Simply Lovely Lemon Bars - week 12 of 52

The first time I had lemon squares I was visiting a friend in Arizona and her mom had bought some from a bakery. I found a recipe in my Complete Canadian Living Cookbook. The cookbook has all the basics you will need and all recipes are “Tested Till Perfect”. The fresh tanginess is quite nice – they could be a little more tart (I didn’t have quite enough zest – that might be it).
The crust is simple to make and similar to shortbread and the lemon part is mostly eggs. It’s a nice after dinner treat and would be perfect for afternoon tea!






















Simply Lovely Lemon Squares – makes 30
$
Ingredients
3/4 cup (175 mL) butter, softened
1/2 cup (125 mL) granulated sugar
1/4 tsp (1 mL) salt
2 cups (500 mL) all-purpose flour

Topping:
4 eggs
1-1/4 cups (300 mL) granulated sugar
2 tbsp (25 mL) finely grated lemon rind
1/2 cup (125 mL) lemon juice
1/4 cup (50 mL) all-purpose flour
1 tsp (5 mL) baking powder
1 tbsp (15 mL) icing sugar

Preparation:
Grease 13- x 9-inch (3.5 L) metal cake pan; line with parchment paper. Set aside.
In bowl, beat together butter, sugar and salt until light; stir in flour until blended. Press into prepared pan. Bake in centre of 325°F (160°C) oven until golden, about 25 minutes. Let cool completely in pan on rack.

TOPPING: Meanwhile, in bowl, beat eggs with granulated sugar until pale and thickened. Add lemon rind and juice, flour and baking powder; beat until smooth. Pour over base.
Bake in centre of 325°F (160°C) oven until set, 25 to 30 minutes. Let cool completely in pan on rack. Dust with icing sugar. Cut into bars. (Make-ahead: Layer between waxed paper in airtight container; refrigerate for up to 4 days or freeze for up to 1 month.)