Lemon lovers, rejoice! Easy Keto Lemon Curd takes only 4 ingredients and is the creamiest, dreamiest lemon dessert sauce. And it has less than 1g of carbs per serving!
I’ve been making my own sugar free lemon curd for what feels like a gajillion years now. I made my first batch in 2011 and was astonished that it worked out so well. And I’ve been improving upon that recipe ever since.
It’s one of those recipes that always surprises me when I taste it. I seemingly forget how much I like keto lemon curd between batches. And then when I make it again, I wonder why I don’t make it more often.
If you love lemon, I dare you not to eat the whole batch in one sitting. If you can resist the temptation, then you can use it to make Keto Lemon Curd Tart. Or spread it over Keto Cheesecake for an out-of-this-world keto dessert experience!
Why you need to try it
When I embarked upon writing the Easy Keto Desserts cookbook, I struck upon a trick for making sugar free lemon curd even easier than before: using whole eggs.
Typically, lemon curd calls for just the yolks. But using the whole egg works just as well and eliminates the step of separating the yolks from the whites. Less fuss, less muss, and nothing sitting in your fridge, waiting to be used up.
I’ve been making it this way ever since. It’s a little creamier and a little fluffier, and it doesn’t curdle quite as easily. And it takes only 20 minutes to make!
Reader Reviews
“I love this recipe. I can’t count how many times I’ve made it. Today I was out of fresh lemons, so I made it with bottled key lime juice and it was awesome. Thank you!!!” — Martha
“Amazing recipe!! Much easier than the lemon curd I used to make before I went keto!” — Sarah
“Wow, this stuff is delicious! I could sit and eat it with a spoon. I doubled the recipe and it took about 20 minutes to get thick. I can’t wait to make your ice cream with it!” — Becky
Ingredients you need
- Lemons: Curd uses both the zest and the juice of the lemons. Make sure to wash the lemons well before zesting.
- Eggs: No need to separate the eggs for this easy keto lemon curd recipe!
- Butter: This helps firm up the curd and makes it extra creamy. You can also use coconut oil for a dairy-free version.
- Sweetener: I find that a combination of Swerve Confectioners and allulose gives the best results. See the Expert Tips section for more options.
Step by Step Directions
1. Use a double boiler: Set a glass or ceramic bowl over a pan of barely simmering water.
2. Whisk and cook: Whisk together the eggs, sweeteners, lemon juice, and lemon zest. Whisk continuously until the mixture thickens, about 10 minutes. Watch carefully as it will thicken all of a sudden.
3. Add butter: Immediately remove from heat and add the butter. Let sit a few minutes to melt and then whisk until smooth and creamy.
4. Refrigerate: Chill in the refrigerator for 2 hours to set.
Expert Tips
Always use a glass or ceramic bowl when making lemon curd. Lemon juice reacts with metal bowls and can give the curd a tinny or metallic taste.
The trick to perfect keto lemon curd is to take it off the heat at just the right moment. Keep a close eye on it at all times. The mixture will start to move more slowly and your whisk will begin to make tracks through it. The mixture will also become more opaque. Once it does, remove the bowl from over the pan to stop the cooking process.
Sweetener options: Curd relies on eggs to set properly so you can use your preferred sweetener. But do note that curd made with allulose alone takes a long time to thicken properly. It also stays a lot softer, even after refrigeration. Do not use liquid allulose, as it will introduce too much liquid into the mixture.
Using erythritol based sweeteners alone will cause some recrystallization. This is why I recommend a combination of sweeteners like Swerve and allulose.
Dairy-free option: You can make dairy-free lemon curd by replacing the butter with coconut oil. Use only 3 tablespoons in place of the 1/4 cup of butter.
Frequently Asked Questions
Conventional curd has about 20g of carbs per serving of 2 to 3 tablespoons. However, this keto lemon curd recipe has only 0.7g carbs per serving. So you can enjoy it with abandon!
Homemade lemon curd can be refrigerated in an airtight container for up to 7 days. I recommend storing it in glass jars so that the acidity doesn’t react with the container. You can freeze this sugar free lemon curd, but it does change consistency a little during the freezing and thawing process.
I have not tried canning this sugar free lemon curd but it should work. Lemon has a great deal of acidity, which significantly reduces the risk of spoilage and contamination. Make sure your jars seal properly and store in a cool dark place for up to 3 months.
How to use Keto Lemon Curd
So once you’ve made this sweet and tangy lemon spread, what do you do with it? I mean, besides just eating it with a spoon! Here are some delicious ideas:
- Use as a spread for keto scones. It’s amazing with keto blueberry muffins too!
- Serve as alternative to syrup for almond flour keto pancakes.
- Make this gorgeous Keto Lemon Lush.
- Use it as the filling for Keto Lemon Bar Cookies.
- Churn up a batch of Keto Lemon Ice Cream.
Keto Lemon Curd Recipe
Ingredients
- 3 large eggs
- 1/3 cup Swerve Confectioners
- 3 tbsp allulose, or BochaSweet (use granular varieties)
- 2 teaspoons grated lemon zest
- 1/3 cup freshly squeezed lemon juice
- 1/4 cup butter, cut into 3 or 4 pieces
Instructions
- Set a glass or ceramic bowl over a pan of barely simmering water.
- Whisk together the eggs, sweeteners, lemon juice, and lemon zest. Whisk continuously until the mixture thickens, about 10 minutes. Watch carefully as it will thicken all of a sudden.
- Immediately remove from heat and add the butter. Let sit a few minutes to melt and then whisk until smooth and creamy.
- Refrigerate 2 to 3 hours to firm up.
Video
Notes
Nutrition
Nutritional Disclaimer
Please note that I am not a medical or nutritional professional. I am simply recounting and sharing my own experiences on this blog. Nothing I express here should be taken as medical advice and you should consult with your doctor before starting any diet or exercise program. I provide nutritional information for my recipes simply as a courtesy to my readers. It is calculated using MacGourmet software and I remove erythritol from the final carb count and net carb count, as it does not affect my own blood glucose levels. I do my best to be as accurate as possible but you should independently calculate nutritional information on your own before relying on them. I expressly disclaim any and all liability of any kind with respect to any act or omission wholly or in part in reliance on anything contained in this website.
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I would love to make a lemon pavlova dessert with this curd and top with fresh berries! Do you have a sugar-free meringue recipe?
https://alldayidreamaboutfood.com/shannons-sugar-free-meringues-low-carb-and-gluten-free/
Does this work with regular Spleand?
I meant Splenda
I don’t use Splenda so I really couldn’t say. sorry!
Mmmm so much amazing lemony flavor! This lemon curd is awesome!
Wow this is great! Sharing with all my KETO friends!
So lemony delicious — love it!
This looks delicious and so refreshing! Can’t wait to make!
This lemon curd is amazing! So happy I found this recipe!
I’m still loving every lick of this recipe, but even though I used Swerve confectioner, when it had fully chilled the Swerve crystallized. To the best of your opinion, would liquid sweetener work with this, or is the bulk needed to thicken it up? Hoping liquid could solve the problem.
It does rely some on bulk sweetener and mine doesn’t recrystallize like this. I don’t know why it does for you… but you could try using 1/2 Bocha Sweet in place of half the Swerve. That helps offset the recrystallization. I don’t know that a liquid sweetener would work.
Oh my… First time in years, I’ve licked the whisk and bowl. Absolutely a Keeper !
Have you tried this in the Instant Pot?
No, and I don’t think it would do well. It’s so easy on the stove, why would you need a pressure cooker.
Ohmigawd, how can I stop myself from eating this all at once! Sooooooo delicious and easy.Thank you so much. I wonder, however, how you got 8 servings at 3 Tbs. per serving? I only managed to get just over 4 portions. Don’t get me wrong, that’s fine but it means more calories, carbs etc. When I put the ingredients into Cronometer I also came up with much higher carb count. I always wonder about that. How the recipe maker comes up with the carb counts, or nutritional info. When I do it, it invariably comes out differently. I much prefer your count, lol. I used only half the swerve as well, so it’s a drag that I have higher “nutritional facts” count. Any insights would be much appreciated.
Hi there. Is your Chronometer by chance counting the erythritol in the Swerve? I use a software package that I had to pay for, one that pulls from the USDA database, so it’s accurate. But I don’t count erythritol at all, as I make clear in my nutritional disclaimer, because it doesn’t affect blood sugar at all.
When I make mine, which I have several times, I get 1 1/2 cups worth of curd. That’s 24 tablespoons, so 8 servings if a serving is 3 tablespoons. Not sure why you would be getting less. Smaller eggs?
This is fantastic and so easy! I used xylitol and made it into your lemon curd ice cream. A beautiful recipe!
Recipe??
This recipe turned out really nice, but I modified it a bit. On principle I don’t like using brand names in my recipes if I can avoid it, so I used about 4-5 drops of liquid Stevia and a 1/4 cup of powdered (not granular, powdered is more dense) erythritol and it came out quite nice. I also scaled the ingredients up by 1/3 to get a little more volume. Note the sweetener I used was more than adequate for the additional egg, etc.
Excellent, I ended up using Meyer lemons and didn’t realize that they are sweet in comparison to regular lemons. Fortunately I didn’t use a full 1/2 cup of sweetener. This turn out beautiful, smooth, creamy and lemony. For a pretty parfait, I layer it with sour cream and fresh organic blackberries, what a treat. I have been on a low carb diet for 4 months and have lost a little over 20 pounds. I have been avoiding desserts, as I thought disappointed. This was so good and easy, that I bought Easy Keto Desserts for my Kindle.
Sounds lovely! Glad you liked it.
Mi attampt failed me just no, feeling down hearted it’s just runny tastes like the real deal, but like custard…any ideas what to do with it apart from use as it is.
Julie.
Hi Carolyn,
I’m hoping to make some classic lemon bars. Would you guesstimate that this recipe poured over a crust and baked would be a good idea and firm up enough to cut into bars?
Thank you
I haven’t tried lemon bars this way. I actually do have a lemon bar recipe but it’s going in a future (BIG) baking cookbook which won’t be out for a while. You could try just baking this over my shortbread crust but it may need something to help firm it up a bit.