If there could be a perfect food (and there are MANY depending upon my mood) that doesn’t exist but really should it would be a sweet lemon. I’ve bemoaned the lack of this masterpiece of food engineering to my husband, Adam, for years. I think he tunes me out now when I get all glazed and stare longingly into space while discussing the possibility of it. Last spring Adam and I were in Los Angeles for a wedding and spent a few hours wandering the Beverly Hills Farmer’s Market. When I saw a sign for “Sweet Lemons” I was like George Costanza in a fire pushing old ladies out of the way. (Not really, but it sounded good!) Unfortunately, they were a disappointment of epic proportions.
So, I have to content myself a couple times a year with making the next best thing to sweet lemons… lemons mixed with sugar, butter, and eggs. How can that be bad? It can’t. Of course, I delude myself that these are not as bad for me (and my butt) as they are because “they have protein in them from all those eggs!” Um, yeah…
With the excuse of company a while back I made a batch of these lemon bars. I had the sense to send the leftovers (well most of them) to Adam’s office, but that doesn’t mean that I didn’t eat 5 or 6 too many first. The down side: I think I actually ate 10 total. The upside, I will not get scurvy anytime soon!
Lemon Bars
Modified ever so slightly from my hero at Smitten Kitchen, who adapted it from The Barefoot Contessa Cookbook
For the crust:
1/2 pound unsalted butter, at room temperature
1/2 cup evaporated cane juice
2 cups unbleached flour
1/8 teaspoon kosher salt
For the lemon layer:
7 large eggs at room temperature
2 1/2 cups evaporated cane juice
6 lemons zested
1 cup freshly squeezed lemon juice
1 cup unbleached flour
Confectioners’ sugar, for dusting
Grease and flour a 4.8 quart rectangular glass Pyrex baking dish
For the crust:
Using the paddle attachment on your standing mixer, cream together the butter and sugar until smooth. Combine the flour and salt and slowly add it into the butter/sugar until it’s just mixed. (Make sure the mixer is on a low speed so you don’t wind up in a white cloud.) Press the dough together in the bowl with clean hands and then press it into the pan. There will be just enough dough to make a thin layer on the bottom of the large pan so be careful to keep it together. Put the pan into the fridge to chill for about an hour.
Bake the crust in a 350 degree oven for 15-20 minutes or until it appears set. Remove it from the oven and let it rest while you make the lemon layer.
For the lemon layer:
In the bowl of your standing mixer with a whisk attachment beat together the eggs, sugar, lemon zest, lemon juice, and flour. Pour it on top of the crust and put it back into a 350 degree oven for 30 to 35 minutes. Let it cool to room temperature before you try to cut it into squares.
Immediately before serving dust the squared with organic powdered sugar.
These will last nicely in the fridge for several days, if you can resist them that is, which I can’t. But note that if you put them in an air tight container the powdered sugar will dissolve due to the moisture in the lemon layer.
