Cooking Therapy

A taste of Mediterranean summer in every bite! That’s what you get with this recipe for lemon squares. A savory, yet slightly sweet, shortbread base accompanies the creamy, tart Meyer lemon curd, giving notes and daydreams of summer adventures to come. This dessert may look intimidating to make, but trust me it is not. It is very simple and you will relish at the result! Try making yours today!

Makes 20 2×2 squares

Prep time: 20 minutes

Bake time: 45 minutes

Ingredients:

5/6 Meyer lemons, juiced

3 teaspoons lemon zest

1 ¼ cups all-purpose flour

1 ¾ cups granulated sugar

Powdered sugar

½ teaspoon sea salt

14 tablespoons butter, cold

2 large eggs

3 egg yolks

1 ½ teaspoons of cornstarch

3 sprigs of rosemary, finely chopped to a near powder form

Instructions

• Preheat the oven to 325 degrees
• Butter and line a baking pan with parchment paper, with enough hanging over the edges to pull when baked
• In a food processor, add the flour, granulated sugar, three tablespoons of powdered sugar, the lemon zest, rosemary, sea salt, 10 tablespoons of the butter, and pulse until a crumbly dough forms with the consistency of wet sand. If the dough is too dry, add a little bit of water and pulse until you reach the proper consistency
• Press the dough evenly into the pan and about half an inch up the sides of the pan. Using a fork, poke holes in the dough to prevent any rising. Place in oven and bake until light golden brown. While the shortbread base is baking, prepare the lemon curd
• In a saucepan, add the sugar, lemon juice, the corn starch, a small pinch of the lemon zest, a dash of sea salt, the eggs and the yolks, and whisk over a medium heat bringing to a boil, constantly whisking, until the curd thickens. Do not let it overboil and bubble as it will break apart and thin out
• Strain into a bowl and whisk in the remaining 4 tablespoons of butter, one tablespoon at a time, constantly whisking until the butter is mixed in and not separating from the curd
• Once the shortbread base is ready, take it out and carefully and evenly pour the curd into the base
• Place the pan into the oven and bake for about 10-15 minutes or until the curd just sets and is jiggly not runny
• Let it cool to room temperature before refrigerating. Once cold, cut into even sized bars. Sprinkle powdered sugar and top with rosemary before serving
• Enjoy!