Spiced Apple Cake with Brown Butter Buttercream and Caramel
Ginger Meyer Lemon Bars
Ginger Meyer 🍋Lemon Bars = Lemon Bar Perfection! What makes the perfect lemon bar? Sweet, tart, and tangy lemon curd atop a rich, buttery, nutty crust – sounds 👍🏼to me! The base of these lemon bars is a buttery crust – made with 🥥coconut, almond, and sweet rice flours – then baked until golden brown. Next comes an easy Meyer lemon curd that is extra tangy, ultra rich, creamy, and super satisfying. The combo makes the best gluten free citrus dessert bars!
Ingredients
FOR THE CRUST:
- 1/3 cup coconut flour
- 1/3 cup blanched almond flour
- 1/3 cup sweet white rice flour
- 1/4 cup granulated cane sugar
- 1/4 teaspoon fine sea salt or kosher salt
- 5 tablespoons cold Clover Sonoma Organic unsalted butter, cut into 1/2-inch pieces
- 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
FOR THE CURD:
- 1/2 cup (1 stick) cold Clover Sonoma Organic unsalted butter, cut into 1/2-inch pieces
- 1 tablespoon peeled and finely grated fresh ginger, preferably grated with a microplane
- 2 teaspoons firmly packed, finely grated meyer lemon zest (from 2 large meyer lemons)
- 1-1/4 cups sugar
- 1/8 teaspoon kosher salt
- 3 whole Clover Sonoma Organic eggs plus 2 Clover Sonoma Organic egg yolks
- 3/4 cup strained meyer lemon juice, from about 5 large meyer lemons
- Powdered sugar, for sprinkling (optional)
Directions
1
Position a rack in the center of the oven and preheat to 350°F. Line the bottom and sides of an 8-inch square baking pan with 2 crisscrossed pieces of parchment paper, leaving an overhang on all sides.
2
Make the crust: In a food processor, combine together the three flours, sugar, salt, butter, and vanilla and process until large clumps form, about 30 seconds. Transfer to the prepared baking pan and pack firmly and evenly with your hands or a flat-bottomed glass, making sure to get the crumbs into the corners. Bake until light golden and fragrant, 15 to 20 minutes. While hot, use the back of a spoon to firmly press down the crust to help hold it together when the bars are cut
3
Lower the oven temperature to 325°F. Make the curd: Set a mesh strainer over a heatproof bowl and set aside. Place the butter, ginger, and lemon zest in a small bowl and set aside. In a heavy saucepan, whisk together the sugar, salt, whole eggs, and egg yolks to combine. Whisk in the lemon juice. Place the pan over medium-low heat and cook, stirring constantly and scraping the bottoms and corners of the pan while the mixture changes from thick and cloudy to thin and translucent to slightly thick and cloudy and registers 165°F on an instant-read thermometer, 5 to 10 minutes. If it starts to curdle or bubble, immediately remove it from the heat and proceed to the next ste
4
Immediately pour the curd through the prepared strainer. Whisk in the reserved butter, ginger, and lemon zest until combined, then pour the curd over the baked crust.
5
Bake the bars until the sides are barely puffed and the center wobbles like firm Jell-O when given a gentle shake, 18 to 25 minutes. If wet or watery looking, it is underbaked; if puffed in the center or cracking, it is overbaked. Let cool for 30 minutes, then chill in the pan until firm, 2 to 3 hours.
6
Grasp the parchment to lift the bars from the pan and onto a cutting board; peel away the sides of the parchment. Use a large knife to trim the edges if you want uniform squares. Cut into 16 squares, wiping the blade clean between cuts. Just before serving, dust the tops with a bit of powdered sugar.
