Thursday, May 5, 2011

Lemon Bars with Ginger Shortbread



Last night was my roommate and her pianist friend's recital, and it was wonderful!  I'm so proud of her!  The music was beautiful and perfectly intense, and it was quite a treat to actually hear the pieces in their entirety since I usually hear them coming at me through the shared wall of our rooms.


For the reception, I wanted to pay homage to Maria's favorite flavor combination--lemon and ginger.  After living with her for two plus years or so, she's definitely instilled in me an appreciation of ginger that I didn't quite have before.  Our house is always stocked with ginger beer or ginger candies or crystallized ginger, and oftentimes, the kitchen smells of these gorgeous lemon-ginger scones that Maria likes to make.  So, I decided to make lemon bars with ginger shortbread, bursting with fresh lemon flavor, and held together with a crystallized ginger-encrusted, fresh ginger-packed shortbread crust.  --Double the ginger, and the perfect surprise compliment to the sweet, lemony custard.  I sort of didn't want to take it to the reception so that we could eat it all by ourselves at home!  (Sadly, it got devoured at the reception, so no leftovers either!)


Anyways, here's wishing you all a wonderful end to the week and a raucous Cinco de Mayo and a Happy Mother's Day, preferably with ginger-lemon bars that you don't have to share with anyone else!  :-)


[Don't forget to go and vote for desserts for breakfast for Best Baking/Desserts Blog in Saveur's Best Food Blog Awards!]

Read on for recipe....


Lemon Bars with Ginger Shortbread
makes one 13 x 9" pan
inspired by lemon bars from Tartine

for crust:
1/2 cup (55 gr) powdered sugar
1 1/2 cups (215 gr) AP flour
1/4 tspn salt
3/4 cup (170 gr) unsalted butter, at room temperature
15 gr freshly grated ginger (see note)
60 gr crystallized ginger, chopped

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Grease and flour the bottom and sides of one 13 x 9" pan. Set aside.
2. In a mixer bowl with the paddle attachment, combine the powdered sugar, flour, and salt.
3. Add the butter and freshly grated ginger to the flour mixture, and mix on low until a smooth dough begins to form.
4. Press the dough into a thin layer at the bottom of the prepared pan. Scatter the chopped crystallized ginger on top, pressing it very lightly into the dough.
5. Place a piece of parchment paper over the crust and fill with pie weights (or beans). Bake in the oven for 25-35 minutes, rotating once halfway through, until the crust is a deep golden brown around the edges.

Meanwhile, make the filling:

for filling:
1/2 cup (70 gr) AP flour
2 cups (400 gr) sugar
freshly grated zest of two or three lemons
1 cup + 2 Tbspn freshly squeezed lemon juice
6 large eggs
1 egg yolk
pinch of salt

1. In a bowl, whisk to combine the flour, sugar, lemon zest, and lemon juice.
2. In a separate bowl, whisk together the eggs, egg yolk, and salt.
3. Whisk the eggs into the flour mixture thoroughly.
4. As soon as the crust is done, remove the pie weights and parchment paper and pour the filling into the hot pan (make sure the pan is hot).
5. Return the pan to the oven, reduce the heat to 300 degrees F, and bake for 25-35 minutes, just until the center of the custard does not jiggle.
6. Remove from the oven and let cool completely on a wire rack. Chill well before cutting, and, if desired, dust the tops with sifted powdered sugar.

Note: I used young ginger because I prefer the brightness and spiciness of it for baking with lemons, but regular ginger works here, too.


Enjoy!

22 comments:

  1. Oh I LOVE ginger so much! :) Ginger and lemon (lime) is my favourite combo too. I need to give this recipe a try. It looks so fresh and flavoursome. Thank you for sharing the recipe.

    ReplyDelete
  2. So delicious, Steph! You are the best.

    ReplyDelete
  3. This recipe looks really delicious! I love ginger and it sounds like it pairs perfectly with lemon. Going to try to make these this weekend!

    ReplyDelete
  4. These look delightful. Love the ginger shortbread!

    ReplyDelete
  5. I love shortbread and I love lemon. I actually haven't had many desserts with ginger in it, because I never liked eating ginger raw--but I really want to try it out more often in baked goods. Lovely pictures!

    ReplyDelete
  6. yummy :) lemon and ginger must me fantastic

    ReplyDelete
  7. photos are fabulous. You are lucky to have such musical friends. Must be such an inspiration.

    the lemon bars with their ginger twist are the lovliest combination.

    ReplyDelete
  8. Lemon and fresh ginger are absolutely wonderful together!

    ReplyDelete
  9. Jacqueline PalmerMay 9, 2011 at 1:33 AM

    While I was in gmail I happened to see your status update and voted for your blog, which I hadn't seen in quite a while, and it is fabulous! Congratulations! Thanks for sharing all of your awesome creations!

    ReplyDelete
  10. Your pictures are just beautiful! I'm a new blogger from South Africa, and I'm taking tips from the pro's. Will keep on following your breathtaking blog. :)

    ReplyDelete
  11. I just made this today, will post it later tonight or tomorrow on my blog. It was DELICIOUS! I followed the recipe exactly. I used zest from three large lemons and will cut back on that next time, just a tad too much if I am having company. I absolutely loved the ginger in this, it added so much to the lemon. Thanks so much!
    xOx
    www.sixpenceandabluemoon.blogspot.com

    ReplyDelete
  12. I just made this today, will post it later tonight or tomorrow on my blog. It was DELICIOUS! I followed the recipe exactly. I used zest from three large lemons and will cut back on that next time, just a tad too much if I am having company. I absolutely loved the ginger in this, it added so much to the lemon. Thanks so much!
    xOx
    www.sixpenceandabluemoon.blogspot.com

    ReplyDelete
  13. While I was in gmail I happened to see your status update and voted for your blog, which I hadn't seen in quite a while, and it is fabulous! Congratulations! Thanks for sharing all of your awesome creations!

    ReplyDelete
  14. Lemon and fresh ginger are absolutely wonderful together!

    ReplyDelete
  15. yummy :) lemon and ginger must me fantastic

    ReplyDelete
  16. This recipe looks really delicious! I love ginger and it sounds like it pairs perfectly with lemon. Going to try to make these this weekend!

    ReplyDelete
  17. Oh I LOVE ginger so much! :) Ginger and lemon (lime) is my favourite combo too. I need to give this recipe a try. It looks so fresh and flavoursome. Thank you for sharing the recipe.

    ReplyDelete

I love hearing from you and reading your comments! Thanks so much for stopping by the blog. Happy feasting!