I have made these bars in the past and they are so very tasty warm from the oven. Make sure the lemons that you buy have a good skin since you will be using it for the zest, you don't have to be to picky but you don't want a bad skin.
CRUST:
1/2 cup (1 stick) (113 grams) unsalted butter, room temperature
1/4 cup (25 grams) confectioner's (powdered or icing) sugar
1 cup (140 grams) all purpose flour
1/8 teaspoon salt
FILLING:
1 cup (200 grams) granulated white sugar
2 large eggs
1/3 cup (80 ml) fresh lemon juice (approximately two large lemons)
1 tablespoons (5 grams) grated lemon zest (2 lemons)
2 tablespoons (25 grams) all purpose flour
TOPPING:
Confectioner's (powdered or icing) sugar
Lemon Zest - The yellow outer rind of the lemon that contains the fruit's flavor and perfume.
TIP: Always remove the zest first before halving and squeezing the lemon. Use a fine strainer to remove the seeds and pulp from the juice.
Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (177 degrees C) and place rack in center of oven. Grease with butter (or use a cooking spray) a 8 x 8 inch (20 x 28 cm) pan.
FOR CRUST: In the bowl of your electric mixer, or with a hand mixer, cream the butter and sugar until light and fluffy. Add the flour and salt and beat until the dough just comes together. Press into the bottom of your greased pan and bake for about 20 minutes, or until lightly browned. Remove from oven and place on a wire rack to cool while you make the filling.
FOR FILLING: In your electric mixer, or with a hand mixer, beat the sugar and eggs until nice and smooth. Add the lemon juice and zest and stir to combine. Fold in the flour. Pour the filling over the shortbread crust and bake for about 20 minutes, or until the filling is set. Remove from oven and place on a wire rack to cool.
To serve: Cut into squares or triangles and dust with powdered sugar. These are best eaten the day they are made but can be covered and stored in the refrigerator for a day or two.
Yield: 16 - 2 inch (5 cm) squares
1 comment:
This reminds me of when we made Limoncello in the fall! We learned a lot about using lemon peel then, and if I might offer a couple of tips with respect to peeling the lemons:
- Unless you use organic lemons that haven't been waxed, it's important to clean them really well. You can buy veggie/fruit wash that isn't too expensive and will do the trick, although I imagine soap and water will work just fine.
- It's also important to avoid peeling off too much pith (the white stuff under the peel), since that could make it a little bitter. Some of it is fine though :-)
I still need to make the peanut butter cookies from last month, but I think I have some good advice now from Megan and Jess for doing so :-) Thanks again!
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