Lemon Curd Cupcakes.

Yesterday I made Lemon Curd Cupcakes and posted a picture of them on my Facebook page. Several of you asked for the recipe, so here it is.

These yummy cupcake have a lemon pound cake texture with a yummy pop of lemon curd. I got this recipe from Martha Stewart's Cupcakes book.

The recipe calls for Meyer Lemons but I used fresh lemons off my Dad's tree.

3 1/2 cups of all purpose flour, sifted

2 tablespoons lemon zest, plus 2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice

1/2 teaspoon baking powder

1 1/2 teaspoon coarse salt

1 3/4 (3 1/2 sticks) unsalted butter, room temp.

3 cups graduated sugar

8 oz cream cheese, room temp.

7 large eggs

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

Confectioner's sugar for dusting.

 Pre-heat over to 325. Line muffins tins with paper liners.

Whisk together flour, zest baking powder and salt.

With an electric mixer on med. speed, cream butter and sugar until pale and fluffy. Beat in cream cheese.  Reduce speed and add eggs, on at a time . Beat in lemon juice and vanilla. Add flour mixture in three batches until combined. Bake for 28 minutes. When cooled dust with confectioners sugar.

Lemon Curd.

2 whole eggs plus 8 egg yolks

1 cup sugar

2/3 fresh lemon juice( about 6 lemons)

2 tablespoons unsalted butter cut into small pieces, room temp.

Combine whole eggs and yolks, sugar, and lemon juice in a heatproof bowl set over a pan of simmering water.

Cook, whisking constantly, until mixture is thick enough to coat the back of a spoon.  This take a while so don't get discouraged.

Remove from heat, add butter a few pieces at a time, whisking until smooth.

Strain through a fine sieve into another bowl and cover with plastic wrap, pressing it directly on surface to prevent a skin. Refrig, until chilled and firm, at least 2 hours.

Using a pastry bag, insert tip into cupcake and squeeze some curd into cupcake and lift tip to create a small mound on top of cupcake.

Now this seems like a lot of work and it is, but these are incredible and well worth the time.