Vegan Lemon Curd - The Loopy Whisk (2024)

This vegan lemon curd is the real deal. Lemony, luscious, and with a perfect balance between tart and sweet, it also has that perfect lemon curd consistency: runny yet thick, good both for drizzling and for spreading on cookies or cake. And, perhaps most importantly, it has that beautiful golden yellow colour of a proper lemon curd. All that, with no eggs and no dairy!

Lemon desserts can be tricky if you eat an egg-free or vegan diet. Right…?

Actually: no.

I know it can seem intimidating, especially with something like lemon curd, which most can’t imagine without the bazillion egg yolks and the abundance of butter. And guys, I love me some luscious, tart, lemony lemon curd. I could eat it with a spoon.

So when somebody on Instagram remarked that lemon desserts are a pain if you can’t eat eggs… that’s when the brainstorming began. Many vegan lemon curd recipes, while delicious, fall short when it comes to their texture and appearance. Some are jelly-like, all wobbly and too thick. Some are pale, almost white in colour, not even close to the golden yellow of proper lemon curd.

Now, I know that the original complaint concerned egg free lemon curd (and lemon desserts in general), but because I’m somewhat of an overachiever, I went all the way to vegan.

So I did some tweaking, some experimenting (because that’s what we Chemists do), and… would you look at that:

Yep, this vegan lemon curd ticks all the boxes:

• It has the perfect consistency: runny yet thick, good both for drizzling and for spreading on cookies or cake.

• It’s super lemony, with just the right balance between tartness and sweetness.

• It’s incredibly decadent and luscious, with the shine and ‘butteriness’ that usually comes from adding heaps of butter – just, you know, here it’s achieved without all that butter.

• It has the most amazing golden yellow colour, as any good lemon curd should.

• And it’s gluten, dairy and egg free – and, of course, vegan.

Simply put, it’s darn good. And you’ll want to have a jar on hand… all the time.

The process is equally simple and quick: requiring only about 15 minutes and 7 ingredients.

Let me guide you though one of the simplest recipes out there:

1. First, we’ll get our ingredients together: a couple of lemons, sugar, cornstarch or arrowroot powder and a pinch of salt.

2. Then, we’ll cook everything in a small saucepan on medium-high heat, with constant stirring, until it thickens up – about 10 minutes.

3. We’ll add a pinch of turmeric for the colour. This is a handy trick – while you can’t really taste the turmeric, it gives this delicious vegan lemon curd the colour it deserves.

4. Finally, we’ll stir in some coconut oil and coconut cream.

5. Aaaaand… that’s it.

Yep, it’s THAT simple.

Now, I’ve experimented with adding only coconut oil or only coconut cream – and only the combination of the two gives that perfect lemon curd consistency. (Too many “only-s” in one sentence?) Too much coconut oil and you end up with a strangely viscous gloop, too much coconut cream and you get a lemony soup. But add both – and you’ve got yourself a little jar of lemon heaven.

The possibilities of how to use this lemony goodness are endless. On cookies, on cakes, on pancakes or crepes… but, personally, I prefer it on a spoon.

So if you can’t eat eggs or dairy, of if you’re a vegan (or have a friend who’s vegan) – make this lemon curd, and you’ll never have to miss lemon desserts again.