Snow Dusted Lemon Bars Food

SNOW DUSTED LEMON BARS

Steps:

• Heat oven to 350°F.
• Combine all crust ingredients in bowl. Beat at low speed, scraping bowl often, until mixture resembles coarse crumbs. Press onto bottom of ungreased 8-inch square baking pan. Bake 15-20 minutes or until edges are lightly browned.
• Combine all filling ingredients in bowl. Beat at low speed, scraping bowl often, until well mixed. Pour filling over hot, partially baked crust. Continue baking 18-20 minutes or until filling is set. Sprinkle with powdered sugar. Cool completely. Cut into bars. Garnish with grated lemon zest, if desired.

LEMON BARS

Steps:

• Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.
• For the crust, cream the butter and sugar until light in the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment. Combine the flour and salt and, with the mixer on low, add to the butter until just mixed. Dump the dough onto a well-floured board and gather into a ball. Flatten the dough with floured hands and press it into a 9 by 13 by 2-inch baking sheet, building up a 1/2-inch edge on all sides. Chill.
• Bake the crust for 15 to 20 minutes, until very lightly browned. Let cool on a wire rack. Leave the oven on.
• For the filling, whisk together the eggs, sugar, lemon zest, lemon juice, and flour. Pour over the crust and bake for 30 to 35 minutes, until the filling is set. Let cool to room temperature.
• Cut into triangles and dust with confectioners' sugar.

THE BEST LEMON BARS

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C).
• In a medium bowl, blend together softened butter, 2 cups flour and 1/2 cup sugar. Press into the bottom of an ungreased 9x13 inch pan.
• Bake for 15 to 20 minutes in the preheated oven, or until firm and golden. In another bowl, whisk together the remaining 1 1/2 cups sugar and 1/4 cup flour. Whisk in the eggs and lemon juice. Pour over the baked crust.
• Bake for an additional 20 minutes in the preheated oven. The bars will firm up as they cool. For a festive tray, make another pan using limes instead of lemons and adding a drop of green food coloring to give a very pale green. After both pans have cooled, cut into uniform 2 inch squares and arrange in a checker board fashion.

MEYER LEMON BARS

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 350°. Grease a 9" x 13" baking pan and line it with parchment paper, leaving 1" of overhang on the two long sides.
• In a food processor, pulse 2 cups flour, 3/4 cup powdered sugar, and salt. Add butter and pulse until mixture resembles a coarse meal. Add ice water 1 tsp at a time if mixture is too dry. Press dough into bottom of prepared pan, pressing snugly against the inside edges.
• Bake crust for 20-25 minutes, or until golden. Set pan on a wire rack to cool slightly. Reduce oven temperature to 300°.
• Whisk together eggs and granulated sugar until well combined and pale in color. Stir in lemon zest, lemon juice, remaining 1/4 cup flour, and a pinch of salt. Pour topping over warm crust. Bake for 15-20 minutes, or until set.
• Set pan on a rack to cool. Remove squares by lifting parchment. Cut into bars. Dust with remaining 3 tbsp powdered sugar.

CHEF JOHN'S LEMON BARS

Steps:

• Place an oven rack into middle position in oven and preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C). Lightly oil an 8x8-inch baking dish.
• Place 1 cup flour and butter in a mixing bowl and mash with the back of a spatula or wooden spoon until thoroughly combined. Mix in 1/4 cup confectioners' sugar, vanilla extract, and salt; mash mixture together until mixture looks like a slightly crumbly cookie dough.
• Moisten your fingers with a little water and press dough into bottom of prepared baking dish. Use a fork to prick holes all over the crust.
• Bake crust on center rack in the preheated oven until crust edges are barely golden brown, 22 minutes.
• Beat eggs and egg yolks together in a bowl; whisk in white sugar and 2 tablespoons flour until smooth. Add lemon juice and lemon zest; whisk for 2 minutes. Pour lemon custard over crust.
• Bake on center rack until custard is set and top has a thin white sugary crust, 25 minutes. Let cool completely before cutting into bars. Dip knife into very hot water, run around the edge, and cut into 16 squares. Dust cookies with 1 teaspoon confectioners' sugar.

THE MOST-LEMONY LEMON BAR OF ALL TIME

Steps:

• Position a rack in the center of the oven and preheat to 350 degrees F. Line a 9-by-13-inch glass baking dish with foil leaving a 2-inch overhang on two sides. Grease the foil and dish with 1 tablespoon butter.
• To make the crust, pulse the zest with 1/3 cup of the sugar in a food processor until the sugar is yellow and sandy, 1 to 2 minutes. Add 1 1/2 cups of the flour, the butter, cornstarch and salt and pulse until the dough comes together, about 1 minute. Press the dough evenly into the bottom of the prepared pan. Bake until the crust is golden at the edges and pale golden in the center, about 30 minutes. Transfer to a wire rack.
• Reduce the oven temperature to 300 degrees F. To make the filling, whisk the eggs and egg yolks with the remaining 1 2/3 cups sugar and the remaining 1/2 cup flour in a bowl until smooth. Whisk in 1 cup lemon juice.
• Pour the filling over the warm crust and return to the oven. Bake until the filling is just set, about 30 minutes.
• Cool the lemon bars on a wire rack, 30 minutes, then refrigerate uncovered until firm, at least 1 hour. Lift the bars out of the pan using the foil. Peel off the foil and cut into 24 bars. Dust with confectioners' sugar. Place a piece of gummy lemon candy on top of each square and serve.