Cooking Thursday

 I'm sure you've had the classic lemon bars.  They are always good! Here's a recipe I tried recently, that has a shortbread crust and a thick, creamy lemon filling.  It's a good one!

Lemon Bars

Shortbread Crust: 
1 cup (2 sticks) unsalted butter, melted 
1/2 cup granulated sugar
2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
1/2 teaspoon salt
2 cups + 2 Tablespoons all-purpose flour

Lemon Filling
2 cups granulated sugar
6 Tablespoons all-purpose flour
6 large eggs
1 cup lemon juice (about 4 lemons)
confectioners’ sugar for dusting

Preheat oven to 325 degrees.
Make the crust: Mix the melted butter, sugar, vanilla extract, and salt together in a medium bowl. Add the flour and stir to completely combine. The dough will be thick. Press firmly into greased 9x13  pan, making sure the layer of crust is nice and even. Bake for 20-22 minutes or until the edges are lightly browned. Remove from the oven. Using a fork, poke holes all over the top of the warm crust (not all the way through the crust). Set aside.
Make the filling: Sift the sugar and flour together in a large bowl. Whisk in the eggs, then the lemon juice until completely combined.
Pour filling over warm crust. Bake the bars for 22-26 minutes or until the center is relatively set and no longer jiggles. (Give the pan a light tap with an oven mitt to test.) Remove bars from the oven and cool completely at room temperature.
Dust with confectioners’ sugar and cut into squares before serving.