Some friends came over a couple of weeks ago.  We ate Kasha and Beet Salad, divided up a huge amount of nuts that we had ordered online for cheap and made blood orange curd.  It filled my house with excellent conversation and the smell of orange zest.

We followed the same formula that I’ve used in the past for Meyer Lemon Curd, Orange Curd with Garam Masala, Rhubarb Curd, Blackberry Curd, and fret free fruit curd making with children.    The curd turned out a bit too sweet (even after Maria wisely interviewed with more lemon juice).  Also, it took an oddly long time to thicken up, leading to me to wonder if I miscounted egg yolks some where in multiplying the recipe.  As we cooked, Genevieve (expert lime curd maker) mentioned that she usually used a different method.  I combine the eggs, sugar and fruit over very low heat, stirring constantly until it thickens and then melt in the butter.  You are supposed to do this over in a double boiler, but I never do and as long as you keep stirring it seems to work.  Genevieve melts the sugar, butter and fruit first, and then stirs in the egg yolks.

Undeterred by sweetness, I gobbled up all of my blood orange curd within a week or two.  I decided to make more this weekend to see if I could find a better sugar ratio and also to try out Genevieve’s technique.  It was difficult for me not to just drink the hot sweet buttery blood orange juice with a shot of booze in it after step one, but I exercised some self control and the the results were excellent.  Despite reducing the sugar quite a lot, I found that it still needed the juice of one lemon to provide additional tartness. This may or may not always be necessary depending on your personal tastes and how sweet your oranges are.  

BLOOD ORANGE CURD

• 1/2 cup sugar (divided)
• zest and strained juice from 3 blood oranges (about 2/3 cup juice)
• 1 stick of butter, cut into chunks
• 5 egg yolks
• The juice of 1 lemon (optional)

1. Over a medium  flame dissolve 1/4 cup  of the sugar with the zest, juice and butter in a sauce pan.
2. In a bowl whisk the eggs and the remaining 1/4 cup of the sugar.
3. Remove the juice mixture from the stove and mix the eggs in to the sauce pan until they are completely combined.
4. Return the pan to a low flame.  Keep mixing with a wooden spoon, never allowing it to boil, for about 10 minutes.  Taste as you go and, if needed, add the juice of one lemon to achieve the desired tartness.
5. When it is thick enough coat the back of the spoon transfer it to a jar and store in the fridge.

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