February 25, 2010

Lemon Bars

To finish off our Valentine's Menu, I made one of AC's favorite desserts - Lemon Bars. Kind of a nice refreshing finish to a meal.


Lemon Bars
adapted from this cook book
Crust:
1 c butter at room temperature, plus more for pan
1 c powdered sugar
2 cups flour

Filling:
4 large eggs
2 c sugar
1 Tbsp grated lemon zest (for me, this was about 1 1/2 lemons)
6 Tbsp fresh lemon juice (about 1 1/2 lemons as well)
1/3 c flour
1 tsp baking powder

Preheat oven to 325 degrees. Grease a 9x13 pan with butter. For crust: In a bowl, cream butter and powdered sugar, scrapping sides of bowl occasionally. Add flour and mix until well blended spread mixture in an even layer on the bottom and sides of the prepared pan. (Watch your corner, they tend to get thick.) Bake crust until lightly brown, about 15-20 minutes. Remove from oven and cool completly on wire rack.
Raise oven temperature to 350 degrees. For filling: Beat eggs until well blended, about 2 minutes. Add sugar and beat until thick. Add lemon zest and juice, flour, and baking powder until well blended and pale yellow. Pour filling into baked, cooled crust. Spread evenly.
Bake until filling is set - firm on edges but still a little soft in the middle, 15-20 minutes. Remove from the oven and set on a wire rack to cool slightly. Using a sifter or seive, dust top with powdered sugar while still warm. Cut into desired size and serve warm.

9 comments:

Hil said...

YUM. These are my favorite! I've never been brave enough to try them without a box though... bookmarking this for sure.

Unknown said...

I had a roomie back in college that was obsessed with lemon bars. I always think of her now when I see these. I should make your recipe and go surprise her haha

Hannah said...

Have you tried gma's lemon bars? Yum!

I'll have to try your recipe.

Gourmified said...

Oh I completely {HEART} lemon bars! I've made some over and over and they never fail to impress and melt in my mouth. Toasted Almond Lemon Bars. If you like almond flavoring at all, you will LOVE these, too! Here's the link to my blog if you're interested!
http://gourmified.blogspot.com/2009/07/toasted-almond-lemon-bars.html

Lisa

Kiersten said...

Mmmm...lemon bars are maybe my very favorite dessert. I usually make the version in America's Test Kitchen Family Cookbook, but I'll have to try these. Do you have any good suggestions (other than egg white omlettes) for using up the left-over whites? I always have good intentions of using them, but they usually just sit in my fridge until they go bad and I throw them away.

Sarah said...

Kiersten - How about meringue cookies? http://rhrecipes.blogspot.com/2009/10/smore-pie.html

Fresh Local and Best said...

I love lemon bars! Your recipe looks and sounds sensational!

Liv said...

Does the "c" stand for cup?

Sarah said...

Liv - yes, "c" is for cup.