When I Shared Greg and Katherine’s  amazing lemon bars a while back, I told you about my favorite lemon bar recipe.  I have had this recipe for years and it was and still is my go to recipe for lemon bars. I have tried quite a few other recipes and they always turn out, too sweet or too sour. Some have too little crust (I love the crust part almost as much as the lemony part)  or their topping is too gooy or too eggy (is that a word?).

This recipe on the other hand is just right. To me, it is the perfect balance of sweet and sour. The crust uses a recipe that is my favorite base for any bar cookie. The lemony topping is creamy, yet its very top is crackled and has the faintest crunch to it.Biting into it feels like a blast of flavor and refreshment exploded in your mouth. 

Lemon bar

For the crust

3/4 cup flour

3 tablespoons sugar

1/4 cup (1/2 stick) butter

For the lemon topping

2 eggs

1 teaspoon vanilla

2/3 cups sugar

2 tablespoons flour

1/2 teaspoon lemon zest

2 tablespoons lemon juice

1/4 teaspoon baking powder

1 tablespoon water

To make the crust

Whisk the flour and sugar, then rub the butter into the mix with your finger tips

Press the flour, sugar and butter into the base of your baking dish (I used a 20 cm by 24 cm pan).

Bake in a preheated oven (375 F or 180C) on the middle rack for 15 minutes.

To make the topping

Whisk the eggs until pale, add the vanilla and sugar then continue whisking

Add the rest of the ingredients and whisk till combined.

Pour the topping over the crust and bake on the middle rack (180 C or 375 F) till the topping sets.

Take it out of the oven and allow it to cool completely

Cut it into squares and…

Enjoy 🙂