Strawberry Lemonade Bars

There's been quite a number of 'fake summers' here in Portland recently. For a few days at a time, Portland has been greeted with amazing warm weather and everyone in this town is loving it! I'm definitely among the masses on this one, and taking full advantage of the nice weather by going on bike rides, putting my summer dresses to use, hanging out/running in the park, eating outside, and baking up something totally delicious AND refreshing.

Now you may ask yourself, what kind of dessert is refreshing other than ice cream? Well...I'll tell you...Strawberry Lemonade Bars! They're like lemon bars, but with strawberries added in!

What You'll Need
Crust
-8oz (1 stick) butter
-1/4 cup sugar
-1/4 teaspoon salt
-1 cup all-purpose flour

Filling
-1 1/2 cups sugar
-3 egg whites
-1 whole egg
-2/3 cup lemon juice (3 lemons)
-2 tablespoons lemon zest (2 lemons)
-2/3 cup all-purpose flour
-1/4 teaspoon salt
-1 1/2 cups strawberries, puréed
-Powdered sugar

What You Do
1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees and grease an 8X8 pan.

2. For the crust, cream butter (1stick), sugar (1/4cup), and salt (1/4tsp). Mix in the flour (1cup) until just incorporated.

3. Flour your hands, and press the dough evenly in your 8X8 pan. Place in oven, and bake for 20-25 minutes, or until edges are golden brown.

4. For the filling, whisk together the sugar (1/2cups), egg whites (3), egg (1), lemon juice (2/3cup), lemon zest (2tblsp), flour (2/3 cup), salt (1/4tsp) until incorporated. Then whisk in the strawberries (1 1/2cups). Pour mixture onto crust and bake for 30-35 minutes, or until filling is set. 

5. Let cool completely, and then refrigerate to chill. When ready to serve, dust with as much powdered sugar as your heart desires and cut into squares!

This treat is a fresh take on your regular 'ole lemon bars. Don't get me wrong, I do enjoy lemon bars very much, but the strawberries add a perfect amount of sweet to balance out the tart lemon flavor. 

So...if you're enjoying the warm weather wherever you may be, then give this recipe a shot! You won't be sorry!