Lemon Squares Part 1

My dad loves lemon and he loves desserts.  He especially loves lemon meringue pie but also likes other baked goodies that combines the tartness of lemon with the sweetness of sugar.  His birthday is next month so I am going to make him a number of varieties of lemon squares.  I have done this in the past and he thoroughly enjoyed having different kinds to choose from.

I will post all the lemon squares here over several days and you can then decide which is your favorite.

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I got the first recipe from a Robin Hood recipe that I cut out of a magazine and adapted slightly.
Lemon Almond Cranberry Squares
Ingredients
Crust:
2 c flour
1/3 c icing sugar
1 c marg or butter
Filling:
4 lemons
7 eggs
2 1/4 c sugar
1/4 c melted marg or butter
1/2 c flour
2 tsp baking powder
1 1/4 c chopped or ground almonds
1 1/3 c dried cranberries (1 - 170 gm pkg)

Crust: Combine all ingredients until crumbly and press into 9x13 pan.  Bake at 350F for 15-20 minutes or until the crust is light golden in colour.

Filling:  Reduce oven to 325F.  Beat eggs and sugar until light and slightly thickened.  Notice how lovely and yellow the beaten eggs are.  My girls lay delicious eggs!! 

Grate rind from 2 lemons.  Squeeze out 3/4 c juice.  Add with the rest of the ingredients to egg mixture and beat well. 

Pour over baked crust. 

Bake for 40-50 minutes or until set and golden.  Cool and cut into squares.



You can sprinkle the tops with icing sugar before serving, if desired.  Makes 3 to 3 1/2 dozen squares.  (I cut mine 5 rows by 9 rows and got 45 squares)

These squares are very nice and tart and remind me slightly of the filling for lemon pie.  The cranberries swelled up and were very plump.
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I got this recipe from the November 2005 Canadian Living Magazine.
Lemon Almond Bars
Ingredients
Crust:
1 c flour
1 c rolled oats
3/4 c brown sugar
3/4 c butter or marg
Filling:
5 eggs
1 c brown sugar
3/4 c lemon juice
1/3 c corn syrup
1/4 c melted butter or marg
1 Tbsp corn starch
2 c sliced almonds

Crust: Combine all ingredients until crumbly and press into greased 9x13 pan.  Bake at 350F for 15 minutes.

Filling: Beat all ingredients except almonds until well combined.  Pour over crust. 

Sprinkle on almonds. 

Bake for 30 minutes or until golden and set. 

Cool and slice into bars.





Makes 36 bars.  (Again I cut it into 9 rows by 5 rows and got 45 squares).

NOTE:  The next time I make these bars, I will mix the cornstarch with the brown sugar before adding it to the wet ingredients so it doesn't lump up like it did this time.  I have to work the lumps out of the filling before I could pour it onto the crust.

I loved the oatmeal/brown sugar in the crust instead of the "normal" shortbread-type of crust.  The squares were more difficult to cut prettily with the almonds on top.  I enjoyed the larger almond pieces in these squares as opposed to the chopped almonds in the last ones.