Lemon Posset with Shortbread Crumb
A silky stovetop lemon posset set in glasses and topped with buttery shortbread crumbs. Bright, creamy and just rich enough to feel like a treat.
- Total
- 269 min
- Prep 10 · Cook 19 · Rest 240
- Serves
- 1
- Difficulty
- Easy
You'll practice: Zesting · Balancing with acid
- Sweet
- Stovetop
Instructions
-
Finely grate the zest from 1 lemon into a small bowl, then halve and juice both lemons to get about 80 ml juice. Set the zest and juice aside.
~5 min
Zest holds the lemon's aromatic oils, while juicing releases the acid that will set the cream.
Zesting Grate only the yellow zest, stopping before the bitter white pith; a fine grater catches just the fragrant oils.
-
Pour 500 ml cream into a small saucepan with 100 g sugar and a pinch of salt. Warm over medium heat, whisking now and then, until the sugar dissolves and the cream just begins to steam and bubble at the edges, about 5 minutes. Do not let it boil hard.
~5 min
Warming dissolves the sugar and lets the cream thicken later; boiling hard can scorch it or cause splitting.
-
Take the pan off the heat and whisk in the lemon juice and half the zest. The cream will thicken slightly as the acid hits it. Pour through a fine sieve into a jug, then divide between 4 glasses.
~2 min
Acid denatures the cream proteins, thickening the mixture into a set custard-like posset.
Whisk the lemon juice in off the heat: boiling cream with acid can split the mixture and leave it grainy instead of silky.
Balancing with acid Add lemon off the heat and taste: enough acid sets the cream, too much makes it sharp and grainy.
-
Let the glasses cool on the counter for 15 minutes, then refrigerate uncovered until the posset is fully set and no longer wobbles when nudged, at least 4 hours.
~255 min
Cooling first prevents condensation, and chilling lets the acid-set proteins firm up fully.
If the posset is still soft after 4 hours, chill it longer rather than adding more lemon, which would make it taste sharp.
-
While step 4 rests
While the possets chill, crush 80 g shortbread in a bag or bowl into coarse crumbs, leaving some bigger pieces for crunch.
~3 min
-
Scatter the shortbread crumbs over the set possets and finish with the remaining lemon zest. Serve cold.
~2 min