My personal favorite dessert is anything LEMON! I just adore its tangy flavor, which is why I recently created a versatile lemon curd recipe for use in several new recipes I’ll be unveiling this summer, the first of which is this luscious grain-free lemon bar.
It takes a bit more time to make this recipe, because it’s made with freshly prepared lemon curd. However, I assure you, it’s worth the extra few minutes. Its rich, decadent flavor and light, cake-like crust make this dessert a scrumptious summertime treat! Enjoy!
Update! I also use this decadent lemon curd as a base for creating a wonderful Lemon Berry Tart and my delightful Little Lemon Custard Cups. And if you’re really a lemon lover, I highly recommend whipping up my Lemon Drop Cupcakes with Creamy Lemon Frosting – YUM!
P.S. These luscious lemon bars made it on the “Top 10 Reader Favorites of 2012!”
Step One: Prepare the Crust
Using a food processor, pulse ingredients until it starts to form a dough ball. Then press the dough evenly into the bottom of an 8×8-inch baking dish, as described below.
Step Two: Prepare the Lemon Curd Topping
If you don’t have a double boiler, just be sure to use a heat-safe glass bowl. It’s also important to make sure the water under the bowl is at a very gently simmer, not a rolling boil.
Ingredients
- 1 3/4 cups blanched almond flour
- 1/4 cup butter, cold, cut into pieces
- 1 tbsp arrowroot powder
- 1/4 tsp baking soda
- 1/8 tsp sea salt
- 2 tbsp pure honey (I prefer sage honey due to its mild flavor)
- 1/4 tsp pure vanilla extract
- 6 large egg yolks, room temperature (pastured eggs are best)
- 1/2 cup pure honey (I prefer sage honey due to its mild flavor)
- 1/3 cup fresh-squeezed lemon juice (about 2 Meyer lemons)
- 2 tbsp filtered water
- 1 tsp lemon zest
- 1/4 tsp pure vanilla extract
- 1/2 cup butter, cold, cut into pieces
- Optional: Garnish with unsweetened shredded coconut
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 300 degrees. Place the almond flour, butter pieces, arrowroot powder, baking soda and salt into the bowl of a food processor and pulse 6-8 times. Then add the honey and vanilla and pulse until it starts to form a dough ball.
- Use a rubber spatula to remove the dough and place into an 8x8-inch baking dish.
- Press the dough evenly into the bottom of the baking dish.
- Bake crust for 8-10 minutes, until puffy, but not browned. Allow to cool before filling.
- In a double boiler, or in a heat-safe glass bowl resting above a pot of gently simmering (not boiling) water, whisk together the egg yolks, honey, lemon juice, water, lemon zest and vanilla until well blended.
- Slowly add the butter, 2-3 pieces at a time, while constantly whisking. Add more pieces as the previous ones melt.
- After all of the butter pieces are melted and incorporated, bring the mixture to a gentle simmer. Once it reaches a simmer, cook for 15-18 minutes, stirring just occasionally, until it thickens like a pudding. Please note: It’s very important to cook the lemon curd until it’s very thick and custard like in order to ensure it sets properly.
- Place the lemon curd in the refrigerator to cool. Once cool to touch (but not cold), add the lemon curd to the cooled crust, using a spreader to smooth it out evenly.
- Bake at 300 degrees for approximately 20 minutes, until filling begins to set and slightly puffs up.
- Once baking is completed, remove from oven and allow to cool about 20 minutes. Then, refrigerate for at least 3 hours until completely cold, before cutting into bars. Lightly sprinkle bars with unsweetened shredded coconut, if desired.
Notes
Time-Saving Tip: Whenever a recipe calls for lemon juice, I always zest the lemon first and place the lemon zest in a freezer-safe container to freeze for future recipes – then I proceed with juicing the lemons. This works vice-versa too ... If a recipe calls for lemon zest, after zesting the lemon, I squeeze the lemon to extract the juice and place the lemon juice in a freezer-safe container for future recipes. Taking a quick minute to do this not only helps to eliminate waste, but also helps to reduce the prep time for future recipes.
