Meyer Lemon Bars

It hasn’t hit me yet that tomorrow is my last day at my dialysis unit. While I feel confident in my decision to join a different dialysis company that’s more convenient to my home and teaching, it’s hard to leave what you know. And it’s hard to leave great co-workers, and patients that you love.

I was flattered when on Tuesday my co-workers were joking about how great they are and how wonderful the clinic and patients are that there’s just no possible way my new job could compare. It was cute. But I hope they’re wrong!

Much more so than me, I think my co-workers will miss all the food I bring in to share. If you were around during the holidays, you saw the insanity that was cookie, candy, and toffee-making. Yep, my co-workers had their way with all of those goodies. I mean, I would definitely want me as a coworker…(just sayin’…)

These lemon bars were my farewell to my coworkers. And were they ever a hit!

While grocery shopping last weekend, I ran across a bag of Meyer lemons for $1.50 and there was just no saying no. In retrospect, 2 bags should’ve made their way into my cart because when I returned to Kroger 2 days later, the lemons had vanished.

Because my oh-so-savvy method of recipe organization involves emailing myself recipes I find online (at least the subject of the email is always filling in with the recipe name!), labeling them “recipes”, and storing them indefinitely in my Gmail account*, I was able to find multiple recipes using Meyer lemons, very, very quickly. And because I am a slave to email, my phone is with me at all times – especially in the grocery store.

*Believe it or not, this method is much more methodical and time-effective than ripping pages and pages from cooking magazines.

By the time I got home, I had a plan for my lemons. Even though I kind of wanted to just look at them. I think they’re darling.

These lemon bars were gone in no time. My coworker actually said she would choose these lemon bars over anything chocolate (!!), and several others wanted the recipe. While I cannot sing any praises for the healthfulness of these lemon bars (though I did add some whole wheat pastry flour in place of all-purpose!), they are refreshing and worth the splurge!

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Meyer Lemon Bars adapted from Smitten Kitchen and Eats Well With Others, originally from The Barefoot Contessa Cookbook

For the crust:
1/2 lb unsalted butter, at room temperature
1/2 cup granulated sugar
1 cup all-purpose flour
1 cup whole wheat pastry flour
1/8 tsp kosher salt

For the filling:
6 large eggs, at room temperature
2 1/2 cups granulated sugar
2 Tbsp Meyer lemon zest
1 cup freshly squeezed Meyer lemon juice (or regular lemon juice)
1 cup all-purpose flour

Directions:

Preheat the oven to 350 and grease a 9×13-inch baking pan.

For the crust, cream together the butter and sugar until light in the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment. In a separate bowl, combine the flour and salt and, with the mixer on low, add to the butter and beat just until mixed. Put the dough on a well-floured board and form into a ball. With floured hands, flatten the dough into the baking pan. Chill in the freezer for 10 minutes.

Bake the crust for 15-20 minutes or until very lightly browned. Let cool on a wire rack.

For the lemon layer, whisk together the eggs, sugar, lemon zest, lemon juice, and flour. Pour over the crust and bake for 30 to 35 minutes or until set. Let cool to room temperature. Cut into squares or triangles. Sprinkle with powdered sugar, if desired. Yield: 24 bars.

Nutrition Information (per bar): 229 calories; 8.5 g. fat; 54 mg. cholesterol; 31 mg. sodium; 36 g. carbohydrate; 0.5 g. fiber; 2.5 g. protein

Result: Tart & sweet, these are wonderfully refreshing. Meyer lemons may be winter’s secret gift, willing the warmer weather and warding off the snow. For the lemon fans out there, these are a must-make…but be sure to share 😉 Enjoy!

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Second to last day at work and then off to teach…bring on the weekend! The 3-day weekend!

Be well,