You guys, it’s spring! Spring officially started on the first of September here in NZ, and you know what that means? It’s baby animal season! There are loads of lambs gambolling around in the fields. There are fuzzy calves aplenty, too. I don’t know if fuzzy calves are a NZ thing (I’ve no idea what breeds are farmed around here) or if I just haven’t paid much attention to the calves in other countries. Either way, they’re adorable. All of the baby animals in the fields are adorable.
So cute! We came across those little specimens of fluff during a mini-hike through Tawharanui last week. In other news (super smooth segue alert), we finally got through our mountain of grapefruit. Huzzah! Today’s grapefruit-themed recipe is for grapefruit curd. Curd is a great way of using up any citrus surplus, and super easy to boot. It just needs a bit of babysitting and continuous stirring until it’s done. So drinking a shedload of tea beforehand isn’t recommended, because you can’t really abandon the hob mid-curd-production. Not that I’m speaking from experience or anything.
Once it’s done, cooled and set, you can do a tonne of stuff with curd, including eating it straight from the jar with a spoon. If you have any left after “quality control,” it’s an excellent addition to baked goods (think sandwich biscuits, macarons, etc.) or spread on crumpets or toast. It also makes a wonderful filling for some blind-baked pastry cases, especially topped with a dollop of whipped cream and eaten for breakfast whilst watching Team NZ smash the US during one of the America’s Cup races (because they’re on at breakfast time for us – thank you time zones).
Grapefruit curd
Makes enough to fill about two 350ml jars
Adapted from my lemon curd recipe
I used yellow grapefruit, but this would work equally well with pink grapefruit. To sterilise the jars, wash in hot soapy water, rinse thoroughly and dry in an oven pre-heated to just over 100°C. The curd will keep for about a week in the fridge (possibly longer, but I’ve never had a batch remain uneaten for more than a couple of days).
Ingredients
2 large or 3 medium grapefruit (yellow or pink)
1 small lemon
4 eggs + 2 egg yolks
110g butter
220g caster sugar
Directions
1. Juice the grapefruit and lemon into a small bowl or jug. In another small bowl, beat the two eggs and the egg yolk together well.
2. Melt the cubed butter in a large heat-proof bowl over a simmering pan of water (make sure that the water doesn’t reach the bottom of the bowl).
3. Add the sugar and the zest and juice from the grapefruit and lemon, followed by the eggs. Stir the mixture carefully and constantly with a spatula, making sure the mixture doesn’t boil. Once the mixture coats the back of the spatula (turn the spatula flat and run your finger through the mixture coating it – if you can draw a line through the mixture and it doesn’t re-fill, then it’s done), remove from the heat.
4. If using the curd straightaway, pour into a bowl, otherwise, pour into sterilised glass jars. Allow to cool (it will thicken further) before sealing and storing in the fridge.
Enjoy!
A winning breakfast, right there.