Coconut Lemon Lime Bars
Most of our friends here in Uruguay aren’t Uruguayan – immigrants are everywhere (don’t get me started on the term “expat”). Over time, we’ve learned some pretty obvious stuff: want to please a Brazilian? Bring some brigadeiro! Want to please an American? Bring lemon bars!
Sky and I went to visit some American friends who live in Pueblo Eden – I was going to make the ones I usually made, but as I had plenty of leftover coconut from the cocadas, I decided it was time to photograph the first lemon bar recipe I had ever made. Looking at the original post, I realized I must have baked that right after Patricia posted it: the recipe is from 2011, the year I moved here!
Back then, I replaced the lime for more lemon, but this time I decided to follow the recipe (well, not really, I’m always changing something). And it was great!
For a 9 x 13 inch pan, you’ll need:
Base:
65 g (2/3 cup) sweetened coconut flakes – I can never find that ingredient here, but it’s just as well: I think they’re too sweet! I used regular shredded coconut.
185 g (1 1/3 cups) flour
90 g (1/3 cup + 2 Tbsp) sugar
1 tsp vanilla extract
127 g (½ cup + 1 Tbsp) unsalted butter, cold, and cut into cubes – You can see why a kitchen scale is a worthy investment. It’s just so much easier to measure 127 g of butter than ½ cup + 1 Tbsp!
Filling:
4 eggs
2 yolks
436 g (2 cups + 3 Tbsp) sugar – I used 350 g, but next time I’ll try with even less.
50 g (1/3 cup + ½ Tbsp) flour
zests of 2 lemons – I used the zests of 3 lemons.
zests of 1 lime – I used the zests of 3 limes, I was on a roll with that Microplane! 😀
120 ml (½ cup) freshly squeezed lemon juice
120 ml (½ cup) freshly squeezed lime juice
As most bar recipes, start by preparing the pan: butter a 9 x 13 inch pan and cover it with aluminum foil, leaving a “handle” to help remove the bars from the pan. Butter the aluminum foil WELL, being careful not to tear it. This is also the perfect time to start pre-heating your oven.
Prepare the base: if you’re using coconut flakes, place them in the food processor and pulse to grind them some. Add all dry ingredients, pulse, add the butter and vanilla, and process until a dough forms. You can also do this by hand: whisk the dry ingredients, add the cold butter cubes and the vanilla, and use your fingertips to “crush” the butter into the dough.
Press the dough on the prepared pan and bake for 20-25 minutes, or until it turns slightly golden on the sides.
Meanwhile, prepare the filling: zest the lemons and limes, being careful not to cut into the white (and bitter) part. Juice them – I needed 5 limes to get 120 ml of juice, but that always varies!
In a bowl, whisk the eggs and yolk to combine. Add the remaining ingredients, whisk well, and set aside.
When the base is slightly golden on the sides, remove it from the oven, pour in the filling, and carefully place it back in the oven. Bake for another 25-30 minutes, or until the filling is set.
Remove from the oven and let it cool completely before placing them in the fridge for at least 2 hours. As I was running late, I placed them in the freezer for 1 hour and it totally worked! 😛
So they look a bit prettier, dust them with confectioner’s sugar. Try your best not to eat them all at once, as Sky tried to! 😀
Chocolate Coconut Nut Bar
It has been a bit quiet over here, hasn’t it? August was a tough month, but it ended brilliantly, and now we’re back!
When I first read this recipe, I thought I’d make just a tiny change, using honey instead of corn syrup. I went to the grocery store to buy pecans, but I forgot that the recipe called for three cups, so I only bought a small packet! So that was another thing I had to adapt – I used only two cups of nuts (pecans and walnuts). Then, when I was sorting the ingredients for the picture, I realized I was out of chocolate chips and did not have enough coconut flakes – so I used a chocolate bar, chopped, and some shredded coconut! 😀 Even with all these adaptations, the bars turned out great! 🙂
For a 9 x 13 inch pan, you’ll need:
Base:
1 ¾ cups all-purpose flour
¾ cup confectioner’s sugar
¼ cup unsweetened cocoa powder
¾ cup (170 g) unsalted butter, chopped into cubes
Tasty chocolate layer
1 ½ cup chocolate chips – I chopped a 70% cacao chocolate bar
Top:
3 large eggs
¾ cup packed brown sugar
¾ cup honey
¼ cup (60 g) melted butter – yes, we’re using butter again in this recipe! 😀
1 cup of sweetened coconut flakes – I used a mix of unsweetened coconut flakes and shredded coconut
2 cups pecans – I mixed pecans and walnuts, but I think it’d be pretty tasty using hazelnuts!
As most bar recipes, start by preparing the pan: butter a 9 x 13 inch pan and cover it with aluminum foil, leaving a “handle” to help remove the bars from the pan. Butter the aluminum foil WELL, being careful not to tear it. I feel I need to stress the concept of buttering the foil WELL: I didn’t do it (I’m starting to believe August is really a messed-up month), and a big piece of the bar STUCK to the pan in a way that I had never seen! 😦
Spread the nuts evenly over another baking sheet. Toast the nuts for 10 minutes, stirring every now and then. Set aside
In a bowl, whisk the flour, confectioners’ sugar, and cocoa powder. Add the cold butter, and use your fingertips to crush it until the mix resembles coarse meal – or you can be traditional and use a pastry blender! I just don’t care much for pastry blenders 😀 Press this mixture on the bottom of the prepared baking sheet, and bake in a preheated oven for 15 minutes.
Immediately after removing the base from the oven, spread the chocolate chips evenly over the entire surface – the chocolate will melt quickly, creating a very tasty layer 😀
Let it cool over a wire rack for at least 30 minutes.
In a bowl, lightly beat the eggs. Add the brown sugar, the honey, and the melted butter. Mix well until all the ingredients are combined. Add the coconut and the nuts.
Pour this mixture over the cooled base and bake on a pre-heated oven for about 35 minutes, or until the filling has set and the edges are golden-brown. Let it cool over a wire rack for about 1 hour, and then place it in the fridge for another hour.
Use the foil “handles” to remove the bars from the baking sheet. Place them over a cutting board, cut them with a sharp knife and serve!
Lamington Bars
You know, sometimes all we need is something that is simple, but looks complicated, complex, sophisticated. Or something that has a fancy name!
This recipe, from Technicolor Kitchen, fulfilled an old desire of mine: I always wanted to make Lamingtons, but was too lazy to make the traditional ones!
You’ll need:
125 g unsalted butter at room temperature
3/4 cup sugar
1 tsp vanilla extract
2 eggs
1 ¼ cup flour
1 ¼ rsp baking powder
Pinch of salt
½ cup whole milk, lukewarm
1 cup of sweetened coconut flakes – I must confess I didn’t really measure! As I can’t find sweetened coconut flakes in Uruguay, I used shredded coconut.
For the icing, you’ll need:
¾ confectioner’s sugar, passed through a fine mesh sieve – can I use regular sugar? Probably NOT.
2 Tbsp unsweetened cocoa powder, passed through a fine mesh sieve
1/3 cup boiling water
1 ½ Tbsp unsalted butter, melted
As in brownie recipes, start by preparing the baking sheet (i used a 9 x 13 inch one): line it with aluminum foil and butter the foil – do so CAREFULLY, to prevent tears. I ran out of aluminum foil that day (the horror!), so I used parchment paper – make sure you butter it as well!
In the stand mixer, cream the butter, sugar, and vanilla until the mixture is light and fluffy. This will take about 5 minutes. Add the eggs, one at a time, mixing well after each addition – remember to use the silicone spatula to scrape the sides of the bowl!
Turn off the mixer. With your silicone spatula, mix the flour, baking powder, and salt, until it’s all well incorporated. Mix in the milk. You’ll get a reasonably thick batter. Spread it over the baking sheet, making sure to smooth the surface with your spatula.
Bake in a pre-heated oven for 30 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted in the middle of the cake comes out clean. This cake doesn’t raise or color much, don’t worry. Let it cool COMPLETELY in the pan over a cooling rack.
When the cake has cooled, cut it into bars – cutting before pouring the icing makes the bars look pretty on the sides! 🙂
It’s time for the ridiculously complicated icing. Ready? Mix all icing ingredients in a bowl. There. With a spoon and a little bit of patience, spread the icing over the bars. Top them with coconut and serve!
Another great thing about these bars is that they freeze PERFECTLY! Wrap individual portions in plastic wrap. When you really need something sweet, just remove from the freezer and let it thaw a little bit – they’re pretty tasty cold! 🙂
Lemon Bars
The second recipe of the Christmas Tertulias is not exactly a Christmas recipe, but it is a perfect fit for the hot weather in the Southern Hemisphere. As the idea of this series is to make edible gifts, all you have to do is place these bars in a red-and-green box and there you have it: CHRISTMAS 😀 😀
They are also a great dessert for Christmas Dinner. We know your aunt is bringing
pudim (Brazilian-style flan), but you can innovate and bring these! 🙂
Lemon bars are also one of Sky’s favorite desserts: I first baked them because every time I baked something, he’d say “oh, this is pretty good, but you could make lemon bars, you know…” I’m glad he insisted, though, because these are really good! I’ve tried many recipes, but this one, by Ree Drummond, is one of the most traditional.
To fill a 20 x 30 cm (8 x 11 inch) pan with lemon bars <3, you’ll need:
Crust
2 cups all-purpose flour
1/2 cup sugar
1/4 tsp salt
1 tsp vanilla extract – “an invention from my head,” as Grandma would say
225 g butter, cold and chopped into small cubes
Filling
1 1/2 cup sugar
1/4 cup all-purpose flour
4 eggs
Zest and juice of 5 lemons
Confectioner’s sugar, for decoration
Start by lining the baking pan (20 x 30 cm, 8 x 11 inch) with aluminum foil − leave extra foil on the sides to form handles, so that removing the bars from the pan isn’t a traumatizing process 😀 – there’s no need to butter the foil, as there’s plenty of butter in the dough!
For the crust: in a medium-sized bowl, use a whisk to combine the flour, sugar, and salt. Add the butter and the vanilla and use the tip of your fingers (or a pastry cutter) to mix the ingredients until it looks like fine crumbs. Press this dough onto your baking pan and bake in a pre-heated oven for approximately 20 minutes, or until the sides are light golden. Don’t bake any more than that, as these will go back to the oven! 🙂
While the crust is baking, prepare the filling. Use your whisk to mix the sugar and flour. Add the eggs, mixing well, and then add the lemon zest and juice. Mix and set aside. As this whole process takes about 3 minutes, do the dishes! 😀
Remove the crust from the oven, carefully pour the filling, and bake for another 15-20 minutes, or until the filling is firm. Remove from the oven and cool it for a while before placing in the fridge for about 2 hours – it’s a lot easier to cut them when they’re cold!
Remove the chilled bars from the pan, using the aluminum foil. For extra prettiness, sift a generous layer of confectioner’s sugar over the bars. Cut them into 5-cm (2-inch) squares. Place the bars in a cute box (if you have to pile them, separate the layers with wax paper), and there’s your gift!
Culinary Tertulias 