Ina Garten's Lemon Bars

Note: I am reposting this recipe from October 14, 2009 because I just recently made these again (and took better pictures) and they are PERFECT for summer. Plus, they are absolutely divine :P! (Also, can we just look at how lame and completely UN-loquacious my posts used to be! Hah.)

I have been craving lemon bars for the past few days and finally picked up a huge bag of teeny tiny lemons and decided it was time. I have heard many good things about Ina's Lemon Bars so I opted to put them to the test.

These lemon bars had the perfect shortbread crust with a nice crisp texture and a sweet, but tart, creamy filling.

Ina Garten's Lemon Bars

recipe from here

ingredients:

For the Crust:

• 1/2 lb unsalted butter, at room temperature
• 1/2 cup granulated sugar
• 2 cups flour
• 1/8 tsp kosher salt

For the Filling:

• 6 large eggs, at room temperature
• 3 cups granulated sugar
• 2 tbsp lemon zest
• 1 cup freshly squeezed lemon juice
• 1 cup flour
• confectioners' sugar, for dusting

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
2. For the crust, cream the butter and sugar until light in the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment.
3. Combine the flour and salt and add to the butter and sugar mixture with the mixer on low. Mix until just mixed.
4. Dump the dough onto a well-floured surface and gather into a ball.
5. Flatten the dough with floured hands and press into a 9 x 13 x 2 inch baking sheet, building up a 1/2 inch edge on all sides.
6. Bake the crust for 15 to 20 minutes, until very lightly browned (I baked mine for 17 and a half minutes). Let cool on a wire rack.
7. For the filling, whisk together the eggs, sugar, lemon zest, lemon juice, and flour. 
8. Pour over the crust and bake for 30 to 35 minutes, until the filling is set.
9. Let cool to room temperature. Cut into whatever shape you like and dust with confectioners' sugar.

Grrrr! Nothing annoys me more than this glitch in Blogger that makes your text UN-wrap and just cut off in the middle of words :(