Mmmmmmm.... Luscious Lemon Bars!

Some knowledge is just too powerful for humans to handle.  This recipe can be a problem for those of us who absolutely love lemon bars - it makes it just too easy to eat a ton of them! You have been warned...

Great recipe for summer baking - it doesn't take very long to cook, and is simple to prepare.



The key to good lemon bars is the dynamic between the rich buttery shortbread crust and the tart shock of the lemon. This recipe does both quite well!  The only hard part is leaving any for others :)

CRUST:  1 c. all purpose flour**
               1/8 tsp salt
               1/2 c. confectioner's sugar
               8 tbsp (1 stick) butter, melted but not hot

Heat oven to 325. Spray 8x8 baking pan with non-stick spray. Line with foil, leaving an overhang on two ends. Spray foil well.

Mix dry crust ingredients, then stir in butter until it forms soft dough.  Press into pan firmly.  Bake 20 minutes until pale golden.  (If making a double batch - use a 13x9 pan and bake crust extra 10 minutes)

FILLING: 2 large eggs
                3/4 c. white sugar
                1 1/2 tbsp flour**
                6 tbsp juice, & zest from two lemons

Whisk filling ingredients together. Pour over crust within a few minutes of taking baked crust out of oven.  Bake 20 minutes until just set in center.

Let cool in pan for 5 minutes.  Pull out with foil handles, cool on wire rack to room temperature.  Chill in fridge for at least 1 hour to firm up.  Can be made a day prior to serving - keep cold.

Cut into bars and sprinkle with confectioner's sugar to serve.  I recommend cutting with a pizza cutter.

**This recipe can be made gluten free by directly replacing the flour quantity with GF baking mix. I used Bob's Red Mill All Purpose baking mix, which is supposed to be used with special additives but I didn't use them and it still came out great.  Nobody believes that they are GF!