Cheryl’s Lemon Bars

I’m just going to say it, these are THE BEST LEMON BARS IN THE WORLD! This is my Mom’s recipe and 1.) She is known and I mean KNOWN for her lemon bars and 2.) She has spent over 20 years perfecting this recipe & my goodness, chef’s kiss, are they amazing! These lemon bars have the ideal ration between the delicious shortbread crust and the gooey lemon curd center.

FAQ:

• How many lemons does it take fill 1 1/2 cups of lemon juice? Depending on how “juicy” the lemons are, usually around 8-9 lemons

• Can I use a food processor to blend the crust mixture instead of a pastry blender or two knives? Yes! Just be sure not to over process the butter in the flour / powdered sugar. You want to make sure there are small pea size pieces of the butter in the flour mixture

• Why is there not any zest in this recipe? After many, many, many different trial runs with lemon zest, my mom has deemed that this step is not needed! But feel free to add if you’d like

• Why do you need to wait until the crust is done baking before adding the flour / baking powder mixture to the egg lemon juice mixture? When you add the flour / baking powder mixture to the egg / lemon juice mixture a reaction will occur between the baking powder & lemon juice causing bubbles to form. You do not want this reaction to occur too soon while you are waiting for the crust to bake, but rather save the reaction for when you bake the bars in the oven

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Cheryl’s Lemon Bars

Ingredients

Shortbread Crust

• 2 cups flour

• 1/2 cup powdered sugar

• 3/4 cup chilled unsalted butter, cubed

Lemon Curd Filling

• 6 eggs

• 3 cups sugar

• 1 1/2 cups fresh squeeze lemon juice

• 3/4 cup flour

• 3/4 tsp baking powder

Instructions

In a large bowl, sift together 2 cups flour and 1/2 cup powdered sugar. With two knives cut butter into the flour mixture until the size of small peas. Press mixture firmly down into a 9x13 pan. Bake crust in a preheated 350 degree oven for 20-30 minutes or until golden brown

In a large bowl, whisk together the eggs, sugar and lemon juice. In a small bowl mix together 3/4 cup flour and 3/4 tsp baking powder - set this aside until the crust is done baking. Once the crust is out of the oven, whisk the flour & baking powder mixture into the egg mixture. Whisk until well combined. Pour batter over the crust and bake at 350 degrees for 25 minutes or until lemon curd is set. Wait until bars are completely cooled, cut into squares and sift powdered sugar on top. Store in an airtight container in the refrigerator until ready to serve

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