Anna Olson Lemon Squares Food

CLASSIC LEMON BARS

Steps:

• Make the crust: Position a rack in the middle of the oven and preheat to 350 degrees F. Grease a 9-by-13-inch pan with vegetable oil and line with foil, leaving a 2-inch overhang on all sides; grease the foil with oil. Pulse the butter, flour, both sugars and the salt in a food processor until the dough comes together, about 1 minute. Press evenly into the bottom and about 1/2 inch up the sides of the prepared pan, making sure there are no cracks. Bake until the crust is golden, about 25 minutes.
• Meanwhile, make the filling: Whisk the whole eggs and yolks, sugar and flour in a bowl until smooth. Whisk in the lemon zest and juice. Remove the crust from the oven and reduce the temperature to 300 degrees F. Pour the filling over the warm crust and return to the oven. Bake until the filling is just set, 30 to 35 minutes.
• Let the bars cool in the pan on a rack, then refrigerate until firm, at least 2 hours. Lift out of the pan using the foil and slice. Dust with confectioners' sugar before serving.

LEMON MERINGUE SQUARES

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 350ºF and lightly grease an 8-inch square pan and line with parchment paper so that it comes up the sides of the pan. Toss all the crust ingredients until well-combined and press into the prepared pan. Bake for 12 minutes and cool while preparing the lemon filling.
• Reduce the oven to 325ºF. Whisk all the filling ingredients together and pour into the cooled crust. Bake for 20 minutes, until set but with a little jiggle in the centre, then cool to room temperature before chilling for at least an hour.
• Stir 3 Tbsp of the cold water with the gelatin and the meringue powder in a large bowl or the bowl of a mixer fitted with the whip attachment and set aside.
• Bring the remaining 2 Tbsp of water, the sugar and the corn syrup to a boil and boil uncovered and without stirring until it reaches a temperature of 240ºF on a candy thermometer. While whipping, carefully pour the hot sugar into the bowl with the gelatin and whip this on high speed until tripled in volume and cooled, about 5 minutes.
• Remove the lemon square from the fridge. Dollop the marshmallow on top of the filling and spread even. Let chill until set.
• Use a blowtorch to lightly brown the marshmallow and chill until ready to slice and serve.
• The squares will keep for up to 3 days refrigerated.