At long last one of our fruit trees produced enough fruit to make preserves!

Our Tahitian Lime tree is inside the cat enclosure and protected from parrots, so our limes ripened without interference.  I used a Lime Curd recipe in a book I was given late last year:  Marisa McClellan’s ‘Food in jars:  Preserving in small batches year-round‘.   Lime Curd is similar to Lemon Butter, but has a thinner texture.  According to McClellan, it can be used as a spread, mixed with yoghurt or as the first layer of a fruit tart, with raspberries arranged on top.  I tried using it as a filling for a Lemon Meringue Pie, but this is where the thinner texture mattered.  The lime curd became sauce-like with heat, and did not provide a stable base for the meringue, turning it into a bit of a slushy mess – but a delicious slushy mess.

Having applied the taste test once, I’m keeping the other bottle for later use…and yes, I will certainly be making more Lime Curd with the next crop of limes.