Easy Lemon Bars
Just a handful of ingredients is all that's required to make these fresh bars with a beautiful classic shortbread base topped with a lemon curd. This is a really easy recipe, just ensure you don't overbake! Makes 16 squares.
Servings: 16
Calories: 186cal
Ingredients
Shortbread Base
- 3/4 cup (115g) plain flour (all purpose flour)
- 1/4 cup (40g) rice flour (or cornstarch/cornflour) (Note 1)
- 1/2 cup (60g) icing sugar / confectioner's sugar
- 1/4 tsp salt
- 110 g / 1 stick butter (cold), cut into 1cm / 1/2" cubes
Lemon Topping
- 3 large eggs or 4 small eggs
- 1 1/2 cups (330g) caster sugar / super fine sugar
- 1/4 cup (35g) plain flour (all purpose flour)
- 1 tbsp lemon zest (do this before juicing)
- 6 tbsp (90ml) lemon juice (2 - 3 lemons)
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 180C/350F (all oven types). Spray a 20cm/8" square tin with oil and line with baking/parchment paper with overhang (so it can be lifted out once cooked).
- Place Shortbread Base ingredients in a food processor and pulse a few times until crumbs form - see photo. (Note 2) Pour into prepared tin and press evenly and firmly into the base.
- Bake for 12 minutes or until light golden. Remove from oven.
- While the base is baking, place Lemon Topping ingredients in a bowl and whisk until combined.
- Pour Lemon Topping onto the Shortbread Base. Bake for 18 - 20 minutes until the topping is set and light golden.
- Remove from oven and cool. Transfer to fridge and cool for 2 hours before slicing into 16 squares. Dust with icing sugar (confectionary sugar) and serve.
Notes
1. The jury is out on whether shortbread is "better" made with cornflour or rice flour! A friend gave me a very traditional Scottish cookbook and the shortbread recipe in it uses rice flour, so I tend to stick to that. But both really are acceptable. Rice flour will give it a granulated soft crunchy result (makes it really "short") whereas cornflour gives it a more "melt in your mouth" texture. Both are delicious!
2. If you don't have a food processor, you can use your fingers to "rub" the butter into the dry ingredients and you'll end up with the same crumbs that you see in the photos.
3. Nutrition per serving i.e. 1 slice of the 16 bars this recipe makes.
Nutrition
Serving: 55g | Calories: 186cal | Carbohydrates: 30.3g | Protein: 2.2g | Fat: 6.8g | Saturated Fat: 4g | Cholesterol: 50mg | Sodium: 90mg | Potassium: 32mg | Sugar: 22.6g | Vitamin A: 200IU | Vitamin C: 4.1mg | Calcium: 10mg | Iron: 0.5mg