You know, sometimes it just happens.
A family celebration kind of pops up
and catches you by surprise.
And you're in charge of bringing a sweet treat,
and maybe it's just a little nibble,
but you have to feed quite a few people.
So what are you going to make?
I'm gonna let you know.
You are going to make my creamy lemon squares.
Everybody will be talking about them.
I love a good lemon square,
and it starts with a shortbread crust.
So I have a cup of all purpose flour in my bowl,
and I'm going to add to that a 1/4 cup of granulated sugar.
And I'll just stir it in with my fingers.
I have a 1/2 a cup of cold butter.
I just pulled it from the fridge
and I'm just gonna toss it in the flour
so it's easier to hold onto as I use a box grater
to grate it right into my flour.
This makes it super quick to work the butter
into the flour creating this shortbread crust.
I've got a pastry cutter to use here,
but you could use two knives just as easily,
and just work that butter in.
And I don't bother adding any flavoring.
That creamy, tart lemon filling will do
all the talking for me.
My butter is just starting to soften up
and I've got small pieces starting to form.
So now, it's time to stop mixing.
I've got a nine inch square pan
greased and lined with parchment paper
so that the paper comes up the side.
That makes it easy to pop out
the whole pan of squares to cut them up.
And then very gently, you don't have to press too, too hard,
press this into the pan.
And I find the key too, is also just to press it
slightly up the sides a little bit.
That too, will help prevent the filling
from leaking underneath.
I'll just pop this in my 350 oven
and you give it 15 to 18 minutes to cook.
It'll just start browning around the outside edges.
All right, here is my crust and you can see that it is
closely nestled right up to the side of the pan.
That lemon filling on top will not go anywhere.
Lemon squares aren't complicated to make,
but it's the little things like that,
that do make a difference.
Now, another tip for this great recipe for lemon squares
is to give that lemon filling a little substance
so it does stay on top of the crust.
So my secret is to use 1/2 a package of cream cheese.
I've measured out 1 1/2 cups of sugar.
You need that sugar to play
against the tartness of the lemon juice.
I'm only gonna add about 1/2 a cup to start.
And now, I'll add some more,
along with my zest of one lemon.
Now, (scratching)
the tartness in this lemon square recipe
comes from the lemon juice.
The real intense lemon flavor comes
from the quantity of lemon zest.
That's why I like to put in the zest of a full lemon.
(rasp banging)
You can really see how that cream cheese is softening up.
I do have a 1/4 cup of flour here
that goes into the filling.
Again, that lends set and structure, and for little lift,
1/2 a teaspoon of baking powder.
I've got 1/2 a cup of freshly squeezed lemon juice.
In a lemon dessert like this,
fresh really makes a difference
as opposed to bottled lemon juice.
Now, you're probably looking at this bowl
and you just saw how much lemon juice I added and you think,
"Well, that doesn't look very lemony at all."
Well, the lemon color comes from the eggs.
I have four eggs here.
Add the first one on its own to get it blending.
Then I can add the rest all at once.
(whisk banging) And that's it.
This is ready to pour into my pan.
And that's got such a lovely lemon color,
but you get the hint of the creaminess
in there from the cream cheese.
Now, I keep my oven at 350,
and the squares take about 35 to 40 minutes to bake.
When you see about two inches still jiggly in the center,
that's when you know it's time to pull them out
to cool on the counter.
And there are the lemon squares, wonderfully set.
And I cut them up while I leave the paper on.
I don't try and peel it away.
Once you've cut up your squares into portions,
they're best stored in an airtight container in the fridge,
and they'll keep for a good four to five days,
until everyone knows that they're in the fridge.
What I think makes a lemon square such a crowd pleaser
is the fact that it packs such big lemon flavor
in such a small little bite.
The tartness of the lemon,
the creaminess of the cream cheese, and of course,
the sweetness all on a shortbread crust.
I know you will be a hit when you make these
for your next family celebration, cheers.
(upbeat music)
Mm, mm hmm, mm hmm.