I want to put lemon curd in the filling of my lemon cake. A few questions:
1 - does it have to be refrigerated?
2 - do I need to put down a thin layer of buttercream so it doesn't soak into the cakes and make them soggy?
3 - will it be too lemony? Should I stick with just buttercream?
Thanks!
1 - does it have to be refrigerated?
No.
2 - do I need to put down a thin layer of buttercream so it doesn't soak into the cakes and make them soggy?
No. Lemon curd is VERY thick. It will not soak into the cake at all.
3 - will it be too lemony? Should I stick with just buttercream?
Depends on what your definition of "too lemony" is. Lemon curd has a bright, strong lemon flavor. I could eat it with a spoon. I fill most of my lemon cakes with it and use lemon buttercream, too!
I've heard that lemon curd needs to be refrigerated as well. I would love for this to be true since I have a wedding that wants lemon filling.
Is there any source online that can confirm or deny this? I'm searching now and I can't find any official source.
I bet a lot of people have not refrigerated lemon curd successfully but it only takes one bad batch to cause a disaster.
Well here you go...for all of you wandering about lemon curd...it doesn't get any more technical than this!
http://class.fst.ohio-state.edu/fst696/Problems/lemoncurd-fina-%20report.html
I've done lemon curd filling between 2 very thin layers of white chocolate buttercream on a lemon cake - yummy! I have put it between layers without the BC and it did soak in - but it wasn't soggy, there was just an area of cake and lemon curd yumminess between the layers of cake! It was more like a filling than anything else. I did not refridgerate, and it was fine. I admit, I did not look anywhere on line to see if it would be fine. I treated it the same as any jam or jelly that I've used between layers since it came in a glass jar like jams and jellies.
Well here you go...for all of you wandering about lemon curd...it doesn't get any more technical than this!
http://class.fst.ohio-state.edu/fst696/Problems/lemoncurd-fina-%20report.html
Well, there you go then! I guess I was wrong (hey, I *can* admit it, contrary to popular belief! 
). I must confess I've only ever used the stuff from the jar and didn't realize the eggs were in greater proportion than the lemon juice.
So, refrigerate. But, even so, it should be fine out for a couple hours at a wedding.
Would you agree with that, Mike?
This is what they told me at cooking school regarding temperature danger zone:
The temperature danger zone is the temperature at which bacteria multiply rapidly. The temperature is from 40 degree Fahrenheit to 140 degree Fahrenheit. Foods should not be allowed to stay in this temperature zone for more than 2 hours (1 hour on a very hot day).
So...this is a very conservative range. I guess If a cake is out of the fridge and consumed within two hours it won;t even be in the temperature danger zone that much because by the time that evil lemon curd reaches the dangerous temperature it will need some time to warm up.
Well, LOLOL Most of it flew by my senile old head. Don't cook your curd to 170. Unless you want lemon flavored scrambled eggs
Mike
oh no no ....i meant that is the temperature range where bacteria grows when food is sitting out...so it means don;t have the cake or any other finished food product at a temperature between 40 and 140 degrees for more than two hours. that's why foods that are meant to be eaten cold have to be at a 40 degree temp in salad bars for example, and foods that need to be eaten hot at temp above 140. (like soups etc).
This is only for perishable foods (in this case the concern is the eggs in the lemon curd).
Yeah, that was too much science for me and I don't cdare what it says. Mike your my man, but I disagree with you as well. I'vr had it out up to 3 days, many times, and nothing has ever happened.
Well there you go. I'm going with what Loucinda read.
I made a cake recently... coconut cake, lemon curd as the filling and coconut frosting (YUM!... all recipes from this site, btw). I would definitely say it was not too lemony.
Lemon curd is pretty close the the lemon part of lemon meringue pie. If you don't find that too lemony, then you would definitely not find lemon curd as a filling in the cake too lemony, as it's a much thinner layer.
I have in my hand a brand new, unopened jar of Dickinson's lemon curd. The label says "Best if used by Dec 26, 2010" and "Refrigerate after opening".
I am confused. If it will last that long in the refrigerator it has to have added preservatives, correct? Wouldn't those preservatives help keep it more stable when it is in a cake at room temperature as well?
I use this lemon curd to fill my (hobby) lemon cakes and have let them sit out for several hours, sometimes even overnight, with no ill effects. Have I just been lucky so far?
Not arguing, just wondering. 
Kim
I don't think my home made lemon curd will last that long, but it is fine sitting out over night. So maybe we've both been lucky. 
These are the key statements in my opinion:
"The microbiological shelf stability results suggested that the lemon curd incubated at 25° C and 37 ° C was susceptible at 7 days to mold contamination once the jar was opened (see Table 4.6)."
>>>This is room temperature with mold contamination at 7 days after opening. 3-4 days shouldn't be a big problem.
"The high concentration of sugar in the product and the low pH in combination could play a key role on the prevention of bacterial growth in the product."
>>>In other words, it takes a while for bacterial growth to start due to the sugar and pH level. Also meaning that it's not too sensitive.
"In summary, the best solutions for this product are to use sodium benzoate at a level of 0.1% and include the instructions "refrigerate after opening" on the package to assure microbiological stability of the product over the desired shelf life. "
>>>So using the additive and refrigerating after opening will ensure stability over the desired shelf life...probably much, much longer than the 3-4 days a cake lasts at my house.
According to this report, it sounds like a few days out of the fridge are not going to be a problem. I certainly haven't had any problems since I started using it.
jenny
The commercial stuff has an additive to retard bacterial growth (see the post above), so I would have no qualms about filling a wedding cake with this on Thursday that will be kept at room temperature until Saturday - in fact I have many, many times with no issues (I don't refridgerate ANY cakes, so I have to be happy that they are safe at room temp for several days!). Homemade curd, not so much, that I wouldn't take the chance on. Just buy the best commercial curd you can afford and fill away !
We all must be too young to remember...............
Eggs never use to be refirdaraters years ago when they were at the grocery store. They sat out for many days. Yes we have come a long way in learning what is good or bad. I say it can be left out.
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