Name: Pecan Lemon Bars
Prep time: 15 min
Cook time: 20 min
Total time: 35 min
Yield: 16
Cuisine: American
Ingredients: 1 Cup all purpose flour; 1/4 Cup powdered sugar; 1/4 tsp kosher salt; 1/2 Cup unsalted butter, cut into small cubes; 1/4 cup pecans, toasted and chopped; 1 Cup granulated sugar; 2 large eggs; Zest of 1 lemon; 1/4 cup fresh lemon juice; 2 Tbs all purpose flour; Powdered sugar

I inherited all of my grandmother’s handwritten recipes – good old-fashioned lemon bars among them. Later, I came across a lemon bar recipe from a major recipe publisher, and lo and behold, the ingredients and ratios were exactly the same! Recently, I came across another published lemon bar recipe from a different source, and it’s exactly the same, too! I’m not sure where this classic lemon bar recipe originated, but it seems to be the agreed-upon standard perfect lemon bar in the United States.

The Surprisingly Easy Way to Improve Old-Fashioned Lemon Bars

As much as I love lemon bars, I usually find them to be too sweet. Decreasing the sugar isn’t an option because it serves an important structural purpose. Recently I had a lemon bar with nuts, and it was divine. The rich toasted nuts balanced the sweetness of the filling. This made me wonder about incorporating nuts into the typical shortbread crust. I am happy to report that adding nuts to the crust is the ultimate upgrade to the old-fashioned lemon bar – it’s kind of like a pecan sandy. Feel free to substitute walnuts for the pecans if you like.

Old-Fashioned Lemon Bars + Pecans = Perfect Lemon Bars

Yield: 16 Bars

Pecan Lemon Bars

Converting the crust of old-fashioned lemon bars into a pecan sandy is the ultimate upgrade. The rich nuttiness balances the sweetness of the custard.

Adapted from Mary Rodolph.

Prep Time 15 minutes

Cook Time 20 minutes

Total Time 35 minutes

Ingredients

Crust

1 Cup all purpose flour
1/4 Cup powdered sugar
1/4 tsp kosher salt
1/2 Cup unsalted butter, cut into small cubes
1/4 cup pecans, toasted and chopped

Filling

1 Cup granulated sugar
2 large eggs
Zest of 1 lemon
1/4 cup fresh lemon juice
2 Tbs all purpose flour

Garnish

Powdered sugar

Instructions

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.
Line an 8-inch square baking pan with parchment paper. Leave an overhang so that you can remove the lemon bars once cooled.
Combine flour, sugar, and salt in the bowl of a stand mixer.
Add butter and beat until incorporated. (Alternatively, you can use a food processor.)
Stir in the toasted, chopped pecans.
Press the shortbread mixture into the bottom of the 8-inch pan, and bake for 20 minutes or until lightly browned.
While the crust is baking, whisk together the granulated sugar, eggs, lemon zest, lemon juice, flour, and baking powder.
Pour the filling onto the baked crust, and bake for another 20 minutes.
Let the lemon bars cool completely.
Use the parchment overhang to remove the lemon bars from the pan. Dust with powdered sugar. Cut into 2-inch squares.