Lemon Posset
Lemon cream set in lemon shells or small cups.
Saved recipeAbout 25 minutes preparation, then chill at least 4 hours; 6 hours or overnight is preferred. Shell size affects the yield.
Ingredients
- 2½ cupHeavy cream
- ¾ cupSugar
- 5Large thick-rind lemonsUse 4 lemons for 8 shells and keep 1 spare. Measure 6 tbsp fresh juice from these lemons; no extra lemons are needed solely for juice.
- 6 tbspLemon juiceMeasure from the whole lemons listed above; do not buy this in addition to them.
Ingredient quantities scale; oven temperatures and cooking times do not. Keep batter depth and pan crowding consistent. For fractional eggs, beat and weigh.
Method
Prepare the lemon shells
Wash the lemons. Halve enough lemons for the portions you are making; the base batch uses four lemons for eight shells, with one spare. Juice carefully, keeping the shells intact. Reserve the juice and measure the amount shown in the ingredients. Scoop out pulp and membranes with a small spoon, leaving enough white pith for sturdy shells. Pat dry and nestle the shells in a muffin tin or small cups to keep them upright.
Simmer the cream and sugar
Put the heavy cream and sugar in a saucepan. Bring to a gentle boil, stirring to dissolve the sugar, then simmer gently for 3 minutes.
Add lemon off the heat
Remove from the heat and stir in the measured fresh lemon juice from the ingredient list. Rest for about 5 minutes.
Fill and chill
Pour into the prepared shells or small serving cups. Put any extra mixture in a ramekin. Refrigerate at least 4 hours, preferably 6 hours or overnight, until set. Cover once cold.
Serve cold
Serve the set possets straight from the refrigerator. No sugar crust, yuzu, or torching is needed.
Preparation & notes
- Make and chill the possets the night before. Keep them covered in the refrigerator until serving.
- The base proportions are 2½ cups heavy cream, ¾ cup sugar, and 6 tbsp fresh lemon juice. The lemon juice is measured from the listed whole lemons.
- Use small cups if you prefer not to prepare lemon shells.
- This lemon-only version uses the coherent original recipe proportions and omits the later yuzu variation and brûlée topping.
Refrigerate leftovers within 2 hours, or 1 hour above 90°F / 32°C. Store at 40°F / 4°C or colder.
Recipe & safety notes
Recovered original lemon-posset base, with brûlée and yuzu omitted. Yield depends on lemon-shell size.
FDA: safe refrigeration ↗