Coconut Macaroons With Lemon Curd

With a more intense flavor than jam or jelly, curd is a traditional spread for cookies, tea cakes, and other delicate sweets. Here, the airy lightness of coconut macaroons is the perfect base for a generous dollop of lemon curd in the center, and the temperature contrast just makes everything that much more delicious.

Curd is a prime example of the culinary magic that you can accomplish through clever use of eggs, but it does take some care to make it work correctly. The trick is to cook the eggs without scrambling them: coconut macaroons with scrambled egg filling doesn’t sound nearly as tasty. That’s what the ghee is for: beating the ghee with the eggs is a surefire way to completely avoid this problem. You can skip it if you must, but be very careful not to let the eggs start scrambling when you heat them up.

The curd recipe also calls for half a cup of honey to help balance out the intensity of the lemons. You can experiment with reducing this, but if you take it out completely you’ll end up with a bitter and unappetizing curd.

If you have extra curd in the end, you can eat it straight off the spoon, or experiment with using it in other desserts (maybe a smear of curd on top of some ice cream?) It keeps in the fridge for a week – if you can make it last that long!

Coconut Macaroons With Lemon Curd Recipe

SERVES: 4 PREP: 15 min. COOK: 40 min.

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Ingredients

• 3 cups sweetened coconut flakes;
• 2/3 cup coconut or almond milk;
• 1 egg white;
• 1/2 tsp. vanilla extract;
• 1 tsp. fresh lemon juice;
• 1 tsp. lemon zest;
• 1/8 tsp. sea salt;

Ingredients for the lemon curd

• 5 tbsp. of ghee, softened at room temperature;
• ½ cup raw honey;
• 2 eggs;
• 2 egg yolks;
• 2/3 cup fresh lemon juice;
• 1 tsp. grated lemon zest; (optional)

Lemon Curd Preparation

1. Combine the honey and ghee in a large bowl and beat with a mixer for about 2 to 3 minutes.
2. Add the 2 eggs and the 2 egg yolks, one at a time, while beating.
3. Add the lemon juice and mix for another minute. At this point, the mixture should look curdled (although it really isn’t).
4. Cook the lemon mixture in a saucepan over a medium-low heat,  until it gets smooth and creamy.
5. Increase the heat to medium and cook, stirring almost constantly, until the mixture thickens (about 15 minutes).
6. Try a taste of the curd, and stir in the lemon zest if you’d prefer it a little tangier.
7. Transfer the curd to a bowl, cover the surface with plastic wrap, and refrigerate until the curd is cold and thick.

Coconut Macaroon Preparation

1. Preheat your oven to 325 F.
2. Combine all the ingredients for the macaroons in a large bowl and mix well.
3. Scoop out about 2 tbsp. of the dough and place on a baking sheet.
4. Form the cookies into the shape of little bowls, with a depression in the middle (this is where you’ll put the curd later).
5. Place the cookies in the oven and bake for 15 to 20 minutes.
6. Remove the cookies from the oven and let them rest for 5 minutes.
7. Fill each coconut macaroon with lemon curd and serve.