lemon

Blackberry Pie Bars

August 26, 2020 By Ashley Leave a Comment

Blackberries are easily the prettiest berry in my opinion, but strangely the most under utilized berry in my house. We don’t eat them enough, and it’s a shame because they’re so, so good. This past weekend when I was in the mood for a sweet treat, with blackberries on my mind, I made these blackberry pie bars. Ripe, juicy blackberries sit on top of a buttery shortbread style crust, topped with an almond crumb topping, and baked until golden brown and bubbly. Buttery, and crumbly, with a deep sweet tart blackberry flavor, these bars are super delicious and highly addictive.

The crust

The crust for the blackberry pie bars is similar to a shortbread crust. The flour, sugars, salt, lemon zest and butter are combined in the food processor to make a crumbly dough. The dough will stick together if you remove a handful of the mixture out and give it a light squeeze. That’s how you know your butter is cut in properly, and the dough can be pressed into the pan. Before pressing the dough into the pan, reserve a cup of the flour/butter mixture for the topping.

I like to use the bottom of a measuring cup to evenly press in my dough. Once it’s evenly distributed, I use an offset spatula to make it super neat and level. I can’t help myself, I like to make a pretty crust before baking. It’s just one of my baking quirks. The crust gets baked until it’s golden brown, then cooled before adding the blackberry filling.

The topping

Remember that cup of the flour mixture we reserved when making the crust? That is also being used as the topping. Add a little bit of spice by adding some cinnamon, then use your fingertips to work the mixture together a bit to form some larger clumps. You can toss in the toasted almonds at this point, or wait to just sprinkle on after sprinkling on the crumb topping.

The blackberry filling

While the crust is baked, and is cooling, make the blackberry filling. I like to macerate the berries for just a little bit while the crust cools so that the filling is a bit more jammy. I used fresh blackberries, but you can use frozen. Defrost and drain them before using. Cut the berries into halves, or quarters if they’re huge, toss them with a bit of sugar, and lemon juice and let them rest, stirring occasionally. When the crust has cooled, and is just warm, combine the cornstarch with the berries and pour onto the crust. Bake the bars until the blackberries are bubbling around the edges and the topping has baked to golden brown.

The blackberries create this thick and juicy deep purple jam when they bake. The crust is buttery, crumbly, and a bit caramel-y from the brown sugar. The blackberries make the crust around edges of the bars sticky and chewy from the juices seeping down the sides before setting up – easily my favorite part. So, so good. And that almond crumb topping just makes these bars. Buttery and crunchy, with a hint of spice, these bars are the perfect way to use up those summer blackberries.

For more summer treats, check out these posts:

Brown Butter Stone Fruit Tart

Strawberry Rose Buttermilk Cake

Honey Cardamom Peach Galettes

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Blackberry Pie Bars

Ripe, juicy blackberries are baked on top of a buttery shortbread style crust, topped with an almond crumb topping, until golden brown and bubbly.

Prep Time15 mins

Cook Time1 hr

Course: Dessert

Servings: 2x2 squares

Ingredients

Crust and Topping

2 ¼ cup (312g) all purpose flour
1/2 cup (100g) light brown sugar, packed
1/4 cup (50g) granulated sugar
1/2 teaspoon fine sea salt
2 teaspoons lemon zest
1 cup (226g) unsalted butter, cold, cut into cubes
1/4 teaspoon cinnamon
1/4 cup (32g) sliced almonds, toasted

Blackberry Filling

2 1/2 cups fresh blackberries, halved
1 tablespoon lemon juice
1/2 cup (100g) granulated sugar
1 ½-2 tablespoons cornstarch, use the higher amount if the berries are really juicy

Instructions

Heat the oven to 375F. Line an 8x8 pan with parchment paper.
In the bowl of a food processor, combine the flour, granulated sugar, brown sugar, salt, and lemon zest. Pulse to combine.
Add the butter cubes to the flour mixture. Pulse until the mixture starts to clump together but is still sandy.
Remove 1 cup of the mixture, and turn out the remaining mixture into the prepared pan.
Lightly press the dough evenly into the pan. Bake the crust for 20-25 minutes, or until light golden brown.
Add the cinnamon to the reserved 1 cup of the flour mixture and combine. Use the tips of your fingers to squeeze the dough together to make clumps for the topping. You don't want this part to be sandy.
Add the almonds (or you can wait to sprinkle them on at the before baking), and place the crumbs into the refrigerator to keep chilled.
Place the blackberries, lemon juice, and sugar in a medium bowl. Toss to combine. Let the blackberries sit and macerate while the crust cools.
When the crust is just warm, add the cornstarch to the blackberry mixture and mix until combined.
Pour the blackberry filling onto the crust.
Evenly sprinkle the crumbs and almonds on top of the blackberry filling.
Bake the bars for 35-45 minutes, until the blackberries and juices are bubbling around the edges and the topping is golden brown.
Allow the bars to cool completely before serving.

Mini Tutorial: Mediterranean Tile and Flowers Cake

April 5, 2019 By Ashley Leave a Comment

I think this Mediterranean tile and flowers cake may be one of my favorite cakes I’ve made to date. I don’t get to hand paint on cakes very often and was super excited for the chance to do so for this Mediterranean themed wedding. The color palette consists of dark blue, mustard-yellow, and turquoise with bright pinks, reds, oranges and yellows for the flowers. I wanted to incorporate both lemons and olive leaves for more of a Mediterranean vibe, which were both part of the wedding decor.

Inspiration for the tile is designed based off of elements I pulled from the invitations and also the decorative plates that were planned for use at the wedding. Then, keeping the hexagon panels size in mind, I sketched out a design on sketch paper. Once I was happy with the design, I traced over the sketch with tracing paper. Parchment paper will work as well, but tracing paper is lighter and a bit easier to work with.

For the flowers and foliage, I made pink peonies (check out my tutorial here), orange and yellow ranunculi, red dahlias, lemon blossoms, olive branches with olives (check out my tutorial here), lemons and lemon tree leaves. I made the lemons with modeling chocolate, using a foam center to keep them more lightweight so they wouldn’t rip through the cake.

Once the cakes were baked, covered in fondant and thoroughly chilled, I painted the cake tiers. I placed the tracing paper up against the cake and used a dresden tool to lightly trace around some of the main components of the tile design. Just so I could see the outline and spacing of the shapes. The rest of the design I did freehand, just referencing my sketch. I used a mixture of petal dust and grain alcohol to paint the design. The top three tiers were quick and easy to paint. The hexagon tier took hours. Hand painting that much detail takes a lot of time.

Before stacking the tiers, all the cakes were chilled completely. I always work with cold cakes as I find room temperature cakes too unstable, especially when using sugar flowers and travelling with multiple tiers. After I stacked the cakes, I refrigerated them over night. I placed the sugar flowers into the cake before delivery. I inserted the flowers into milk shake straws that I placed into the cake. Very rarely do I place sugar flowers on cakes onsite. I don’t have much breakage, if any when I travel with a cake with flowers.

I’m super happy with how this cake turned out and I absolutely loved making it. It’s definitely one of my favorites and a good beginning to wedding season.

For the peony sugar flower tutorial, click here.

For the olive branch tutorial, click here.

Meyer Lemon Ginger Tart with Toasted Honey Meringue

February 7, 2019 By Ashley Leave a Comment

I have sworn my undying love for lemon desserts in my lavender lemon bars post, so it’s no secret I’m a huge fan of all things lemon. Today, I’m sharing with you a riff on the classic lemon tart -a meyer lemon ginger tart with toasted honey meringue. This tart is out of this world delicious – the flavors are perfectly balanced and make for a rock star flavor combination. I’ve swapped traditional lemon curd filling with a Meyer lemon curd infused with fresh ginger. Meyer lemons are a winter citrus gem. They’re incredibly juicy and flavorful, combining the sweet tart flavors of a lemon and a mandarin orange into one fruit. I’ve topped this tart with a toasted honey meringue that compliments the Meyer lemon and ginger. Seriously, so good.

I use my favorite sweet tart dough to make the shell of this tart. It’s buttery, tender and perfect for holding all of this luscious Meyer lemon ginger curd. The Meyer lemon ginger curd is made with lots of egg yolks, lots of zest and lots of grated ginger. It seems like a lot of egg yolks, but I prefer to use more yolks than whole eggs to lessen the eggy flavor that can sometimes accompany curds. Keep four of those whites though because you will need them to make the meringue. Pop the remaining three whites in the fridge to be used for macarons, meringue cookies or buttercream.

It’s important to get as much flavor out of the zest and grated ginger as possible. I find that the best way to do that is to rub the zest and ginger in with the sugar. This releases the oils from the zest and the liquid from the grated ginger. Add your egg yolks and eggs and promptly whisk to combine. Sugar can actually absorb the water from the eggs, or what some refer to as “cooking” the eggs, so that’s why you want to work fairly fast here, to avoid clumpy eggs. Add in the lemon juice and butter and cook on medium low heat until the mixture has thickened and has reached 170F. Strain the curd in to a bowl to remove any eggy bits and zest and let it come to room to temperature before pouring into your tart shell and chilling.

When I make meringue, I usually use the Swiss method of cooking sugar and egg whites over a double broiler to 150F-160F, then whipping the mixture to stiff peaks. The method is the same here, but with honey instead of sugar. I add in a pinch of cream of tartar just to add a bit acidity and a pinch of salt for flavor. The result is a thick, marshmallow-y meringue with the prominent but not overwhelming flavor of honey. I (carefully) pile the meringue (a lot) onto the tart and use a blow torch to toast it. You can halve the recipe if you prefer less meringue. Meringue has a tendency to get weepy and flat over time, so be sure to add the meringue and toast it just before serving.

If you try this Meyer lemon ginger tart with toasted honey meringue, let me know! Leave a comment in the comment area below and be sure to snap a photo and tag it #littlevintagebaking on Instagram. I love seeing your Little Vintage Baking creations!

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Meyer Lemon Ginger Tart with Toasted Honey Meringue

A sweet and tart Meyer lemon and ginger curd filled sweet tart shell topped with honey Swiss meringue and toasted

Prep Time30 mins

Cook Time45 mins

Total Chilling time4 hrs

Total Time1 hr 15 mins

Servings: servings

Ingredients

1 sweet tart dough recipe, fully baked

For the meyer lemon curd:

7 large egg yolks
2 large whole eggs
2 tbsp grated Meyer lemon zest
1 heaping tbsp peeled and grated fresh ginger
1 cup (200g) granulated sugar
2/3 cup (158ml) Meyer lemon juice
6 tbsp (85g) unsalted butter, softened

For the toasted honey meringue:

4 egg whites
1/2 cup (125ml) pure honey
Pinch of cream of tartar

Instructions

Make the Meyer lemon ginger curd:

Combine the sugar, Meyer lemon zest, and grated ginger into a bowl. Rub the mix between your hands to release the oils of the zest and the liquid of the ginger. The mixture will be like wet sand.
Add the eggs and egg yolks to the sugar mixture and whisk to combine thoroughly.
Add the Meyer lemon juice and whisk to combine.
Pour the mixture into a medium sauce pan, and place over a medium low heat. Add the butter. Stir continuously to keep the mixture moving so your eggs don't scramble.
Cook the curd until thick and just beginning to bubble, or until an instant read thermometer reaches 170F. The curd will thicken more in the refrigerator.
Strain the curd into a clean shallow bowl, and let it sit until it reaches room temperature.
Pour the curd into your cooled, fully baked tart shell. Use a spatula to spread the curd evenly in the tart shell. Place in the refrigerator to set up the filling, about 4 hours.

Make the toasted honey meringue:

Place a couple inches of water in a medium saucepan. Place the saucepan over medium heat and bring to a simmer.
Place the egg whites, cream of tartar and the honey into the bowl of a stand mixer. Place the bowl over the saucepan of simmering water, whisking constantly until an instant read thermometer reads 160F.
Transfer the bowl to a stand mixer with a whip attachment and beat on medium high until the meringue is thick, glossy and pulling away from the sides of the bowl. Your meringue should hold it's shape.
Using a spatula, gently place scoops of meringue into the center of the chilled tart.
Make swoops and swirls with a small spatula. Use a hand blow torch to toast and brown the meringue.

Lavender Lemon Shortbread Bars

September 11, 2018 By Ashley 2 Comments

I absolutely love using lemons in cooking and baking. They’re bright, flavorful and so refreshing, easily making them one of my favorite flavors in both sweet (and savory) cooking. My favorite pasta recipe has lemon in it and, truth be told, I’d chose a citrus-y dessert over a chocolate one any day – like these lavender lemon shortbread bars.

I made quite a few batches of these bars when recipe testing, and while I usually test bake things and give them away to friends and neighbors, these lavender lemon shortbread bars didn’t get the chance to leave my kitchen. Each batch was consumed so quickly that I had to fight to get a piece to test the recipe. They’re that good.

I’ve had many great lemon meringue pies and lemon cream tarts over the years, but until I developed this recipe, I wasn’t too impressed with lemon bars. I’ve made and tried many lemon bars over the years and have had some decent ones, but could never find one that was worth the calories. This lemon lavender shortbread bar has a buttery, rich shortbread crust that doesn’t become a soggy mess, a perfect balance of tart and sweet filling (more on the tart side preferred – especially if the tops of the bars are going to be loaded with confectioner’s sugar) and the right ratio of filling to crust. I prefer my lemon bars more custardy with a smooth texture, and this one does not disappoint.

In this recipe, I’ve added lavender to the shortbread crust. I urge you to keep the lavender in this recipe even if you have tried lavender in desserts before and didn’t like it. It is true that lavender can be soapy and overwhelming if overused but that is not the case in this recipe. The lavender is subtle, but compliments and amplifies the lemon flavor. It’s beautifully fragrant and absolutely addictive in this recipe.

The shortbread crust starts like many others, by combining the ingredients in a food processor and pulsing, allowing the lavender to break up and blend into the other ingredients before adding softened butter. While the mixture is sandy and clumpy, it is pressed into a pan evenly and set in the refrigerator to chill for 20-30 minutes. After chilling, the crust is baked until it is a light golden brown.

While the crust is towards the end of baking, the lemon zest and the sugar are mixed together in a bowl. Rub the zest into the sugar. This releases the oils in the zest adding even more lemon flavors to the bars. Flour is then added, to thicken up the filling, followed by eggs, lemon juice and heavy cream. While the crust is still warm, pour the ingredients onto the crust and bake at a reduced temperature until the center has a slight jiggle. It’s better to err on the side of slightly under baked than over baked. You want that filling to remain more of a custard and not super solid.

While I have to admit that many times I’ve dug into these lavender bars with a fork while still hot because they are THAT good, they are best served cut into squares or wedges at room temperature and finished with a dusting of confectioner’s sugar.

Love citrus desserts? Check out these recipes:

Meyer Lemon Ginger Tart with Toasted Honey Meringue

Chocolate Dipped Key Lime Pops

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5 from 1 vote

Lavender Lemon Shortbread Bars

Bright, fresh, sweet-tart and citrusy lemon bars with the addition of subtle, fragrant lavender in a crumbly shortbread crust.

Prep Time15 mins

Cook Time1 hr

Chill30 mins

Total Time1 hr 45 mins

Course: Dessert

Servings: 3x3 squares

Ingredients

For the shortbread base:

1 stick unsalted butter, cut into cubes, room temperature
1 1/4 cups unbleached, all purpose-flour
1/4 cup granulated sugar
1/4 tsp fine sea salt
1/2 - 3/4 tsp dried culinary lavender

For the lemon filling:

1 1/3 cup granulated sugar
1 tbsp lemon zest
3 tbsp all purpose flour
Pinch of fine sea salt
4 large eggs
2/3 cup freshly squeezed lemon juice
1/3 cup heavy cream

Instructions

For the Shortbread Crust:

Heat oven to 350 degrees F. Line a 8x8 or 9x9 square baking pan with parchment paper.
In a food processor, pulse together the flour, sugar, salt and lavender until well blended. You want the lavender to be dispersed and chopped up a bit.
Add in the cubes of softened butter and pulse until the mixture is sandy and starts to form clumps.
Gently press shortbread mixture into an even layer over the bottom of the prepared pan. Refrigerate for a minimum 30 minutes.
Bake crust for 30-35 minutes or until the crust starts to turn a golden brown.
Remove shortbread from the oven, let it cool slightly and reduce the temperature to 325 degrees F.

For the lemon filling:

In a medium bowl, rub together the sugar and lemon zest between your hands to release the oils from the zest. Whisk in the flour until blended.
Add the eggs and whisk briskly so that the sugar doesn't "cook" the eggs and form clumps.
Add the lemon juice and cream and whisk to fully incorporate.
Pour filling over the warm shortbread and bake for an additional 25-30 minutes, until the center jiggles slightly.
Let the bars cool to room temperature, about two hours. The longer they cool, the easier and prettier they are to slice. Transfer bars to a cutting board and cut into squares or wedges. Using a sieve, sprinkle with confectioner's sugar and serve.