Crunchy Lemon Bars

 

A while back I made some Lemony Lemon Brownies which got me to thinking about my usual lemon bars.

These bars are quite the contrary to the lemon brownies. These are crunchy yet soft with a buttery crust. The brownies are dense and decidely brownie-like in texture.

I don't know know which one I would call a favorite... they are really very different and it would depend on what you are looking for.

They are both light and lemony.

You'll have to be the judge.

 

 

Crunchy Lemon Bars

 

Ingredients

Crust

2 sleeves soda crackers (saltines), about 70 - 80 crackers

1 1/2 cups flour

1 1/2 cups butter, room temp

3/4 cup sugar

1/2 cup shredded coconut

2 tsp baking powder

 

Lemon Layer

6 eggs

2 cups sugar

1/2 cup butter

juice of 2 large lemons (about 1/2 cup)

zest of 2 large lemons

 

Directions

Line a 9 X 13 pan with parchment paper. Set aside. Preheat oven to 350.

Crust - In food processor (or put the crackers in a Ziplock bag and crush with a rolling pin), process crackers until fairly fine with only the odd bigger bit.

In a large bowl, mix together cracker crumbs, flour, butter, sugar, coconut, and baking powder until mixture resembles coarse crumbs.

Reserve 2 1/2 cups of the crumbs in a bowl, Press remaining crumbs firmly into the prepared pan.

 

 

Bake at 350 for 10 minutes. Remove from heat.

Lemon layer - Whisk eggs in a medium saucepan. Whisk in sugar, butter, lemon juice, and lemon rind. Place over medium heat. Continue to stir over medium heat until misture is thickened. This takes between 5 - 10 minutes, maybe more depending on your heat.

When thickened, pour evenly over bottom layer.

 

 

Sprinkle with the remaining reserved crumbs and press down lightly.

 

 

Bake at 350 for about 20 - 25 minutes, until golden brown.

Remove from oven, let cool completely on wire rack before removing using parchment paper handles. You may need to run a knife around the edge of the pan to loosen it from the sides.

Cut into squares and serve. Refrigerate leftovers.

 

 

The soda crackers add a bit of a different flavor than the usual graham cracker crust. They have a bit of saltiness that goes well with the lemon custard. Definitely a totally different experience than the Lemony Lemon Brownies.

If you make either one, please let us know which gets your vote.

 

Be sure to visit Memories By The Mile for some great links!