October 16, 2026

A sunny jar of lemon curd from this week's eggs

October 16, 2026. Fifteen eggs, a pile of lemons, and seven jars of lemon curd. Spread it on toast, fill a cake, make lemon bars, or eat it straight from the jar. It makes a good gift, too. Keep one jar and give the rest away.

Fifteen eggs, a pile of lemons, and seven jars of lemon curd. Spread it on toast, fill a cake, make lemon bars, or eat it straight from the jar. It makes a good gift, too. Keep one jar and give the rest away.

Lemon Curd (5x batch)

Ingredients (makes about 7 small jars)

• 15 large eggs
• 2½ cups fresh lemon juice (about 10–12 lemons)
• 3 Tbsp + 1 tsp finely grated lemon zest
• 2½ cups sugar
• 30 Tbsp (3¾ sticks) unsalted butter, cut into bits

Single batch: 3 eggs, ½ cup lemon juice, 2 tsp zest, ½ cup sugar, 6 Tbsp (¾ stick) butter, in a 2-quart heavy saucepan, about 7 minutes.

Steps

1. Zest first: Grate the zest before you juice the lemons.
2. Whisk: In a big heavy pot, whisk together the lemon juice, zest, sugar, and eggs. A 5x batch won't fit in a 2-quart saucepan, so use a 4-quart pot or larger.
3. Cook: Stir in the butter. Cook over moderately low heat, whisking often, until the curd is thick enough to hold the marks of the whisk and the first bubble shows on the surface. A big batch takes noticeably longer than the single batch's 7 minutes, so keep the heat low and keep whisking.
4. Strain: Pour through a fine sieve for a silky curd.
5. Chill: Spoon into jars or a bowl, press plastic wrap right on the surface, and chill until cold, at least 1 hour. Keep it in the fridge.

Tip: Keep the heat low. If it's too hot the eggs scramble before the curd thickens.