Busy, busy, bluster. Visiting father-in-law and uncle-in-law, an all girls Christmas party hosted by a neighbor and artiste. Spicy carrot ginger soup, mac and cheese, meatballs studded with dried currants and pine nuts and almonds. Have you ever played Dirty Santa? Have you ever seen a live outdoor Nativity acted out by little kids dressed up in bathrobes (they’re the Wise Men…no, wait, they’re the shepherds), narrated in English and Spanish?* The winds. The holidays. Oh, Lordy.

We have cheer. We have cozy. Thank God we also have heat. Oh yes, it’s back, and it feels so good. Hot damn, it’s efficient.

And now that the weather has dipped below 80 degrees and the wind and the chill have come back, things finally feel like Christmas. We got the tree up (a white pine - one string of lights was dangling from its branches for about a week until Kelly took over), the boughs and the branches scattered over the mantel and swooped along the front porch. We bought mistletoe from a scarred-face burly cop selling evergreens on the side of the road. He harvests his crop each year by shooting the stuff out of trees. Yee-haw!

I’ve been making toffee, OK, a lot of toffee, and giving it away, but otherwise I’ve kept Christmas under control this year.

I’m trying to slow down. Kelly and I actually spent part of this evening watching My So-Called Life. The flannel shirts, people, I can’t tell you! I’m not sure that anyone is ever going to consider them fashionable again, or worth re-incarnating. But they’re oddly comforting to see, along with scarlet-headed Angela Chase and fuzzy-headed nerd Brian Krakow. So, you can see I’ve managed to avoid obsessing over the glossy pages of tangerine Bavarian and passion fruit gelees and beef tenderloin with tomato confit. Sure, they look pretty, those tinsel-trimmed centerfolds, but when the going gets rough, or at least busy, sometimes it’s best to turn back to the simplest recipes, the ones printed on faded magazine pages sticky with time and sugar, dried egg white and lemon juice.

This recipe is one of those. I knew I had to make something with the Meyer lemons I picked up this weekend. They were drop dead gorgeous, golden ovals that glow in a way that no ordinary lemon can. I love how citrus season springs on me like a surprise each year. Hurray for this season of indie rock sweet Christmas songs, this season of evergreen-scented houses and…citrus. I was torn between the Meyer lemons and the blood oranges. Really, really torn.

For one thing, the pastry I use for this tart is one of the easiest I know. You push it into the tart pan - there’s no rolling out, no flour spilling down the counters and speckling the back of a dog vigilantly watching the floor for crumbs. For another, it’s g-o-o-d, buttery and crackly. For another, lemon curd - luxurious, tart, golden and sunshiny - is about the most delicious thing in the world. It’s extravagant, completely easy and completely festive, and a very good way to treat some special citrus.

Simplest Lemon Curd Tart
Adapted from Everyday Food, January 2005

In a small saucepan off heat, whisk together eggs, egg yolks, sugar, new online slotskeno online spielepoker rouletteroulette programmcasino online deinternet casino onlinelive roulettenew casino onlinewww casino gamesinternet gewinn spielespielregeln spieleautomatenkasino onlinecasino online und poker portalslot maschinegluck spiele onlinelotto am samstagwww casino spielekasino websitepc slotsonline casino forumcasino club comkasinospiele mit echtem geldslot maschinen online spielenonline kasinopokercasino games downloadenonline baccarat spielenroulette online gamecasino tropez bonuscasino online spielroulette online gratistop online kasinosonline texas holdem pokerparty poker codesregeln zu pokerbester online pokerpoker zum gratis downloadenparty poker sign up bonuspoker spielen ohne anmeldenpoker game softwarebonus bei pokeronline poker um geldpoker regeln blattonline poker javahigh stakes pokerparty poker no deposit bonuspoker com bonusgratis poker gamespoker regeln straightpoker bonus codesonline omaha poker spielen lemon juice, and salt until smooth. Add butter.

Place pan over medium heat. Cook, stirring constantly with a wooden spoon or spatula until lemon curd is thickened to the consistency of a loose pudding, about eight to 10 minutes. The curd is done when it is thick enough to coat the back of the spoon.

Pour curd through a fine mesh sieve into a cooled crust. Cool to room temperature. Refrigerate tart until the filling is firm, about two to three hours. Unmold from tart pan ring before serving.

*Yet to happen this year, but the manger is going up at the church down the street. I look forward to it every year, ever since Mary K. and I walked down there with mugs of mulled wine and a little girl who kept pointing at the angels standing on pine bough-covered scaffolding and saying, “That’s Jesus.”