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Author:
Franco Salzillo
Lemon curd is a buttery custard with the sweetest flavor and the most addictive tang. There’s no doubt lemon curd is a wonderful dessert in its own right.
Still, there are many ways of using lemon curd for more sophisticated desserts. Here’s where today’s lemon curd mini pies come in. Think of pretty two-biters with a crumbly homemade crust and a creamy, lemony filling!
I’m genuinely shocked at how we’ve ignored lemon curd for so long while we celebrate any other type of custardy treat. Lemon curds are not only creamy, buttery and unctuously delicious, they’re also lively and tangy, and that makes them so much more interesting than cream pastries and the likes.
Well, today, we’re paying an homage to the lemon curd, making it at home and using it to fill a few mini pies. These small desserts will certainly bring lemon curd back to the spotlight.
To make these beauties, you must first make the dough for the pie crust. That’s cream cheese, butter, sugar and flour — this crust is crumbly but moist. For the lemon curd, you need lemon juice and zest, eggs, sugar and butter. I recommend topping the pies with a few dabs of whipped cream, either from a can or a piping bag, for a nicer presentation.
Making pie crusts is easy. Combine all the ingredients and mix until you get a smooth dough. Divide it into the number of mini pies you’re making and press it into the bottom of a few cupcake tins. Bake the crusts before filling the pies!
Making lemon curd is effortless as well. As mentioned before, you can even serve lemon curd as-is. Of course, lemon curd is much more enjoyable when used as a pie filling! Now, let’s check out the recipe and see what I mean.
Let’s start with the most crucial ingredient, the lemon curd. This one comes together when you combine eggs, sugar, butter, lemon juice and lemon zest. All in a saucepan over a low flame. The citrusy curd thickens nicely on the stove-top, but it gets even thicker in the fridge, so don’t forget to let it rest at low temperatures for a while.
As for the pie crusts, you can use whatever you want. Even store-bought pie crusts will do. Still, if you’re feeling crafty, make your own pie crusts with a frozen short pastry crust and a cupcake tin. The secret here is keeping the pastry very thin and not overcooking it. When in doubt, get ready-made mini pie crust. After all, what matters most in this recipe is the homemade lemon curd!
I love garnishing lemon curd pies with piped whipped cream to give the desserts a more high-end look, but just a dab of whipped cream will work equally well. Vanilla ice cream is also compatible with creamy pies, especially if you get some really fancy ice cream!
For the pie pastry:
For the lemon curd filling:
Preheat the oven to 350°F, butter a twelve-cupcake tin.
In a mixing bowl, combine the cream cheese and the butter and sugar until frothy.
Add the flour a little at a time until you get a smooth dough.
Divide the dough into twelve equal-sized balls and use your finger to press the dough into each cupcake tin, leaving a lifted edge.
Bake the pie pastries for 10 minutes until hard and golden. Set aside until cooled down to room temperature and unmold.
To make the lemon curd, combine the lemon juice, zest, sugar, eggs and butter in a saucepan and cook over a medium flame for 5-8 minutes until the first bubbles form. Set aside and cool down.
To assemble the lemon curd pies, fill each pie crust with the lemon curd filling. Smoothen the surface with a knife and refrigerate for at least 30 minutes before serving.
Pipe a few dollops of whipped cream over each pie before serving.
