Oranges & Lemons

Seville Orange Curd

It's that time of year, when a very small window of opportunity presents itself

- Seville oranges are in season.

Most people tend to automatically think

Seville orange = marmalade. 

That is very true, but a few years ago I discovered that orange curd made with these little beauties is delicious.

You can also freeze it which means it will last for up to six months,

(instead of 6 weeks in the fridge,)

so you can enjoy this delicious

little indulgence right through to the

Summer.

After all the excitement of Christmas it has been lovely to settle back into the comfortable routine of spending some time in the kitchen with non-Christmas related baking and cooking.

This recipe is a wonderfully zingy and refreshing taste and almost makes you think of warm summer days that seem so far away at this time of year.

Especially as we have quite a thick covering of snow up here in the North East at the moment.

Some people struggle with what to do with fruit curds once you have made them.

I love to use them as the filling for a meringue roulade or pavlova's, etc. but they are also good mixed with whipped cream inside a good old Victoria sponge.

You will need :

150g butter
250g caster sugar
finely grated zest of one Seville orange and the juice of three Seville oranges
4 eggs and 2 egg yolks

1. Heat the butter, caster sugar, and the zest and juice of the oranges very gently until the butter has melted.

2. Beat the 4 eggs and 2 egg yolks together thoroughly, and then stir into the melted butter mixture.

3. Stir the contents of the pan very gently over a low heat until the mixture has thickened and will coat the back of the spoon.

If the heat is too high the mixture will start to scramble, but don't worry if this does happen, just quickly push it through a sieve.

4. Remove the pan from the heat and pour into a sterilised jar.

This will keep in the fridge for around 6 weeks.

As I mentioned earlier, it is possible to freeze this liquid gold.

Instead of putting the curd into a jam jar use a plastic, freezer safe container.

Seal tightly, label and pop into the freezer for up to six months.

So don't delay, pop off to the shops as soon as you can

and grab these oranges before they are gone.

It'll be a whole year before you can try this recipe if you don't!

Enjoy your day!

x