Lemon Curd and Sister Pie

I found this method for making lemon curd online somewhere- I recall that it was named after the Ecuadorian line cooks the chef stole it from.   It's basically that recipe, but I cut the sugar and increase the lemon, because wimpy lemon desserts are not acceptable in my family.    If you don't bite into it and feel that little burst of tang in the back of your tongue, you're a terrible disappointment to your mother.

So you can cut down the zest and the lemon in this recipe, and bump the sugar, but don't tell me about it so I can't judge you:

Extra Easy Lemon Curd

‎2/3 cup sugar (or 3/4, but I like it tart)
1/4 to 1/3 fresh squeezed lemon juice, and the zest of 1 1/2 lemons
good pinch of salt
3 egg yolks
1 cup water
1/4 cup cornstarch
1 tbl. butter

Mix the water with the cornstarch. Throw everything into the food processor and process thoroughly. Dump into a saucepan and with low heat cook until it's bubbly and very thick. Done.

You can use the above recipe to make what I think of as "Sister Pie".   I developed it for my sister's birthday, in an attempt to duplicate a family favorite- dark chocolate lemon truffles from Ethel M.'s chocolates in Las Vegas.   These are deeply treasured foodstuffs, and a gift of them is a tangible sign of your love and selflessness, because you managed not to eat them first.   

Sometime, I will talk about pastry crust, because according to my mother, who spoke to me sternly and very passionately about this yesterday, a pie without a rolled pastry crust is just a dessert.  It doesn't qualify as a pie, and she is outraged in her soul when cheaters win pie contests with graham cracker and cookie crusts.  It's an insult to her art form.   I'm still calling this a pie, although this is the worst kind of offense:  a store bought cookie crust.  Shamed.  

Sister Pie

1 oreo cookie crust 

1 batch of lemon curd 

1/3 cup cream or half and half

about 2/3 cup really good dark chocolate chips 

whipped cream to serve

garnish

Before you make the curd, make a ganache.   Heat the cream to scalding in the microwave, or a saucepan on the stove.  Remove from heat, add the chocolate, and walk away for two minutes.   Blend until silky and thick.  Coat the bottom and the sides of the crust with this and refrigerate.

Now make the lemon curd.    Cool for 10 minutes, and pour on top of the ganache, which should be set before you do that.   If you're in a hurry, freeze it while you're working on the curd.  

Chill until thoroughly cool and set.  You can garnish with whipped cream and chocolate shavings, if you're a fancy bitch.