Grapefruit curd pie

A nod to my sunny California days. I made a curd with grapefruits from my friend’s tree! I added corn starch to solidify the microwave curd, poured it into a homemade graham cracker crust and topped it with an almond-flavored whipped cream and candied grapefruit peel. It was light, fresh and fantastic!

Thanks to Trish from Mom on Time Out for the microwave curd I’ve used over and over again! It works with any citrus.

*Naptime tip: Candy the peels and whip the cream while they sleep, then put those little fingers to work on pressing the crust into the pan.

(Slightly adapted from http://www.momontimeout.com/2014/01/homemade-microwave-lemon-curd/)

Eating outside in the winter in the Bay Area was the best!

For the curd:

Makes about 1 pint OR 2 cups

Ingredients

• ½ cup unsalted butter
• 1¼ cups granulated sugar
• 3 eggs
• 1 egg yolk
• 1 cup fresh citrus juice
• zest from 3 lemons or limes or 1 grapefruit (candy the rest of the peels)
• 2 tsp. corn starch mixed with 2 tsp. water

Directions

1. Melt butter in microwave, set aside to cool slightly.
2. Whisk together sugar and eggs in a medium-sized microwave-safe bowl.
3. Whisk in grapefruit (or other citrus) juice and zest.
4. Finally whisk in the butter.
5. Microwave on 50% power for one minute. Stir.
6. Continue microwaving at 100% power in one minute intervals, stirring after each interval until the mixture is thick enough to coat the back of a spoon. (The curd will thicken as it cools.)
7. If using curd for pie, pour in corn starch slurry and whisk to combine.
8. Strain curd through a fine-mesh sieve to remove zest.
9. Pour curd into a jar for later use or directly into a pre-baked graham cracker crust.
10. Refrigerate for 2 hours or until set.
11. Serve cold with sweetened almond-flavored whipped cream and candied peel.