Ina Garten’s Lemon Bars
Ina Garten’s lemon bars are the best lemon bars I’ve ever had. They are so tangy and citrusy, yet sweet and refreshing!
Every recipe I’ve made by Ina Garten has been nothing but amazing and delicious. Ive been wanting to make Ina Garten’s lemon bars for a while now, but figured id wait until summer time to make them, seeing summer is the time for lemon everything.
This recipe was fun and pretty easy to make! It did take a little patients. Especially pressing the dough into a baking sheet…which, I want to discuss that process a little bit.
In her recipe, it says to to place the dough for the crust on a 9 x 13 x 2-inch pan, which I did. And to press it out, building a 1/2 inch edge on all sides, which I did. Although, In the above photo it doesn’t look like they are 1/2 inch edges…but they were!!
Now, this part confused me. I thought to myself “it doesn’t seem right to place dough of the crust that is going to hold alot of liquidy lemon goodness on top”. All I kept picturing is the filling overflowing and oozing down the sides…and thats exactly what happened. It was a mess!
So just a friendly tip…I would either use a baking sheet that has raised edges, or a 9 x 13 x 2-inch casserole dish even. I know Ina must have us use a baking sheet for her own clever reasoning. But if you want to prevent a mess from happening…I’d stay away from using a typical baking sheet with no raised edges.
One more thing I want to mention about the crust…It says to chill the crust before baking it. Which I did. It didn’t say how long to chill it for, so I chilled mine for about 10 minutes. Im thinking that wasn’t long enough…
After the crust was done baking, I had to take a glass and smush down the middle to make edges again. When it baked, the entire crust raised up to an even level, and my edges disappeared. But the glass fixed it!
This recipe is so good because it uses only real, freshly squeezed lemon juice, and lemon zest for that perfect tang!
After my disaster of the overflowing filling, these lemon bars still came out amazing. They look amazing, and most importantly, taste amazing!
I keep these guys chilled until they are ready to be served. Make sure to store any leftovers in the fridge.
Last but not least, ENJOY!
Make sure to check out my recipe for the best peanut butter cookies! https://thehungrylyoness.com/recipe/the-best-peanut-butter-cookies/
Ina Garten's Lemon Bars
Ingredients
For The Crust
- 2 Sticks Unsalted Butter, Softened
- 1/2 Cup Granulated Sugar
- 2 Cups All Purpose Flour
- 1/8 TSP Salt
For The Filling
- 6 Large Eggs, room temperature
- 3 Cups Granulated Sugar
- 3 TBSP Lemon Zest from 3 lemons
- 1 Cup Freshly Squeezed Lemon Juice from 3 lemons
- 1 Cup Flour
- Confectioners Sugar, for dusting
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350º.
- In a mixing bowl with paddle attachment, cream together butter and sugar for your crust.
- Add the rest of your crust ingredients: flour and salt. Mix together until a nice smooth dough forms.
- Place dough on a well floured surface, and form into a ball with floured hands.
- On a 9 X 13 x 2 inch baking sheet, press dough ball and press down, spreading dough out evenly, and making a 1/2 inch edge on all sides. Chill for about 10-15 minutes. **PLEASE READ MY BLOG POST ABOVE FOR SOME HELPFUL TIPS ABOUT THIS STEP**
- Bake crust after its done chilling in preheated oven for about 15-20 minutes. **PLEASE READ MY BLOG POST ABOVE FOR SOME HELPFUL TIPS ABOUT THIS STEP**
- While crust is baking, make your lemon filling.
- In a large bowl, whisk together eggs, lemon juice, lemon zest, sugar, and flour. Whisk together until nice and smooth.
- Pour lemon filling on top of baked crust, and bake in oven for about 30-35 minutes, until filling is set and doesn't jiggle. **PLEASE READ MY BLOG POST ABOVE FOR SOME HELPFUL TIPS ABOUT THIS STEP**
- When lemon bars are cooked, let cool completely. Cut into squares and dust with confectioners sugar. Keep chilled in fridge until ready to serve. Store leftovers in fridge.
- ENJOY!!
