Fall is a bittersweet time for me. I look forward to cooler temps, shorter days, and the leaves changing colors. But it’s also a time of transitioning back to my empty nest. After a long, happy summer at home, my baby girl has headed back to school. I’m excited for her to be back with her college friends and to explore new classes and activities, but sad that I won’t have her sunshine around anymore. For a while. Before I sent her off–per her request–I baked one of her favorite treats to take back with her. And this version of the classic lemon bar has to be the best I’ve made yet. The creamy Meyer lemon curd is lush and bursting with tangy, sweet flavor; the buttery shortbread crust gets an extra crunch from raw, not granulated, sugar. Nothing’s too good for my girl–so proud of her! Thanksgiving break can’t come soon enough.
Meyer Lemon Bars
The crust of these bars is a luscious shortbread–quick and easy to make. If you have raw sugar on hand, use it–I was hesitant at first, but then happy I did because it added wonderful texture to the dough.
Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. In a small bowl, mix together the flour and salt.
Using a hand or stand mixer, cream room temperature butter and add the raw sugar. Continue beating until light and fluffy.
Slowly add the flour mixture to the butter until just combined–it should look like coarse sand.
Pour the mixture out onto a floured surface and shape into a ball.
Using your fingers, press the dough into a 9″ x 13″ baking dish, spreading evenly along the bottom.
Bake the shortbread crust for 15 to 20 minutes until evenly golden brown. Let cool on a wire rack.
Meyer lemons are a crossbreed of lemons and oranges, probably mandarin. They are, therefore, sweeter and less acidic than lemons and have a really bright flavor. They also have a multitude of seeds, so you’ll want to strain the juice well before using.
To make the filling, whisk together the eggs and sugar (I used granulated this time), until fluffy.
Add the Meyer lemon zest, the well-strained lemon juice, and flour. Mix until just combined.
Pour the lemon curd over the crust and place back in the oven to bake for another 30 to 35 minutes until set. Remove from oven and let cool on a wire rack.
I love the thin crust that forms on top of the curd–you can peak in and see the creamy lemon beneath the cracks–yum!
Dust with confectioner’s sugar. Cut into bars: a trick I learned from Martha Stewart is to cut first down the center of the pan, then across the middle, then through the middle of each half, and so on, until you have evenly sized bars.
Use an icing spatula to carefully lift each bar from the pan.
I layered the bars with parchment paper in a container to travel up to Boston–needless to say, my daughter’s roommates were very happy to see her!
Yields 28 bars:
Crust:
2 cups flour
1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
1 1/2 sticks (3/4 cup) unsalted butter, at room temperature
1/2 cup sugar, preferably raw
Lemon Curd:
6 eggs
2 cups sugar
2 tablespoons Meyer lemon zest (from about 4 lemons)
1 cup Meyer lemon juice (from about 6 lemons)
2/3 cup flour
1/3 cup confectioner’s sugar