Lemon Curd Cookies Martha Stewart Food

LEMON SANDWICH COOKIES

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 350 degrees. In a large bowl using an electric mixer on high speed, beat butter, confectioners' sugar, lemon zest, and salt until combined. With mixer on low, add flour (dough will still be stiff); finish mixing with a wooden spoon.
• Turn dough out onto a piece of plastic wrap, pat into a disk about 1/2 inch thick. Wrap, and chill until firm, about 1 hour (and up to 3 days).
• Unwrap dough; place on a lightly floured piece of parchment or waxed paper. With a lightly floured rolling pin, roll dough about 1/8 inch thick (if dough cracks, let it warm up slightly).
• Cut out cookies with a 1 1/2-inch round cutter (reroll scraps once, chilling of too soft). Place 1 inch apart on two baking sheets; sprinkle with granulated sugar. Bake until barely beginning to brown, 15 to 20 minutes; transfer to wire racks to cool completely.
• Form sandwiches: Place about 1 teaspoon Creamy Lemon Filling between two cookies, sugared sides facing out; squeeze gently.

LEMON CURD SPREAD

Steps:

• In a medium saucepan, whisk eggs, sugar, and zest to combine. Whisk in lemon juice; add butter.
• Cook lemon mixture over medium heat, stirring constantly, until thickened, 7 to 9 minutes. Immediately pour through a fine-mesh sieve into a bowl. Press plastic wrap directly on surface of curd, and refrigerate until cool, at least 2 hours and up to 3 days.

LEMON TASSIES

Steps:

• For candied lemon zest: Remove zest from lemons with a vegetable peeler, keeping pieces long. Remove white pith using a paring knife, and finely julienne using a very sharp knife. Place julienned zest in a small bowl; cover with boiling water. Let stand for 30 minutes; drain.
• Bring 1 cup sugar and the cool water to a boil in a small saucepan over medium-high heat. When sugar is completely dissolved, add julienned zest, reduce heat to medium-low, and cook for 10 minutes. Remove from heat, cover, and let stand overnight. Remove zest, and drain on wire rack. Roll in sugar. Dry on wire rack. Store zest in an airtight container for up to 2 weeks.
• Preheat the oven to 350 degrees with rack in upper third. Lightly butter a 24-cup mini-muffin pan; set aside. In a food processor fitted with a steel blade, combine the flour and butter. Pulse until mixture is the consistency of fine crumbs. Add the sugar, egg yolk, vanilla, lemon zest, and salt. Process until evenly incorporated and smooth; do not overprocess.
• Divide the dough into quarters. Divide each quarter into 6 pieces. Shape into balls. Place each ball in a muffin cup; press down in the centers so that the dough fits the cups snugly. Set muffin pan on a baking sheet.
• Bake until lightly browned all over and slightly darker at the edges, 15 to 20 minutes. Transfer baking sheet with muffin pan to a wire rack to cool.
• Make the filling: In an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, beat cream cheese, sugar, egg, lemon zest, lemon juice, and vanilla until completely smooth. Using a 1/4-ounce ice cream scoop, fill the cooled crusts. Bake until filling is set and just beginning to color at the edges, 10 to 12 minutes. Transfer muffin pan to a wire rack. Garnish with candied lemon peel. Let cool completely before serving. The tassies may be stored in an airtight container, refrigerated, for up to 3 days.

MARTHA STEWART'S CA. 1995 BEST LEMON CURD

Steps:

• Beat the egg yolks until well blended and lemon yellow in colour. Strain the egg yolks through a sieve into a medium-size heavy saucepan. (Sieving removes any shells or albumen; heavy saucpan prevents curdling.).
• Add the sugar and lemon juice, stir to combine, and cook over low heat, stirring constantly, for about 10-15 minutes. DO NOT HURRY THE PROCESS OR THE EGGS WILL CURDLE!
• Cook until the mixture coats the back of a wooden spoon. Remove from heat and immediately pour through another sieve to catch any "scrambled egg bits". Pour into a heat proof 4 cup measuring cup and stir in the cold butter pieces, which cools down the mixture quickly.
• Add the rind, continue stirring until well-blended.
• Transfer to whatever storage container you want: either a large one or several samll ones.
• Shelf Life: MUST BE REFRIGERATED! Keeps 2 weeks.
• Variations:.
• Lime Curd: substitute lime juice and increase grated lime peel to 2 tablespoons.
• Orange Curd: Use orange juice, decrease sugar to 2/3 cup. 1 tablespoon orange peel.
• Grapefruit Curd: Use grapefruit juice, same sugar and zest as lemon curd.

EASY LEMON CURD

Steps:

• In a medium saucepan, off heat, whisk together sugar, zest, and egg yolks; whisk in lemon juice and salt.
• Add butter and place pan over medium-high. Cook, whisking constantly, until butter has melted, mixture is thick enough to coat the back of a spoon, and small bubbles form around the edge of pan, about 5 minutes (do not boil).
• Remove pan from heat while continuing to whisk. Pour curd through a fine-mesh sieve into a glass bowl. Press plastic wrap against the surface of curd and refrigerate until cool.

GLAZED LEMON COOKIES

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 350 degrees. In a medium bowl, whisk together flour, baking soda, salt, and lemon zest. In a large bowl, using an electric mixer, beat butter and sugar until light and fluffy. Add egg, vanilla, and lemon juice and beat until combined. With mixer on low, beat in flour mixture.
• Drop dough by heaping tablespoons, 1 inch apart, onto two baking sheets. Bake until edges are golden, 15 to 20 minutes, rotating sheets halfway through. Let cool 2 minutes on sheets, then transfer cookies to a wire rack to cool completely. Spread cookies with Lemon Glaze and let set, about 1 hour.