Just Like Lady Bird Johnson's Lemon Squares
Lady Bird Johnson's Lemon Squares are a sweet and light dessert bar recipe that will nicely complement a tea party or other gathering. These tasty bars are great for a church bake sale or potluck, and are so easy to make. Tart and sweet at the same time, this recipe is very straight forward. If you love traditional lemon bars, this is the recipe for you. Both the lemon portion and the crust are made from scratch so not only will you get praise for your good taste in recipes, you'll get extra points for your baking skills.
Notes
Love lemon? Us too! Try our delicious Lemon Crinkle Cookies recipe that we made in our test kitchen.
Yields40 Lemon squares
Cooking Time15 min
Cooking MethodOven
Cooking Vessel Size9x18x1-inch jelly roll pan
Ingredients
- Crust:
- 2 cups flour
- 1/4 cup sugar
- 1 cup cold butter
- 1 2 tablespoons cold water or milk
- Filling:
- 2 cups sugar
- 4 tablespoons flour
- pinch of salt
- 1 tablespoon baking powder
- 3 eggs, beaten
- juice and zest of 1 lemon
- 1/2 cup powdered sugar (for sprinkling on top)
Instructions
-
Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Spray a 9 x 18 x 1 inch jelly roll pan with cooking spray.
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Combine flour, sugar and butter in a bowl with a pastry blender or pulse in a food processor until the butter is the size of small peas. Add water or milk and mix just until the dough holds together. Press into the pan in an even layer. Bake 15 minutes, until just beginning to brown on the edges.
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While crust bakes, make the filling: In a medium bowl, mix sugar, flour, baking powder and salt with a fork. Beat in the eggs, juice and zest until smooth.
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Spread over the warm crust and bake 15-20 minutes; the edges will be light brown and the top should look slightly dry. Remove to a cooling rack and cool 5 minutes. Use a sieve to shake powdered sugar over the entire surface to avoid any lumps.
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Let cool 1 hour before cutting into squares. Store in a covered container at room temperature up to 2 days or in the refrigerator for longer storage.