Recipe: The Lemon Bars edit

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Photo: purplehousedirt

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Yield: About 16 bars

Created by: Valerie

Edited by: Valerina Catrice, purplehousedirt

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I have made so many lemon bars in the past that have fallen short on taste. Ususally the are not tart enough and when I add extra lemon juice the texture is ruined. Most lemon bread crusts are very bland and don't contribute to the overall flavour. I almost always end up scrapping the crusts off the lemon half.
These bars are the superstars of Lemon Bars. :) Trust me, you won't be going back to any other recipes after makeing this. These bars are for people who like their lemon bars Tart!

edit Ingredients

	Shortbread ingredients:
2	Tbs. granulated sugar
1	Tbs. confectioners' sugar
1	stick of unsalted butter (softened to room temp.)
¼	teaspoon of almond extract
½	cup all purpose flour
⅔	cup of Cake flour
¼	teaspoon of salt
¼	teaspoon of baking Powder
	Lemon Curd ingredients:
4	tablespoons of unsalted butter cut into small pieces
2	tablespoons of heavy whipping cream
1	cup of granulated sugar
4	large eggs
1	cup of fresh lemon juice ( 4-6 lemons )
¼	teaspoon of salt
¼	teaspoon of vanilla extract
2	yolks from large eggs

edit Preparation

Step 1	Prepare the Shortbread:
Step 2	In a large bowl, At medium speed beat the sugars and butter together until light and fluffy ( about 5 min ) Keep scraping the sides of the bowl.
Step 3	In a medium bowl, sift together the flour, baking Powder, and salt.
Step 4	Slowly beat in the dry ingredients to the wet. Keep the speed on low and beat until no more streaks of flour remain.
Step 5	Place the dough into a piece of plastic and wrap well.
Step 6	Press down to form a 1/2 inch thick square and Refrigerate for about 30 minutes.
Step 7	Preheat the oven 350°F.
Step 8	Measure out 2 pieces of parchment paper to 11x11 inches.
Step 9	When the dough is firm, place it between the sheets of parchment.
Step 10	Roll it out into an 8x8 inch square about 1/4 inches thick.
Step 11	Remove the top sheet and place the dough, along with the bottom sheet into an 8x8 inch baking pan.
Step 12	Press around the dough to make it as even as possible and bake for about 25 minutes or until the top is a light gold colour.
Step 13	Remove from oven but leave the temp. at 350.
Step 14	Prepare the lemon curd:
Step 15	In a medium saucepan, heat the lemon juice, butter, and cream to just under a boil; the butter should be melted. Remove from the heat before the boiling starts.
Step 16	In a medium bowl, whisk together by hand the sugar, eggs, and yolks until combined. Whisk in a bit of the hot liquid and then gradually whisk in a bit more until it's all added. Don't add the hot liquid too fast or the eggs will curdle.
Step 17	Pour the mixture back into the saucepan and heat on medium, stirring constantly with a wooden spoon, scraping the bottom and sides of the pan to keep the eggs from scrambling. Cook until the lemon curd coats the spoon thickly enough to leave a line when you draw your finger through, 5 to 8 min. Remove from the heat and strain through a fine sieve. Stir in the salt and vanilla.
Step 18	Pour the lemon curd over the baked shortbread and smooth it out so it is even.
Step 19	Bake for about 15-20 minutes. The curd should jiggle like Firm jello when it is ready to take out of the oven.
Step 20	Allow it to cool at room temp. for an hour.
Step 21	Refrigerate until the curd is completely set.
Step 22	Enjoy!