The Sweetness of Summer + Lemon Bar Recipe

With a long weekend ahead of me, I’m ready to soak up every ounce of cool river breezes and dancing firefly nights.

I’ll be dipping my toes in the water as I drift away from the river bank and into the sun.

With family coming in for the long weekend, we’ll be BBQ-ing and fish frying to our hearts content. And the desserts become the main event– see lemon bar recipe below.

I’m also excited to devote some of my free time to plan the renovations for our new little tin can– it helps that it happily sits just a short walk away from the river.

The AC is almost ready to be put in, we’ve started to seal her up (this has turned slightly nightmarish, but window stripping is apparently every Airstream owner’s induction ceremony), and after we check the wiring and gas pipes, it will be time to tackle the interior– which I’m super excited about.

I’m ready to slow down too though– maybe its the searing heat that makes us languid, but my heart is happy during this sweetly simple few drops of summer I’ve been allotted.

As for the lemon bars… well I couldn’t not mention them. I’ve baked these for my family on multiple occasions. And every time they were gone before I could even snap a picture. I’ve already had requests for repeats, so I can say your pretty safe giving these a whirl for the Fourth of July Weekend, or any lazy summer day (they’re simple to make, too). I’m debating between making these and Fried Oreos which has also been requested this weekend. While the oreos are always a hit too, there’s just something about cool, zesty-sweet bars that make them a summer home run in my book.

Adapted from the Hummingbird Bakery Lemon Bar Recipe

What You’ll Need:

13 by 9-inch baking pan lined with parchment paper

Filling/Sticky goodness:

• 1 cup sugar
• 3 eggs
• 6 tablespoons freshly-squeezed lemon juice
• 3 teaspoons grated lemon zest

Crust:

• 2 1/4 cups flour
• 2/3 powdered sugar
• pinch of salt
• 2 sticks unsalted butter
• 2 teaspoons grated lemon zest

**This recipe will add up to needing at least 3 large, whole lemons (depends on their size, I’ve used up to 6 small ones before)**

Preheat oven to 325 degrees Fahrenheit.

For the crust (first step): Mix flour, sugar, salt, butter and lemon zest together with an electric mixer until it resembles bread crumbs (works best if you work your way up to a high speed for the right consistency). Then, press the dough together with your hands, then pressing it evenly into the base of a 13 by 9-inch baking pan (lined with parchment paper). It can be sandy in consistency. The key is flattening the mixture to line the bottom of the baking pan.

Bake in oven for 20 minutes or lightly golden. Let it cool while leaving the oven on for the next step.

Second Step: Put the sugar, eggs, and lemon juice and zest in a bowl and whisk until well mixed. Pour over baked crust (once it has cooled slightly). Bake for 20 minutes or until the top has set and edges are golden. Let cool, cover, and refrigerate over night or as long as possible.

Enjoy their zesty, sweet, here-comes-the-sun taste!

Though they aren’t a glamorous patriotic choice for the Fourth, they embody summer- and disappear just as quickly!

**I am in no ways a professional baker, just a by-the-book, line-by-line observer of recipe instructions. I only tweak where helpful or necessary– I can’t guarantee satisfaction, other than my own experience!**

Photos ©livesimplykmm.wordpress.com