Holiday Spiced Orange Curd

Every December I get organic oranges from one of my CSAs.  For a Wisconsin CSA, it’s a surprising bounty–and this year I am going to preserve some of the freshness by making Spiced Orange Curd. 

Spiced Orange Curd on Gingerbread Scones

Spiced Orange Curd on Gingerbread Scones

The holiday orange deliveries started years ago with the CSA’s beekeeper.  After pollinating summer crops in the north, the bees moved south to a Florida orchard.  Before you knew it, our CSA was getting citrus from that grower.  Don’t connections come in wonderful ways?  

I had always associated preserving citrus with marmalade which has a bitterness that I don’t care for. But curds are completely different.  Blended with egg yolks and butter they possess a richness that I compare to crossing jam with buttercream frosting. 

Zest and Juice Oranges

Zest and Juice Oranges

Cook ingredients, then stir in cut butter

Cook ingredients, then stir in cut butter

Strain finished spiced orange curd

Strain finished spiced orange curd

I recommend storing in small canning jars

I like to store in small canning jars

While I have been making fruit curds for years, starting with puckery lemon curd and a wickedly indulgent strawberry curd. But this year I decided to try a holiday-inspired spiced orange curd, based on this recipe from Food in Jars, but infused with the cinnamon and clove flavors of the season.  It is a wonderful indulgence, drizzled on toast or biscuits, delicious stirred into yogurt and the perfect accompaniment to gingerbread sconesorange-curd-on-scone-sq

Most curd recipes, including this one, are not acidic enough to can in a water bath, but will freeze perfectly.  My preference is to use small, straight sided canning jars. The size means it’s easy to finish the curd before it spoils, you don’t need to worry about chemicals in plastic, and the canning glass is tempered for extra strength.  Check out this guide for freezing in glass from Erica of Northwest Edible Life.   orange-curd-spoon-out

Aren’t winter indulgences great!

Spiced Orange Curd

Spiced Orange Curd is a wonderful indulgence, drizzled on toast or biscuits, stirred into yogurt or topping cakes, tarts or gingerbread scones.
Author: Inger
5 from 2 votes
Prep Time 10 mins
Cook Time 10 mins
Inactive Time 2 hrs
Total Time 2 hrs 20 mins
Course Condiments
Cuisine American
Servings 16
Calories 112 kcal

Ingredients
  

  • 1/2 cup orange juice from 1-3 oranges, depending on size
  • 6 egg yolks
  • 3/4 cup granulated sugar
  • 1/2 teaspoon ginger
  • 1/4 teaspoon cloves
  • 1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
  • ½ cup butter cut into cubes

Instructions
 

  • Remove the zest from the oranges with a Microplane and set it aside. Juice the oranges and measure out a generous 1/2 cup of the juice.
  • Whisk together the juice, zest, egg yolks, spices and sugar in a medium saucepan.
  • Heat the mixture over medium whisking until the curd thickens and coats the back of the spoon. The mixture should be about 165 F.
  • When the curd has thickened, remove it from the heat and stir in the butter a few cubes at a time.
  • Set a fine mesh sieve over a bowl and push the curd through. This removes the zest and any bits of scrambled egg which would hurt the smooth texture of the curd.
  • Pour the finished curd into a jar and let it cool in refrigerator. Top jar with a lid when cool.

Notes

This make about a pint (or 4 4-oz jars).
This curd keeps for 10-14 days in the fridge. If you want to keep it longer, divide it into smaller jars and freeze them.
You can use whole spices (a cinnamon stick, a few cloves, and a couple slices of fresh ginger) instead of powdered for a purer color. To do this, add them to the juice mixture and they will strain out in the straining step.

Nutrition

Calories: 112kcalCarbohydrates: 10gProtein: 1gFat: 8gSaturated Fat: 4gPolyunsaturated Fat: 1gMonounsaturated Fat: 2gTrans Fat: 0.2gCholesterol: 88mgSodium: 49mgPotassium: 25mgFiber: 0.1gSugar: 10gVitamin A: 290IUVitamin C: 4mgCalcium: 12mgIron: 0.2mg
I am not a health professional and nutrition data is calculated programatically. Accuracy may vary with product selection, calculator accuracy, etc. Consult a professional for the best information.
Tried this recipe?Let us know how it was!
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4 thoughts on “Holiday Spiced Orange Curd

  1. David

    Inger – I love the curds of all kinds! I have never made one with orange and spices, so this is something new for this holiday season! And, lucky us in the Southwest, oranges are everywhere.

    1. Inger Post author

      I visited my oldest when she was at ASU and we had so much fun walking around campus and picking oranges! One serving of fruit–check!

    1. Inger Post author

      The strawberry is my favorite–and I totally eat it from the spoon! These can be made with frozen fruit too, so winter is no barrier!

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