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Lemon-Coconut Squares

Source of Recipe

From "Williams-Sonoma: Cooking at Home"


Recipe Introduction

"Baked into the crust, toasted coconut adds tropical flavor to every bite of these otherwise traditional lemon squares. To create a stripe pattern on the squares, arrange strips of parchment paper on top and then dust with confectioners' sugar."

List of Ingredients

For the Crust:
◦  1 cup all-purpose flour
◦  ¼ cup granulated sugar
◦  ¼ tsp salt
◦  6 Tbsp cold unsalted butter, cut into ½-inch pieces
◦  ¾ cup sweetened flaked coconut, toasted

For the Dough:
◦  ¾ cup granulated sugar
◦  2 eggs
◦  3 Tbsp fresh lemon juice
◦  1 Tbsp grated lemon zest
◦  ½ tsp baking powder
◦  Pinch of salt
◦  Confectioners' sugar for dusting


Recipe

Preheat the oven to 350° F. Line an 8-inch square baking pan with aluminum foil, allowing the foil to overhang the sides slightly. Butter the foil.

To make the crust, in a food processor, combine the flour, sugar, and salt and process briefly until well mixed. Add the butter and coconut and process until the mixture resembles a fine meal. Transfer to the prepared pan and press evenly and firmly onto the bottom. Bake until the crust is light brown around the edges, about 25 minutes.

Meanwhile, to make the filling, combine the sugar, eggs, lemon juice and zest, baking powder, and salt in the food processor and process until smooth.

When the crust is ready, pour the filling onto the hot crust. Continue to bake until the filling begins to brown around the edges and is just springy to the touch, about 30 minutes longer. Let cool completely in the pan on a wire rack.

Grasp the foil at opposite ends and lift out the lemon square sheet onto a work surface. Gently peel back the foil sides. Cut the sheet into 16 squares. Using a fine-mesh sieve, dust the tops of the squares with confectioners' sugar, then carefully remove the squares from the foil. Store in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 5 days.


Makes 16 squares