Strawberry lemonade bars are the perfect blend of sweet strawberries and tart lemons baked on crunchy shortbread. The ideal dessert for spring and summer.
½cupfresh squeezed lemon juice4-5 lemons depending on size
2teaspoonslemon zest(1 lemon)
1cupchopped strawberries, divided
2cupssugar
6eggs
½cupflour
½teaspoonbaking powder
¼teaspoonsalt
powdered sugar for dusting
Instructions
For the Shortbread Crust
Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Line a 9x13-inch pan with parchment paper that extends up the side and overhangs to aid in removing the bars after cooling. DON'T SKIP THIS STEP!
In an electric mixer, combine flour, butter, and sugar and beat until the mixture comes together. Press into the bottom of the prepared pan.
Bake for 15 to 20 minutes or until golden brown and firm. Remove and set aside while preparing the filling.
For Filling
While the crust is baking, start to prepare the filling. Using a large blender, combine the fresh lemon juice, lemon zest, half the strawberries, and sugar. Blend until smooth. (Note: you can add all the strawberries to the blender if you do not want pieces of strawberries in your bars. The end result will be pinker bars.)
Add eggs and continue to blend.
Lastly, add flour, baking powder, and salt. Blend filling until smooth.
Stir in the remaining half of the chopped strawberries. (If you added them all to the blender to be pureed skip this step.)
Pour the filling over the cooled baked crust. Bake for about 23-25 minutes. The center should be barely set.
Remove from the oven to a wire rack and cool for about 1 hour. Place in the refrigerator, covered, for 1-2 more hours.
When bars are chilled, remove from the refrigerator. Slide a knife around the two ends without the parchment paper edge and cut through the shortbread crust so the bars don't stick to the side. Using the parchment paper, lift the bars carefully to a wooden cutting board.
Cut into 24 2x2-inch bars then place on a wire rack and dust with powdered sugar.
Store covered in the refrigerator for up to one week.
Notes
RECIPE TIPS
Don't skip lining the pan with parchment paper. You'll need it to easily lift the bars out of the pan.
Make sure the crust has cooled before pouring the filling mixture over it.
Use room-temperature butter to make the shortbread crust. Cold butter will cause holes and melted butter will cause the crust to be too hard and crunchy.
Make sure the bars are completely chilled before removing them from the pan and slicing them.