Meyer Lemon Bars with Lemon Shortbread Crust

I love Meyer lemons! I am even dreaming of having a Meyer lemon tree in my house. 🙂

This dessert recipe was adapted from ViewfromtheGreatIsland.com. They are made with an entire Meyer lemon- minus the seeds. The crust incorporates the zest from another entire lemon which made them packed with flavor. It was essential to eat them cold, after being chilled for four hours to overnight, so they must be made in advance.

Yield: about 12 servings (one 9×9-inch pan)

For the Crust:

• zest from one Meyer lemon
• 1/4 cup granulated sugar
• 1 1/2 cups all purpose flour
• 3/4 cup cold unsalted butter, cut in pieces

For the Filling:

• 1 whole Meyer lemon, about 4-6 ounces
• 1 cup granulated sugar
• 4 large eggs
• 2 T cornstarch
• pinch of coarse salt

To Prepare:

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees, preferably on convection.
2. Grease and line a 9×9 inch pan with parchment paper.

To Make the Crust:

1. Using a sharp vegetable peeler, peel the zest from one Meyer lemon, taking only the yellow part, with little to none of the white part, which is bitter.
2. Put the zest and sugar into a food processor and process until the two are well combined and the zest has completely incorporated into the sugar. You will still see tiny specks of zest, but no big pieces. Keep processing until you get to that stage.
3. Add the flour, and cold butter to the bowl and pulse/process until the mixture is moist, crumbly, and almost comes together into a lump.
4. Sprinkle the crust mixture into your prepared baking pan and pat down firmly and evenly. You should have a layer of even thickenss.
5. Bake for about 17 minutes. Meanwhile, prepare the filling.

To Make the Filling:

1. Thinly slice the second Meyer lemon and remove any seeds. Tip: do this over a bowl so you don’t lose any juice.
2. Put the lemon and accumulated juice into a high speed blender like Vitamix or a food processor.
3. Add the sugar to the lemon and puree until smooth. Scrape down the sides of the container, if necessary, to get a smooth puree.
4. Add the eggs, cornstarch, and salt, and purée briefly until well combined.
5. Pour the filling mixture through a fine mesh strainer to remove any lumps or bubbles.
6. Pour the strained filling onto the hot crust immediately after it comes out of the oven.
7. Put the lemon bars back into the oven and bake for another 15 to 20 minutes, or until firm and just starting to take on some golden color. Don’t over bake.
8. Let the bars cool completely on a rack, then put them in the refrigerator to chill for 4 hours or up to overnight.
9. When cold, remove the bars using the parchment paper “handles,” and slice into squares.
10. Dust with powdered sugar just before serving.

Single-Crust Damson Plum & Apple Pie

I “had” to make this wonderful weeknight pie with the Damson plums I received in my CSA share. 🙂 Apparently, they are too tart to be eaten raw and must be cooked. Lucky for me, I received over two pounds of them and was able to enjoy them in two different desserts!

The combination of tart fruit with a sweet cookie-like crust in this pie was absolutely delicious. Blending plums with apples was a wonderful bridge from summer to fall as well.

This recipe was adapted from The Guardian, contributed by Nigel Slater, via Smitten Kitchen. The original recipe used prune plums. It was almost a cobbler with its crumbly lid and oozing filling. Amazing.

I’m sharing my pie at Angie’s Fiesta Friday #138 this week, co-hosted by my friends Mollie @The Frugal Hausfrau and Johanne @French Gardener Dishes. Enjoy!

For the Pastry Lid:

• 7 tablespoons (100 grams) unsalted butter, at room temperature
• 1/2 cup (100 grams) granulated sugar
• 1/2 teaspoon finely grated orange zest (I used the zest from about 1/2 a naval orange.)
• 1 large egg, lightly beaten
• 1 cup plus 6 1/2 tablespoons (175 grams) all-purpose flour
• 1/2 teaspoon baking powder
• 1/4 teaspoon coarse or flaky salt
• milk or heavy cream, for brushing crust
• turbinado or granulated sugar, for sprinkling crust
• softly whipped, lightly sweetened cream, or vanilla ice cream, for serving, optional (unnecessary!)

For the Filling:

• 1 pound ripe Damson plums or Italian prune plums, pitted and quartered
• 1 pound apples, peeled, cored and cut into smaller chunks (I used Pink Lady apples.)
• 2 tablespoons granulated sugar
• 1/8 teaspoon ground cinnamon
• squeeze or two of fresh orange juice

1. Make the pastry lid: In a stand mixer, cream the butter, sugar and orange zest until light and fluffy.
2. Mix in the lightly beaten egg and scrape down sides.
3. Slowly add the flour, baking powder and salt and beat until combined.
4. Scrape dough into a piece of waxed paper or plastic wrap, and stick in the freezer for 10 to 20 minutes, or until firmed up.
5. Assemble the pie: Preheat oven to 350°F (180°C or gas mark 4).
6. Butter a pie dish. (I used cooking oil spray.)
7. Add the fruit and sprinkle it with the sugar, cinnamon and orange juice. Gently toss the ingredients together once or twice. 
8. Roll out the firmed-up lid dough between sheets of plastic wrap or on a very well floured counter.
9. Gently lift it onto the pie and fold the edges underneath to fit the dish. Crimp the edges, as desired. (Note: The crust may tear- all the better to let juice erupt through.)
10. Cut 4 vents in the top to allow steam to release and additional juice to bubble through.
11. Brush the crust with milk or cream, sprinkle with sugar. 
12. Bake for 35 to 40 minutes, until lightly golden on top, covering the edges after the first 15 minutes of baking to prevent over-browning.
13. Scoop onto dishes and serve plain or with whipped cream or ice cream, as desired. (I thought it was perfect on its own!)

One Year Ago:

• Selma’s Plum & Cinnamon Cake
• Mini Pear & Blueberry Upside-Down Cakes

Two Years Ago:

• Fourth of July Blueberry Pie
• Blueberry Buckle

Three Years Ago:

• White Peach & Raspberry Cobbler with Butter Biscuits
• Blackberry Crumb Cake