Grapefruit Vanilla Curd; a creamy and tangy curd perfumed with bittersweet grapefruit and smooth vanilla, perfect for dressing up your bakes.
Do you ever experience foods or flavours popping into your mind, begging to be eaten, without any real explanation?
Maybe it’s time for that rediscovery of bread and salted butter. Maybe you really fancy macaroni cheese made with something spicy. Maybe you just know you want something crunchy in your mouth. Something puts it in your brain, and it’s very hard to get out sometimes without satisfying that desire.
This week, similarly inexplicably, grapefruit and vanilla have been circling my head. A dessert? Breakfast? Two flavours to whack together on an ice cream cone? The source is unclear, but I wanted them, and I wanted them together.
Something about that nostalgic perfume of vanilla with the somewhat controversial bittersweet flavour of grapefruit. Let me tell you, it works.
This grapefruit vanilla curd is a gorgeous creamy spread or filling that balances buttery, citrusy, sweet, and tangy all in one. Slather it thickly across a slice of bread or loaf cake. Spoon it over scones. Drizzle it over the creamy topping of a pavlova. Swirl it into yoghurt. Dunk an errant biscuit into it. Basically, it’s good, and it’s good in lots of different ways.
Even if you’re (like me) the kind of person that just spoons spreads and sauces straight into your gob for maximum enjoyment, you’ll have no problems here.
It’s a bit old-fashioned as a recipe, but a curd is truly difficult to beat as an addictive creamy spread when made well. This particular version takes inspiration from a lemon vanilla curd posted here on Maverick Baking years ago, and would make just as good a companion as a lemon equivalent in the coconut layer cake it was paired with.
As long as you have a couple of bowls, a saucepan, and a whisk, you’re good to go. (It can also technically be made in a wide frying pan, but it’s less than optimal, and risks scrambling the eggs instead of cooking them to creamy perfection.) You’ll need 10 to 15 minutes of time to bring it all together into smooth loveliness, and a little while to refrigerate until cold, but truly a low-effort treat all in all.
Grate, juice, stir, pour, chill, spoon, eat. I can think of plenty more complicated ways to make something creamy and delicious.
To make this grapefruit vanilla curd, simply follow the recipe below:
Ingredients
- 2 pink grapefruit
- 200g (1 cup) caster or golden caster sugar
- 100g (6 ½ tbsp) butter
- 1 tsp vanilla bean paste, or a pinch of vanilla powder
- Pinch of salt
- 4 eggs
Instructions
- Into a heatproof bowl, grate the zest of both grapefruits.
- Squeeze in the juice of one and a half of the grapefruits.
- Add your sugar, butter, vanilla, and salt.
- Place the bowl over a pan of gently simmering water and allow the ingredients to gently melt together, whisking occasionally.
- Crack your eggs into a separate bowl and beat them together.
- Gradually pour the eggs into the bowl of grapefruit mixture, whisking constantly.
- Continue whisking for 5-10 minutes until the mixture has warmed and thickened to the texture of custard.
- Pour your cooked grapefruit vanilla curd into a heatproof jug, before pouring into sealable containers.
- Allow to cool, then refrigerate until ready to use.
- Enjoy!
BE A MAVERICK: why not swap out one of the grapefruits for a blood orange for extra colour and seasonal flavour?
This grapefruit vanilla curd will keep well in a sealed container in the fridge for up to a week, but is best enjoyed fresh.
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