Dear Judy Ludy:

Last night I made lemon bars using the old Good Housekeeping recipe. They tasted good, but they were flat and ugly! Do you have a good recipe? Do you know why they would be flat?

Sincerely,
Lemon-Head

Dear Lemon-Head:

I do indeed have a great recipe for lemon bars! I found it in an old cooking magazine years ago, and I can’t remember the name of the magazine, but I’ve made them this way every since. The thing is, I’ve since found out it’s the same recipe that’s been in my family for years! Isn’t that funny! I’ve manipulated the recipe from the original version to make them even tarter; I’m told they’re the best anyone’s tasted.

I suspect the reason yours turned out flat is perhaps the pan was too big for the amount of batter you had. Do they always turn out flat, or just that one time? I’ve found when my pan is too big for the batter, be it brownies, cakes, etc., the item turns out flat and unattractive. Perhaps that’s what’s happened in your case.

Anyway, give it another try with this recipe. I use a 9”x9” square baking pan for this. It looks like it’s going to be too small for the amount of batter, but it’s not. It turns out a crunchy bar on the bottom, with a thick, light layer of lemon on top. Mr. Ludy loves them, as do I.

Let me know!

Jude

LUDY’S LUSCIOUS LEMON-BITES

1 1/2 cups flour
2/3 cups confection sugar
3/4 cup butter, room temperature
3 eggs, lightly beaten
1 1/2 cups sugar
3 tablespoons flour
1/2-cup fresh lemon juice (not the jarred stuff – yuck)

Additional confectioners sugar for dusting over the finished product

Preheat oven to 350

Combine flour, confectioners sugar and butter in a small bowl. Pat into a 9” x 9” square baking pan. Bake at 350 degrees for about 20 minutes or until golden brown.

While that’s baking, in a larger bowl, whisk the eggs, sugar and flour together until combined. Add the lemon juice and mix until frothy. When the crust is golden brown, remove it from the oven, and pour the mixture over the hot crust. Return to the oven and bake for an additional 20 to 23 minutes or until the lemon mixture is lightly browned on top. Remove to cooling rack.

When cool, dust with confectioners sugar, cut into generous portions, and garnish with mint leaves. You may want to dust the serving platter with a bit of confectioner’s sugar as well.

Enjoy!