Raspberry Curd

Like much of the country it's been extra cold and dreary here the past few weeks. This part of winter is always the hardest - a long stretch of not much to look forward to before Spring arrives, besides more cold and more snow of course. 

Warm and hearty comfort cooking makes the long nights slightly more bearable, but I've been craving something bright and summery to lift my spirits. After baking a couple batches of macarons I had just enough leftover egg yolks to create a luscious and tangy fruit curd. Berries always mean summer to me, so armed with some frozen fruit I set off to make some raspberry curd.

If you don't have some of last years' berries stored away in your freezer, frozen berries are easy to find in your grocery store, inexpensive and flavorful. This curd isn't as thick as a traditional lemon curd, but it's still spoonable and perfect to spread on scones and muffins, stir into yogurt or oatmeal, flavor buttercream and, of course, just eat with a spoon!

Raspberry Curd

(makes about 2 cups)

12 oz frozen raspberries, fully thawed

1 stick (8 oz) butter

3/4 cup sugar

2 Tbsp fresh lemon juice

6 egg yolks

pinch of salt

1. Over medium heat melt the butter in a medium saucepan. Add the thawed berries and any accumulated juices, sugar, lemon juice, egg yolks and salt and whisk until well combined. Cook over medium heat, making sure to mash the berries and whisk frequently, until thickened, about 5-10 minutes. Pour the mixture through a fine mesh sieve, pressing on the solids to extract as much liquid as possible and collecting it in a small bowl. Discard the solids and mix the liquid mixture until uniform. Cover with plastic wrap placing the plastic wrap directly on the top of the liquid and refrigerate until cool. Store in fridge in an airtight container.