster and grab a spoon!)
There is always a divide when it comes to lemon curd – egg-free or egg-full? Egg-free is always chosen as the safer option because there are no raw eggs in the recipe, but the traditional egg-full method is still going strong today. Which do you prefer?
To help you decide, I present to you The Lemon Curd Awards!
(Recipes for both variations can be found at the bottom of the post)
Texture
The egg-full version is really thick, fluffy and creamy – almost like smooth peanut butter frosting, whereas the egg-free curd is more like a thick glaze or syrup.
And the winner is: Egg-Full
Appearance
The main difference I noticed about these two curds is the colour. The egg-full one is orange, almost peanut butter-coloured – this is due to the egg yolks in the recipe. The egg-free curd is a bright yellow colour and looks much more like lemon curd.
And the winner is: Egg-Less
Storage Ability
After a couple of days in sealed jars stored in the fridge, the egg-full curd had thickened to a great spreading consistency, whereas the egg-free version has separated (there was a sugary water solution settled on the top).
And the winner is: Egg-Full
Ease of Making
The egg-less version of the curd calls for less ingredients and the whisking process was fairly easy and pain-free. The egg-full curd calls for more ingredients, more steps, more time and made my arm really ache with all the whisking.
And the winner is: Egg-Less
Taste
So far it’s 2-2 – this is the tie breaker!
I preferred the taste of the egg-free lemon curd. It was so much more citrus-y and zingy than the other, which was a little too buttery for me.
And the winner is: Egg-Less
The overall winner – Egg-Less Lemon Curd!
Cue roars of cheer and applause.
[However, I do have to point out that My Official Treat Taster put his foot down and completely disagreed with me. He preferred the buttery, almost pie-like, taste of the egg-full lemon curd.]
Recipes
Egg-Free Lemon Curd
Recipe from Shaken Together
Ingredients
½ cup sugar
¼ cup water
3 tablespoons cornstarch
¼ cup lemon juice (about 1 ½ lemons’ worth)
2 teaspoons lemon zest
Recipe
1. In a saucepan on a medium heat, mix together the sugar, water and cornstarch. Slowly bring to a boil, whisking constantly.
2. When the mixture boils, reduce the heat and keep on stirring until the mixture gets really thick.
3. Remove from the heat and add the lemon juice and zest. At this point my curd thinned out, so I put it back on the heat and carried on whisking until it was thick again.
4. Allow to cool to room temperature then store in the fridge in a sealed jar or container.
Egg-Full Lemon Curd
Recipe from Food Network
Ingredients
5 egg yolks
1 cup sugar
4 lemons, zested and juiced
1 stick of butter, cut into cubes
Recipe
1. Whisk together the egg yolks and sugar in a metal bowl then add the lemon juice and zest. Beat together until smooth.
2. Place the bowl on top of a saucepan of simmering water and whisk constantly until the mixture is really thick – this should take about 10 minutes.
3. Remove from the heat and stir in the butter 1 cube at a time, allowing each to melt before adding the next.
4. Leave to cool to room temperature then store in a sealed container or jar in the fridge.
Dorothy @ Crazy for Crust
Love this! I, too, made lemon curd for the first time over Christmas. I loved it, but an egg-free version sounds even better!
Nicola
Thanks! The egg-free version tastes so much different and I really prefer it. I think it would be great to bake with, too.
Mo 'Betta
So glad u posted this! I have been wanting to make the egg free version for a while, and i was wondering abt the differences. My little boy is allergic to eggs, so I'm glad to hear it tastes yummy!
Nicola
It's great that you found this useful! I honestly did prefer the egg-free version. Hope you family enjoys it just as much as I did!
Michelles Tasty Creations
Nicola, I love lemon curd and have never tried an egg free one but this look delicious. I will give it a try now. Thanks so much for linking up to Creative Thursday this week.
I can’t wait to see what you link up next week. Have a great day.
Michelle
Nicola
Thanks for your kind words! Really hope you enjoy it. 🙂
Something Like Susie
Thank you for sharing! It's always nice to have an egg free and egg full recipe on hand. I will definitely keep these recipes in mind. 🙂
Nicola
Hope they come in handy sometime for you!
Not Your Ordinary Agent
Thank you for linking up to Foodie Friday! I love this post and lemon curd! You are being featured! Foodie Friday Fave
Nicola
Thanks so much for featuring me! Left you a thank you comment on your blog. 🙂
Recipes We Love
Yay, so excited to find a eggless curd that gets good reviews!! My kids are allergic to eggs and I haven't found/tried an eggless one! Found you on My Favorite Finds
Amber
recipeswelove.net
Nicola
I really hope the egg-free recipe works out for you! I loved it. 🙂
Jenny @ The NY Melrose Family
I've never had lemon curd before, but you're giving me no reason not to try it. Thanks so much for sharing at Whimsy Wednesdays.
Kelli Becton
I can't wait to try this one! it looks so good!!! thank you for sharing with Kids in the Kitchen!
Carrie @ My Favorite Finds
I'm really starting to enjoy lemon flavor too. So do you eat this like a dessert? Or bake with it? Thanks for sharing at Must Try Monday!
Nicola
You can do both! I also sometimes spread it onto toast for a sweet breakfast treat. It's that good!
Play Eat Grow
I didn't even know you could make lemon curd without eggs. I'm curious to try!
keri @ shaken together
Well, thanks so much for sharing my egg-free lemon curd with your readers ... glad to see you liked it!!! (It's one of my favorites, too and SO much easier!)
Pamela Quirk
Thank Heavens for Egg - free recipes, I am allergic to eggs (and poultry as it happens) and quite frankly get fed up of finding more and more foods containing egg and poultry stock! Thank you for posting this information
Nicky
Thanks so much, Pamela! I hope you enjoy it 🙂
Maria
This recipe is so easy to do and tastes fabulous. A rally inexpensive way to make it and a great way to use up any leftover lemons. My son loves it, thanks! X
Nicky
I'm so glad you like it, Maria! 🙂
Maria
* really
Maria
I tried this lemon curd and it was so tasty and easy to do, a great way to use left over lemons. Just wondering if you think the same method would work with blueberries? I can't find an egg-free blueberry curd recipe. Thanks x
Nicky
Thank you so much for your kind words, Maria! I'm so glad you like it 🙂
I see no reason why it wouldn't work with blueberries!
I'd try it out for you but where I live I can't get a hold of them - can you believe that?!
Let me know if you try 🙂
Maria
Hi nicky, i tried your recipe with blueberries and it worked out just fine and the colour was amazingly purple like something from another planet!! My little lad loves it on pancakes x
Nicole
Hi there, will the egg free version work well in lemon tarts? Or would you recommend the egg-full one? Thanks 🙂
Jul
Hello! Nice reading your post about the awards 🙂 I use custard powder (http://www.birdscustard.co.uk) instead of cornflour as it has a nice colour and vanilla flavour.
Coco in the Kitchen
Love the eggless one, unless I make something that uses whites and need to figure out a way to use up the yolks.
jenna
howdy - came here via yahoo search., looking for a less rich (i.e., less fattening!) version for some summer tarts. thanks for the detailed comparison.
re: the O.T.T's preference for more buttery-ness - wondering if you've tried whisking in some cold butter at the end, like a French sauce. This will make the curd more stable (less likely to weep during storage) and, of course, add buttery taste & a bit of smoother texture. HTH.
Anyway, looking forward to checking out more of your posts. Cheers!