Coconut Lemon Bars

The original recipe was from one of the issues of Food Network Magazine. It was for a classic lemon bar. I think I tabbed off nearly half of the recipe in that issue. I still had all that lemon juiceleeft from all those lemons I had received. So when I saw this in the magazine, I knew I had to make it. I prepared my ingredients. The only thing I didn't have was lemon zest. I had juiced all those lemons a while back and I threw out all the rinds. Had I known I needed some zest, I would have zested a few of a couple before throwing them out. So in place of the zest I added come coconut flakes into the filling instead. Give it another level of flavor. These are delicious tart treats.

Mmmm...coconut lemon flavor.

Makes 12-24 bar depending on how big you slice them.

Coconut Lemon Bars

crust:
vegetable oil or cooking spray
3/4 c unsalted butter - 1 1/2 sticks - cold cubed
2 c all purpose flour
1/4 c brown sugar - packed
1/4 c confectioners' sugar (powdered sugar) - plus extra for dusting
1/4 tsp salt

filling:
4 eggs
2 egg yolks
2 c granulated sugar
1/3 c all purpose flour
1 c coconut flakes
1 c fresh lemon juice

Preheat your oven to 350˚F

Grease a 9x13 - inch pan with the vegetable oil or cooking spray. Then line the pan with foil, leaving a 2-inch overhang on all sides. Grease the foil as well.

In a food process, pulse the butter, flour, sugars and salt until it feels of a dough texture.  About a minute. If you don't have a food processor, mix and mash together with your hands until you get a doughy consistency.

Place the dough in the pan and press evenly, making sure there are no cracks. Place in the oven and bake until the crust is golden brown, roughly 25 minutes.

While the crust bakes, make the filling. Whisk together, the eggs, yolks, sugar and flour until a smooth consistency. Add the lemon juice and coconut flakes.

When the crust is finished, remove from oven. Turn the oven down to 300˚F. Pour the filling onto the warm crust and return the pan into the oven. Baked for another 30-35 minutes or until the filling has set.

Let the bars cool in the pan on a rack, then put in the fridge until it firms up -- 2 hours. When the filling has set, remove from the pan and slice. Dust with some additional powdered sugar.