Lavender Lemon Bars | Secret Recipe Club

I know I say this each time, but boy time flies.  It is time again for the big reveal for Secret Recipe Club.  This month I had the privilege of being paired with Chelsy from Mangia.  When I received the email about my match for September, something sounded familiar – it was because back in June 2012 I was assigned to her blog for the first time.  What a treat, a second time.  Since that time, I noticed that she has updated her website and put a ton of new food treasures on her site.

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Chelsy is a 20 something gal from Texas with a big heart.  One of her biggest inspirations for creating her blog Mangia was for her younger sister who has celiac disease.  Growing up in an Italian family who loved pasta and bread, this was a challenge for Chelsy to recreate these Italian favorites so her sister could enjoy them too.  Like me, Chelsy loves to go grocery shopping, loves parmesan cheese and is always in the kitchen.  After sifting through her expansive list of recipes, the Lavender Lemon Bars just sang to me.  I absolutely love lemon and lavender is one of those things that either you love or hate.  I happen to love. I decided to change a few little things and most notably, double the lavender in the crust.

This yields a lot of bars, so I packed up a plate to bring to my early morning meeting tomorrow – I am sure they won’t last long.  It is a pretty good way to start off the morning – right?  Oh, and I will bring some to my neighbors – otherwise I will be super tempted to eat more than I should.  They were simply divine!

Lavender Lemon Bars

Makes 24 Bars

Crust

2 Sticks Butter

¾ Cup Granulated Sugar

¼ Cup Brown Sugar, packed

2 Cups Flour

1 teaspoon Dried Lavender

¼ teaspoon Salt

Filling

4 Large Eggs

1 ½ Cup Sugar

6 Tablespoons Flour

½ Cup Fresh Lemon Juice

Zest of one Lemon

Powdered Sugar and Dried Lavender for topping

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.  Spray a 13 x 9 pan with non-stick cooking spray and set aside.  To make the crust – In a bowl of a stand mixer beat together butter, white sugar and brown sugar until pale and fluffy.  Scrape down the sides and add the flour, salt and lavender.  Beat on low speed until dough comes together.  Dump into pan and flatten with your hands until the base is level. Bake for 18 to 20 minutes or until slightly browned.

To make the filling – while the crust is baking, in a medium bowl whisk together the eggs and sugar until pale and light.  Add the lemon juice, flour and zest.  Whisk until completely incorporated.  Remove the baked crust from the oven and immediately pour the prepared filling over the crust.  Return to the oven and bake for 25 minutes or until browned around the edges and no longer wobbly in the center.  Let cool and then sprinkle with powdered sugar and garnish each piece with dried lavender.  The bars will stay fresh in an airtight container, in the fridge for up to 4 days.

   

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