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05/05/2022 12:01 AM

Something Sweet and Tart for Mother’s Day


After all the recent holidays and religious observations, including Easter, Passover, and Ramadan, some of us might have, at one point or another, eaten a bit more than usual.

Sure, there also was fasting involved, but in those cases most of us also enjoyed celebrations of breaking the fast. So maybe that resulted in a few more pounds for some of us who take the joy of food and our celebrations seriously. Fine.

And now comes Mother’s Day. I plan to make a reservation for Mother’s Day.

If you are planning a meal for your favorite mom, or if you are a mom who is planning your own favorite meal, you might want to try this, one of my favorites. It’s delicious, sweet, and tart. It goes perfectly with lemon curd, so here is a recipe for that as well.

High in calories? Yes, indeed. But let’s not worry about that, at least for this one more day.

Lee White of Old Lyme has been a food editor and restaurant reviewer for more than 25 years. You can email her at leeawhite@aol.com.

Lemon Shortbread

From Felicia Gotta

Ingredients

1 pound unsalted butter

1 cup sugar

¼ teaspoon lemon oil (if you have it)

½ teaspoon lemon zest

2 cups all-purpose flour

2 cups cake flour

1 cup cornstarch

Preheat oven to 250 degrees.

Cream together the butter and the sugar until light and fluffy. Add lemon oil and lemon zest and mix.

Sift together both flours and the cornstarch. Mix the flour mixture into the butter mixture. Do not overmix.

Spread and press into a greased 13” x 9” pan or use your favorite shortbread molds. Prick entire surface with a fork at one-inch intervals.

Bake for 25-30 minutes until slightly golden. Remove from oven and cool for 15 minutes.

Slice with a sharp knife into the size you’d like (1” by 1” squares is nice).

Sprinkle with confectioner’s sugar (optional). Enjoy warm or at room temp. Store in an airtight container

Lemon Cream

From Classic Home Desserts by Richard Sax

There is almost nothing that’s not better with a little lemon cream or curd on top. It’s incredible with the lemon shortbread or lovely in a little tartlet topped with berries or even with a berry pie. This will keep in the refrigerator, tightly closed, for at least a week.

Makes about 3 cups

Ingredients

Grated zest of 1 lemon

½ cup fresh lemon juice

½ cup sugar

½ cup (1 stick) unsalted butter

2 teaspoons water

3 large eggs

4 large egg yolks

1 cup heavy cream, well chilled

Place lemon zest and juice, sugar, butter, and water in a heavy nonreactive saucepan over medium heat. Cook, stirring, until butter melts.

In a bowl, beat eggs and egg yolks with a whisk, just until blended. Whisk in about 1/3 of the hot lemon-butter mixture to warm the eggs; return the mixture to the saucepan. Cook over low heat, whisking constantly, just until the mixture thickens, usually about 3 minutes.

Remove from the heat and strain into a large heatproof container. Press a sheet of wax paper or plastic wrap directly on the surface of the curd to prevent a skin from forming. Refrigerate until cold. (The curd can be prepared up to 2 days ahead. Chill until needed.)

Up to 20 minutes before serving, beat cream until it forms soft peaks. Fold cream into the lemon mixture. Cover and chill until needed.