Lemon Lover Lemon Bars (Dairy Free, Gluten Free, Paleo)

Sometimes I think my mom and oldest daughter are identical twins fifty years apart.  My daughter is like a mini-me of my mother.  My daughter is very smart.  She is studious and does very well in school.  Teachers love her.  She is also very mature for her age.  I've often said she was born grown up.  She's super helpful and responsible around our home.  I don't know what I would do without all her help.  It's been a lifesaver on more than one occasion.  I know all those things could have been said about my mother as a child too.  The other day when I saw my daughter stack all her clean laundry up on her head and across her arms so that she could take it to her room to put away all in one trip I had to laugh because I heard stories of my mother doing that same thing as a child.  They are both the oldest children in their family.  They both play the piano very well.  They both don't care for chocolate.  They both love lemon. I could go on and on.  I dedicate these lemon bars to them.

These are not your typical lemon bars.  The filling is extra tart, but not overly so.  The sweet nutty crust helps balance out the tart filling and is subtly crunchy and textured.  I'd say these are like your typical lemon bars all grown up.  They are for mature taste buds, delicious, and leave you feeling satisfied after just one bar.

Lemon Lover Lemon Bars

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For crust:

1 cup raw pecans

1/4 cup organic coconut oil

2 tablespoons honey

1 tablespoon coconut flour

1 egg

For lemon topping:

1/2 cup fresh lemon juice (about 2 medium lemons)

1/4 cup honey

1/4 cup coconut oil

dash sea salt

3 eggs

Instruction for the crust:

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

2. Pulse pecans in food processor until finely ground.  Do not over mix or you'll end up with pecan butter.

3. In a medium bowl mix pecans with coconut oil, honey, coconut flour, and egg.

4. Line a 8x8 glass dish with parchment paper and spread your mixture evenly on the bottom of dish, pressing down with the back of a fork to make it nice and compact.

5. Bake for 15 minutes or until the edges turn a light golden brown.  Set aside to cool.

Instruction for the filling:

1. In a small sauce pan whisk together lemon juice, honey, coconut oil, and salt until well combined and warm. 

2. In a medium bowl crack eggs, and whisk together with a fork.  To temper the eggs slowly pour a 1/2 cup of the lemon mixture into the eggs while mixing briskly.  Add egg mixture back to pan. Whisk together over medium heat, stirring constantly, until mixture starts to boil and thickens.  Continue to stir for one minute more.  Once filling is nice and thick remove from heat and let cool. 

3.  Once cool spread the topping over the crust.  Cover with plastic wrap and allow to set up in fridge for four hours before serving.

Printable recipe

-Amy