Lemon bars are such a perfect spring and summer treat that it’s no surprise that they seem to be lusciously trendy right now. Here in New Hampshire, a wonderful place to get some fresh, homemade lemon bars is the Black Forest Cafe in Amherst. They make them perfectly. The texture, and blend of sweet and tart is just sooooo spot-on. Personally, I think the ratio of crust to filling is really important, as well as the consistency of the filling (it cannot be too runny or hard!). These nail it on all points.
Now I don’t have the actual recipe that they use at the Black Forest Cafe, but a simple google search turns up a number of great recipes that all seem like a good, basic place to start. I always look for a recipe with at least 1/2 cup of lemon juice, and one that uses confectioner’s sugar in the crust rather than granulated.
Some notable ones include:
Lemon Square Bars from AllRecipes
Perfect Lemon Bars by Epicurean Mom
and this one adds some toasted coconut to the top, which looks amazing!
Coconut Lemon Bars by KDHamptons
And finally, just in case you find yourself on a lemon binge like I did, they also make these decadent oversized Lemon Meltaway cookies at the Black Forest.
