Lucy’s Gluten free Lemon Squares

These are what started it all

Sooo Good!

 

When I was 7, I caught the chicken pox. I was in second grade and I had to stay home from school for a month. It was torture. I couldn’t go outside and play with my friends because, as my Mom said, I was “contagious,” whatever that meant. I was confined to watching TV, playing in the backyard with my dog, Puddles and driving my mother crazy.

 

3 weeks in to my medical sentence and finally able to eat without a straw, my next door neighbor, Sheldon, a 4th grader, would bring my homework and drop it through the mailslot, brought me a small little book, 5 x 7, with cartoon drawings called The Peanuts Cookbook. A collection of recipes with my favorite Peanut characters from the classic Charles M Schultz creation. In it was a simple recipe titled “Lucy’s Lemon Squares.” Our neighbor Carol, who lived across the street and had several lemon trees, was constantly imploring me to come over and pick as many as I could. I tried the recipe, huge success and the rest is history.

 

This National or International Emergency that we’ve find ourselves in reminds me of when I had the chicken pox. Confined with severely reduced options when all you want to do is go outside and play with your friends, at least until the street lights came on. As a sports fanatic, this can’t get any worse. I’m trying not to complain and always be grateful for the small things, but this is definitely an adjustment. So much uncertainty has caused me to retreat to my therapeutic haven, the kitchen. I hope, however, that by the time this is over, they don’t have to come and cut me out of my place.

So, as to the Gluten free. I’m not gluten free nor do I usually cook gluten free, but I ordered a 3lb bag of gluten free flour from King Arthur and have been using that lately. It works well, a bit more flaky than all purpose, which I would recommend you use if trying for the 1st time. These are great to make with the kids, introduce them to baking and can take up an afternoon. I reduced the sugar amount in the filling because it’s customary to dust them with powdered sugar after cooling, but I found a recipe that used the icing that I’ve loved ever since. The Fiori di Sicilia is as well a King Arthur Flour product. I make no money off of them, but can recommend them highly with all things baking. If you don’t have it, leave it out, just the juice and the zest leave them wonderfully lemony.

Lucy’s Lemon Squares

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees or 176 celsius

for the crust:

1 cup flour all purpose flour (128g) (if you want to try the KA Gluten free flour http://shop.kingarthurflour.com 

1/4 cup (32g) powdered or icing sugar

1/2 cup (64g) butter, cold, cut into pieces

pinch salt

In a bowl, combine flour, sugar and salt. Mix. Add butter pieces and using a pastry blender, forks or clean hands, incorporate butter into flour mix until resembles course or sandy gravel. Bring dough together using hands and place in a greased 8 x 8 inch square baking dish, flattening out with palms of hands to cover all corners. Use fingers to create a ridge along all sides, working quickly to keep butter from melting. Dock dough with a fork and place in oven to par bake for 15 minutes or until just beginning to brown, really blonde. Meanwhile..

Make the filling:

2 large eggs

1/2 cup (64g) granulated or cane sugar

2 1/2 Tablespoons (37ml) lemon juice

1 tsp (4g) baking powder

1 tsp (4g) Fiori Di Sicilia (an extract that’s a combination of citrus and vanilla from KAF) http://shop.kingarthurflour.com/items/fiori-di-sicilia-1-oz

1 Tablespoon lemon zest

In a bowl, combine all ingredients. Pour over par baked crust. Place back in oven for 20 – 25 minutes until browned on all sides. Let cool completely (1 hour) before icing.

1 cup (128g) powdered or icing sugar

2 to 3 Tablespoons lemon juice

lemon zest

whisk together and pour over cooled lemon squares. Let harden before cutting

makes 9 2 1/2 inch squares

 

Enjoy! What’s your favorite flavor?