“This set up beautifully in my Vitamix! I had my doubts but no more!! So delicious. My daughter and I are scraping the container now. Thank you for this life-changing recipe!!” ~Melanie
A genius method for making lemon curd right in your high speed blender. No messy stove top cooking, no straining, no guesswork ~ just blend your way to silky tangy lemon curd in minutes!
if you can push a button, you can make blender lemon curd
I don’t know about you, but any chance I get to save myself busy work in the kitchen I leap at it. This quick and incredibly easy blender method for making lemon curd avoids all the fussy issues we normally have making curd. It won’t over or under cook, it won’t curdle, and there’s no guesswork involved. The blender does all the work. I’ve made many many curd recipes over the years and this one is my current favorite. When something is this easy, I want to do it all the time!
what you’ll need
- fresh lemon juice
- regular lemons or Meyer lemons will work. Meyer lemons are sweeter and less tart, so plan on reducing the sugar if you use them.
- eggs
- some recipes use whole eggs, some use just the yolks, but here we’re using a mixture of whole eggs and extra yolks to make the perfect rich but still light lemon curd.
- granulated sugar
- butter
- unsalted and at room temperature.
- salt
this recipe only works with a high speed blender
What’s a high speed blender? A high speed blender is a heavy duty, extra powerful blender; it’s stronger and faster than regular machines. Vitamix, Blendtec, and Ninja, are the best known brands, but most major brands have come out with their own high speed version. Look for a blender with 1,000 – 1,700 watts: the higher the wattage, the more powerful the blender. (Here is a handy guide to high speed blenders.) I like Vitamix blenders, and this is the one I use.
how a high speed blender makes lemon curd
A high speed blender is so powerful that the friction of the blades creates heat, and can actually cook food like soups, or this curd. You’ll notice steam rising when you remove the top from your blender after making this curd. The heat inside the blender has cooked the eggs to a safe temperature (160F) and created a thick lemon curd. You can’t make this recipe with a regular blender or an immersion blender, they simply aren’t powerful enough.
- Put lemon juice, eggs, sugar and salt into your blender.
- Blend on high speed for 5 minutes.
- Turn the machine to medium power, remove the lid plug and drop pieces of room temperature butter into the curd while it is blending.
- Pour into jars and let cool, then refrigerate to firm up the lemon curd.
don’t have a high speed blender?
No worries, you can make another one of my stove top or microwave curd recipes:
your curd needs to chill to set up
Your pourable lemon curd will thicken and set up as it cools and then chills in the refrigerator. When fully chilled you’ll be able to spread it on toast, scones, muffins, or just gobble it up by the spoonful.
troubleshooting blender lemon curd
This method is so straightforward it’s almost foolproof!
The biggest issue with blender lemon curd is not having the correct type of blender ~ you need a high speed blender to cook and thicken the curd.
If your curd doesn’t thicken ~ maybe your blender isn’t powerful enough…you can always transfer it to a saucepan and gently cook it over medium to medium high heat until it thickens. You don’t want to boil your curd, so keep an eye on it. But keep in mind that the curd will be ‘pourable’ straight out of the blender, it needs time in the refrigerator to firm up.
how to store your fabulous blender lemon curd
- Always keep your lemon curd chilled. It will keep in a sealed jar in the refrigerator for one to two weeks. That should be plenty of time to enjoy the whole batch.
- You can freeze your curd ~ just be sure to cool it completely first, and leave headspace at the top of your freezer safe container to allow for expansion.
- According to food preservation expert Leda Meredith you can can curd! She says: “For longer storage, process 1/4 or 1/2-pint jars of lemon curd in a boiling water bath for 15 minutes. Once processed, jars of lemon curd will keep in the refrigerator for 3 months until they are opened (after opening, they will only last 1 to 2 weeks.)”
how to use your homemade lemon curd
- in an easy lemon trifle layered between cubes of yellow cake.
- on homemade English muffins ~ it will pool in all the nooks and crannies!
- spread on classic cream scones with some clotted cream for the ultimate afternoon tea.
- on homemade Dutch oven bread.
- puddled in the center of mini Dutch baby pancakes.
- double down on the lemon theme with perfect lemon muffins.
- as the filling for lemon macadamia crumble squares.
- spooned over perfect buttermilk pound cake or lemon chiffon cake.
Blender Lemon Curd
Equipment
- high speed blender such as Vitamix or Blendtec this is the blender I use.
Ingredients
- 1/2 cup fresh squeezed lemon juice
- 3 extra large eggs
- 2 extra large egg yolks
- 3/4 cup granulated sugar
- pinch salt
- 1/2 cup unsalted butter, at room temperature, cut into pieces (this is one stick.)
Instructions
- Put the lemon juice, eggs, sugar, and salt in your high speed blender. Blend on high for 5 minutes.
- Turn the speed down to medium and remove the little lid plug. Drop pieces of butter through the hole, one by one. Finish by blending another 30 seconds.
- Pour into a clean jar or jars. Allow to cool at room temperature, then cap the jars tightly and refrigerate until cold. Overnight is best.
- The curd will last about 10 days in the refrigerator, and can be frozen for longer storage. See details in post.
Brilliant! I made this yesterday and it was so easy and turned out perfectly.
Isn’t it such fun? It’s like magic 🙂
This set up beautifully in my Vitamix! I had my doubts but no more!! So delicious. My daughter and I are scraping the container now. Thank you for this life-changing recipe!!
I scraped my container clean!
I tried this using my Ninja high speed blender, and it was not a success. The mixture never got even the slightest bit warm, although I ran the blender for about 7 minutes. Perhaps it just needed more time, or my Ninja isn’t adequate for the job. In any case, I cooked the mixture over a double boiler to 160 degrees and the resulting curd was absolutely delicious.
I’d just bought an entire bag of organic lemons and your post came that very day. Pure synergy! The lemon curd was just as fluffy, dreamy & delightful as you promised. So thankful for you Sue, & my Vitamix!
I’m on my third batch of the week 😉
I just received a Vitamix blender for Christmas! So excited to see your post for Lemon Curd, I’ll try your recipe this weekend! Followed by blender hollandaise… the possibilities are exciting!
Will a food processor work for this recipe?
Unfortunately not, a high speed blender is needed, sorry!