WW
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WolfWinter
Lemon Curd Critter Cups
Lemon Curd Ingredients
5 Egg Yolks
1 Cup/200g Sugar
4 Lemons
1 Stick/4 oz/113g of Butter
Graham Crust Ingredients
1 1/2 Cups Graham Cracker Crumbs, Finely Ground
1/3 Cup/75g White Sugar
6 Tablespoons/88.8g Melted Butter
Optional
Slivered Dark Chocolate or Dark Chocolate Sprinkles (not the sugar filled kind)
Candied Lemons
Toothpicks
Lemon candies of choice (preferably creatures, such as worms or bears)
Cinnamon (1/2 teaspoon)
Items Needed
Whisk
Medium Sauce Pan
Medium Metal Bowl (Should fit in the sauce pan, but not touch the water)
Large mixing bowl
Cupcake or Muffin Pan
Paper tin covers (like on cupcakes or muffins, make sure they fit your pan)
Instructions
Fill the medium sauce pan with enough water to go up around one inch up the side. Turn the heat up medium-high (may need to be lowered slightly for higher altitudes) and bring to a simmer. While the water is heating completely zest and juice the lemons, more lemon juice may be added to reach 1/3 cup of juice. Set aside zest and juice. Cut up the stick of butter into 1/2 to 1/4 inch pats/slabs and place back in fridge to stay chilled. In the medium bowl whisk the yolks and sugar together until smooth. Add zest and measured lemon juice into mixture and whisk again. Place bowl on top of the pot of simmering water and mix continuously until the mixture is thickened, or is thick enough to coat the back of a spoon (this usually takes ~8 minutes). When it is thickened remove from heat and mix in the butter one piece at a time, adding the next when the previous is melted completely. When it is smooth cover directly with plastic wrap, making sure as few air bubbles as possible are trapped. Leave in fridge to chill.
Place paper covers into each section of the pan, making sure they are firmly pressed down. Prepare the graham cracker crust by finely grinding enough graham crackers to make 1 1/2 cups of crumbs. This can be made, or purchased. Mix graham cracker crumbs, sugar, and butter together until well blended. Cinnamon can be added if desired. Press mixture into the bottom and sides of each section. Make sure you do not cover the paper completely so the cups can be removed without breaking or crumbling. If desired, the rounds can be baked, but this recipe is for the chilled version. Chill the pans with the crust for an hour in the fridge.
When finished chilling fill each cup until just below the top edge of the crust. Depending on the size of your pan, you can end up with extra crust or lemon curd. If desired, slivers of chocolate can be placed on top of the cups, or cover the top completely. Gummy worms, gummy bears, and other gummy candies can be placed on top, lemon flavored being preferred. You can pretend it is a marsh and have the creatures "coming out" of the curd and chocolate crust. You can even line up the cups on a plate and make a scene like people do with cupcakes, with gummy creatures running all over the top of it doing various things. You can add other items or candies too, to make the scene more dynamic. Another options is using toothpicks, and placing them in the center of whole or halved candied lemons to make little umbrellas for your critters or to just place delicately on the curd. This option works best if you layer chocolate shavings on the curd first! The chocolate will make it harder for the toothpick to slide into the curd. Or, you can get candied lemons and just place them on top of or at an angle in the curd, with or without the chocolate!
WWNote to self, maybe add lemon or lemon baked goods banners outside of post bars.
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