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lemon bars

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Ginger Pecan Lemon Bars

By Caroline Cummins, from the Culinate Kitchen collection
Prep Time 20 minutes
Cook Time 40 minutes
Total Time 1 hour

Introduction

There are several schools of thought on lemon bars, ranging from purist (lemon and shortbread only) to eclectic (extra flavorings) and from sweet (lots of sugar in the bars, plus more dusted on top) to tangy (hold the sugar, please). These bars are clearly at the eclectic/tangy end of the spectrum.

If you aren’t wild about ginger or pecans, skip ‘em. And if you want even more of a sugar bomb, sift some powdered sugar atop the finished bars.

Ingredients

Crust

1 cup unbleached all-purpose flour
½ cup whole-wheat pastry flour
½ cup confectioners’ sugar
1 tsp. salt
½ cup finely chopped pecans
¼ cup finely chopped candied ginger
1½ sticks (12 Tbsp.) chilled unsalted butter, plus a little extra for greasing the pan

Topping

1½ cups sugar
3 Tbsp. unbleached all-purpose flour
~ Pinch of salt
4 large eggs
~ Zest of 4 lemons (preferably organic/unsprayed lemons)
¾ cup freshly squeezed and strained lemon juice (from the 4 lemons)
¼ cup whole milk

Steps

  1. Place a rack in the middle of the oven and preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Grease a 9-by-13-inch baking dish.
  2. Make the crust: Sift together the flours, confectioners’ sugar, and salt. Add the pecans and ginger. Cut the butter into the flour mixture with a pastry blender until the mixture resembles coarse cornmeal. (If you have a food processor, blitz everything together quickly in pulses until the mixture is evenly coarse.)
  3. Scrape the crust mixture into the prepared pan and press it down firmly and evenly to a depth of ½ inch. Bake for 20 minutes, until lightly golden. Rotate the pan halfway through the baking time.
  4. Make the topping: Combine the sugar, flour, and salt in a bowl. Mix in the eggs, then stir in the zest, lemon juice, and milk.
  5. Remove the crust from the oven and pour the freshly mixed topping over the hot crust. Bake for 20 minutes, until the topping is just set.
  6. Let cool completely on a rack before cutting into squares to serve.

Notes

For lemon-lime bars, use 2 large lemons and 2 large limes in place of the 4 lemons.

For easier slicing and serving, line the entire baking dish with aluminum foil instead of greasing it with butter, making sure to include extra foil wrapped over the handle ends. When the uncut bars are cool, lift them out using the foil handles. Place the bars on a cutting board, peel back the foil, and slice into squares with a large knife.

This content is from the Culinate Kitchen collection.

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1. by Jenny on Apr 17, 2009 at 1:51 PM PDT

Has anyone baked this yet? My mouth is watering just thinking about the ginger, pecans, and lemon all together (and while I appreciate being adventurous -- I’m not sure if I can “sully” lemon bars with limes).

2. by Andy Remeis on Apr 25, 2009 at 6:55 AM PDT

These lemon bars do look wonderful. I have not yet tried the ginger pecan variation (I will soon), as I was making them for my daughter to bring into her class for her birthday treat and she does not yet rate ginger as one of her favorite ingredients. However, I did use the idea of adding milk to the lemon custard. This gave me the perfect way to add lavender to my lemon bars. I brought the milk to a boil, added organic, dried lavender, and let it steep for about 20 minutes. Then I strained the milk and continued with the recipe. I have previously added lavender to the butter (which I melted and then chilled again) in the shortbread but this was more flavorful and an easier method. I also added WWPF to my shortbread as suggested and that worked very well. Thanks for the inspiration! And I am sure that lime would be wonderful too!

3. by Caroline Cummins on Apr 30, 2009 at 1:59 PM PDT

Andy — Steeping lavender in the milk is a great idea. And, frankly, you can make this recipe just fine with all ordinary flour; I added the WWPF because I like its flavor (less bland than all-purpose flour) and because it goes well with the ginger and pecans.

4. by Amy Davis on Sep 18, 2009 at 2:53 PM PDT

I found a recipe similar if not exact in a newspaper. I do not cook or bake, but I like lemon bars, ginger, and pecans. I took the recipe to a local bakery. They are making the lemon and lemon/lime version. I will let you know how they turn out. Peace, Amy

5. by Caroline Cummins on Sep 20, 2009 at 6:11 PM PDT

Amy --

The Chicago Sun-Times reprinted the recipe a while ago, if that was the paper you were looking at.

How did you convince a local bakery to make the bars for you? Neat trick!

6. by anonymous on Sep 20, 2009 at 6:23 PM PDT

I just asked them. I took the recipe. They said yes. So...no harm in asking. I did give them a month’s time before I needed the bars. I will be picking them up for an event on Sept 26.
We will see how they taste.
Yes. I did get it from the newspaper: Chicago Sun Times April 22nd.
Peace, Amy

7. by Amy Davis on Sep 20, 2009 at 6:27 PM PDT

I did comment above as anonymous. I had forgotten my sign on!! Peace, Amy

8. by ruth_117 on Feb 1, 2010 at 1:13 PM PST

I have also got local bakeries to try things that were not on their regular menu. Often they are anxious to try something new!

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