Sunday, January 6, 2008

Pucker-Up Lemon Bars


This lemon bar recipe has been experimented with quite a bit over the past month, and the best tasting batch was baked last night. The secret to amazing lemon bars in my opinion is the very sour lemon filling, sweet/creamy crust, and lots of confectioner's sugar sprinkled on top. Some people don't like inhaling the sugar as they eat the bar, but I think it's part of the fun. Especially when you are sharing the bars and everyone has a sugar 'stache to make fun of.

This recipe makes enough lemon bars to fill an 8x8 baking pan.

Crust
1/2 cup flour
1/4 cup confectioner's sugar (powdered)
1/2 stick slightly warm butter
a pinch of salt

Sift together the flour, sugar, and salt in a mixing bowl. Add the butter in chunks or slices. Use a pastry cutter to break up the butter. It should be pebble size or a bit smaller.
Fill the bottom of a well buttered 8x8 baking pan with the mixture, and be sure to pat it down so it's well packed at the bottom of the pan.
Bake at 350 F for about 20 minutes, or until it is yellow-golden. If the bottom looks like its burning, switch to the broiler at 350 F for a few minutes, or until the top of the crust looks yellow-golden.

Lemon Custard
4 large eggs
4 tsp lemon zest
1/2 cup freshly squeezed lemon juice (you can use up to 1/4 cup more if you want the bars to be thicker)
1/2 - 1 cup confectioner's sugar
a pinch of salt

While the crust is baking, mix together the juice, zest, eggs, and salt. be sure to beat the eggs well. Slowly add the confectioner's sugar, 1/4 cup at a time. Mix it in well before you add more. This is where your preference comes in. Some people prefer very sweet bars, others very tart. I like to add in 1/4 cup of sugar at a time, and dip my finger in the mixture to taste it. The batch I made yesterday evening consisted of 1/2 cup of sugar and it made my lips pucker quite a bit. But that's what I love about lemon bars. So use your judgement.

After mixing the custard well, add it to the crust. It's okay if it's very hot.
Bake again at 350 F until it looks set. It will look like it has a bit of a film over it. I wait until it starts to crack a tiny bit and then take it out of the oven.
Let cool and then sprinkle confectioner's sugar over it.

These lemon bars were enjoyed by Canadians and Americans alike, during a wild game of Taboo last night. They were later munched on by some more (drunk) Canadians and Americans at 3am after a large amount of gin was consumed rather quickly.
What a perfect midnight treat!
-ILR

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