Meyer Lemon Bars

I have eaten plenty of lemon bars. Quite frankly some good and some not so good. You know the ones at a potluck where you think who brought the terrible shortbread and then someone says "aren't those lemon bars good?".  I think someone forgot the lemon. As far as I can remember I have never attempted to make lemon bars myself. I had always assumed they were very difficult based on the number of not so good ones I  have encountered. As I stared at the pile of meyer lemons sitting on my counter I thought I should really make something with them before they go bad. I would never forgive myself after having them shipped to Fairbanks from California. Then the next day one of my co-workers brought in some lemon bars (the good ones) and I felt inspired. Unfortunately, I kept forgetting to ask for the recipe and the lemons were continuing on their slow decline. Last night I couldn't take it any longer. After dinner I pulled out the lemon zester and removed all the zest from the lemons and then proceeded to juice them all. I knew I wanted to make lemon jelly, but what to do with all that zest? So, I hopped on the internet to look through some recipes I had saved on my previous Meyer Lemon post and found the Luscious Lemon Bars I had saved from the Alpineberry site. Mary is a self proclaimed lemon bar snob and with good reason, these lemon bars are out of this world. Luscious does not even begin to describe these lemon bars. If I was to imagine the most perfect lemon bar in the world, this would be it.  The perfect balance of Meyer Lemon flavor and the texture, you can actually differentiate the lemon layer from the crust layer! I really wanted to let these cool completely before we ate them, but of course I didn't and I must say I am glad because they were really good slightly warm. The lemon just oozed out. Perfect! Really, perfect! I will change one thing next time...  

I will make a double batch! 

Luscious Lemon Bars

from Alpineberry

(makes one 8-inch square pan)

Crust:
1 cup all purpose flour
1/2 cup confectioners' sugar
1/8 tsp salt
4 ounces (1 stick) unsalted butter, cold and cut into 1/2 inch pieces

Filling:
2 large eggs
1 cup superfine or bakers' sugar
2 tbsp all purpose flour
1/8 tsp salt
2 tsp finely grated meyer lemon zest*
1/4 cup freshly squeezed meyer lemon juice*

Preheat oven to 350F. Butter and line an 8-inch square pan with parchment paper.

To make crust:
Combine flour, confectioners' sugar and salt in the bowl of a food processor. Add butter and pulse until the mixture is pebbly. Press evenly into the bottom of your prepared pan. Bake until lightly golden, about 18-20 minutes. Set aside crust.

To make filling:

In a medium bowl, whisk together eggs, sugar, flour and salt. Whisk in lemon zest and juice until well combined. Pour over crust (it's okay if crust is still hot). Bake until filling is just set, about 15 to 18 minutes. Cool completely before serving. Dust with confectioners' sugar if desired.