Sunshiney Lemon Bars

I locked myself out of my apartment last weekend ;_;. I do leave a spare with a buddy but I used the spare last week when I left the keys at my aunts so I hadn't returned them to her. I had to study pharm over at CrystAlLine (3 friends that are roommates) on a borrowed laptop. Landlord managed to call the next day and he let me in. To thank my favorite ladies I made Lemon bars!

 Ok so not the prettiest picture. I don't have any pics of the lemon bar out of the pan ah well. 

It's been pretty gloomy this week so I thought they yellow and citrus could make up for it a little. That and I asked one of the gals what she likes to eat haha. Recipe came from who manages to take such lovely pictures. My pics put the recipe to shame but it was still really really tasty. Also note that this is a lighter recipe so only 190 cal per 3x3 in square (ok I dunno if that calorie count is good or bad but I do know that this recipe does not use a whole stick of butter and has less at least 1 egg yolk). The other reason I chose this recipe was because I happy to be a fan of America's Test Kitchen!

copy/pasted from Patty's food, my comments in bold

Ingredients and Directions for Meyer Lemon Bar Cookies with Rosemary
Adapted from America's Test Kitchen Light & Healthy 2012

For the crust
3/4 cup all purpose flour
1/3 cup powdered sugar
3 tablespoons cornstarch
2 teaspoons grated lemon zest
1 teaspoon finely chopped fresh rosemary
1/2 teaspoon baking powder
1/4 teaspoon sea salt
4 tablespoons unsalted butter, cut into bits and chilled
1 tablespoon low fat vanilla yogurt

For the filling
3/4 cup granulated sugar
1 large egg and 1 egg white, lightly beaten
2 tablespoons all purpose flour
1/8 teaspoon sea salt
1 tablespoon grated lemon zest
6 tablespoons lemon juice from 2-3 Meyer lemons
1 tablespoon powdered sugar(for dusting on top)

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.

Prepare an 8" square pan by lightly spraying the inside of the pan with baking spray before lining it with 2 long sheets of aluminum foil folded to fit inside and placed perpendicular to each other in the pan.  Cut the sheets long enough to hang over the sides to use as handles to lift out the baked lemon bars before cutting into squares.  Spray the inside of foil lined pan with baking spray. I used a 9 in diameter cake pan because that was the closest thing I had in terms of area to the 8in square pan. I did not spray the inside of the pan and it was fine with the foil, kinda which I remembered to spray the foil haha. My lemon bars were quite flat so I would next time make more dough or use a smaller pan.

Please note- this is an extra step that I think gives the bar a more lemony flavor- in a small bowl mix the lemon zest into the granulated sugar for the filling and set aside. Do it, if nothing else it smells soooo good.

For the crust process the flour, powdered sugar, cornstarch, lemon zest, rosemary, baking powder and salt until well combined.  Add all the butter and vanilla yogurt to the flour mixture at once and pulse at least a dozen times before turning out into the prepared pan and pressing into an even layer.  See photo below (footprints in the sand!) notice the size of the butter pieces, they can be fairly big and press into a nice buttery but light crust.

I dunno why mine was so much more dough like than in Patty's but it was still good when I ate it. Most likely I pulsed it more/longer? I didn't put any rosemary in it because I didn't have any. I don't generally like rosemary but I think it would be very nice here.

So this is proof that I need a new food processor. It's just too small. AND THERE'S FLOUR EVERYWHERE. It doesn't work for what things either because of a stupid hole placement in the center of the bowl for the blade. rant over.

Bake until evenly browned about 20 minutes.  Cool the crust on a metal rack for at least 20 minutes.  Reduce the oven temperature to 325 degrees.

The edges got a littler darker than the middle, I didn't think this was the brownest but I felt like this was done.

Prepare the filling by whisking together the eggs, granulated sugar mixed with lemon zest, flour and the salt in a medium bowl. Stir in the lemon juice and pour over the cooled crust.  Bake until filling is set- about 20 minutes.  Cool completely on a metal rack before lifting the bars out of the pan with the foil.  Cut into 9 squares(190 calories each) and dust with confectioners sugar.
Makes 9 bars

 

Ooh shiny pool. I made a mistake here and shoved the lemon juice in at the beginning because I wasn't paying attention. Also, I didn't wait for the crust to cool all the way because it was late and I wanted to finish so I could sleep. I don't like that I had the filling so ready before I poured it in cuz I didn't know if it sitting would affect anything. 

They were quite tasty and I don't even like lemon sweets that much. If I did the filling correctly I wonder if it would make the filling less sticky. Either way I liked these, light crust and sweet lemony filling. Try it.

Lemon Gateau au Yaourt

These used the same recipe as I had before with the nutella marbled Yogurt Cake. I decided that it was a lot easier to distribute the cake to people in cupcake form rather than trying to slice up a normal sized cake. This time I went for using the lemon zest (or lime in my case)even though I'm not as crazy about it in my sweets. The whole sugar zest rubbing step smells SO GOOD. I feel like the zest ends up really lightening the cake. The cupcakes bake faster than the cake so I ended up checking 15 or so minutes before the recommended baking time for the cake. I referenced the recipe before but since I have it I thought I'd post it this time.

Pulled from the New York Times: French Yogurt Cake With Marmalade Glaze
Yield 8 servings Time About 1 hour and 20 minutes
Ingredients
• 1 cup all-purpose flour
• 1/2 cup ground almonds (or, if you’d prefer, omit the almonds and use another 1/2 cup all-purpose flour)
• 2 teaspoons baking powder
• Pinch of salt
• 1 cup sugar
• Grated zest of 1 lemon
• 1/2 cup plain yogurt
• 3 large eggs
• 1/4 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
• 1/2 cup flavorless oil, such as canola or safflower
• 1/2 cup lemon marmalade, strained, for glazing the top (optional)
• 1 teaspoon water, for glazing the top (optional)

Method • Getting ready: Center a rack in the oven and preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Generously butter an 8 1/2-x-4 1/2-inch loaf pan, place the pan on a lined baking sheet and set aside. Whisk together the flour, ground almonds, if you’re using them, baking powder and salt and keep near by as well.
 • Put the sugar and zest in a medium bowl and, working with your fingertips, rub the zest into the sugar until the sugar is moist and aromatic. Add the yogurt, eggs and vanilla to the bowl and whisk vigorously until the mixture is very well blended. Still whisking, stir in the dry ingredients, then switch to a large rubber spatula and fold in the oil. You’ll have a thick, smooth batter with a slight sheen. Scrape the batter into the pan and smooth the top.
• Slide the baking sheet into the oven and bake 35 to 40 minutes for the round cake or 50 to 55 minutes, or until the cake begins to come away from the sides of the pan; it will be golden brown and a knife inserted into the center of the cake will come out clean. Transfer the pan to a rack, cool for 5 minutes, then run a blunt knife between the cake and the sides of the pan. Unmold and cool to room temperature right-side up.

• To make the glaze: Put the marmalade in a small pot or a microwave-safe bowl, stir in the teaspoon of water and heat (on the range or in the microwave oven) until the jelly is hot and liquefied. Using a pastry brush, gently brush the cake with the glaze. I skip this part because I don't want as much lemon flavor in the cake but I'm sure it's very tasty for those who enjoy it. I have tried some strawberry jam with the cake but I prefer the taste of plain cake yum.

• Serving: In France, this cake is usually served with a little sweetened crème fraiche, but it lends itself to other toppings as well. Fresh soft fruit, like sliced peaches or plums, is a natural with this as is berries with a touch of sugar. And, because the cake is plain and just a little tangy from the yogurt, it pairs happily with lemon cream, curd or mousse and is delicious with chocolate mousse or chocolate sauce.
 • Storing: Wrapped well, you can keep the cake at room temperature for at least 4 days and, like many pound cakes, it will be better one day later than it was the day it was made. If you do not glaze the cake, you can wrap it airtight and freeze it for up to 2 months; glazed it’s best not to freeze the cake.

I once made the cupcakes and accidentally added the oil at the same time as the eggs and yogurt and it really messed up the texture of the cupcakes so watch out for that. It made the batter thicker and rubberier and less crumbly. You could see the rising bubble tracts in the crumb.

The proper crumb. I need to stop taking pictures in my dim kitchen or get a better lamp.