LEMON SUGAR COOKIE BARS

These easy lemon bars have a sweet sugar cookie crust topped with a tangy lemon cheesecake filling and then topped with more sugar cookie crumble. The perfect balance of sweet and tangy.

First i will tell you some tips before making this recipe :

• Keep your extra sugar cookie crust in a bowl in the refrigerator until you are ready to use it. Don’t press it down in the bowl. You want it to be all willy nilly, that’s where the crumble on top comes from.
• Please let your crust cool all the way before you add your lemon filling. I know, waiting is hard, but I appreciate you and the fact that you know if you do not let your crust cool, you will end up with a runny curdled mess.

Lemon Sugar Cookie Bars Recipe

Ingredients

Sugar cookie crust:

• 1 Cup granulated sugar
• 1 Teaspoon vanilla extract
• 1 Cup butter at room temperature
• 2 Cups all purpose flour

Lemon cheesecake:

• 8 Ounces cream cheese at room temperature
• 1/4 Cup lemon juice
• 2 Tablespoons lemon zest divided
• 1/2 Cup sugar

Instructions

For the bars:

• Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.
• Line an 8x8 or 9x9 inch square baking dish with foil and spray liberally with non stick cooking spray.
• In bowl of stand mixer using paddle attachment, or large bowl with hand mixer, beat together the butter, sugar, and vanilla on medium speed for 2 minutes.
• Turn mixer to low and slowly add the flour (1/2 cup at a time) and mix just until dough comes together.
• Press half of the dough into prepared pan and bake for 25-30 minutes, until lightly golden brown.
• Cool completely before filling.
• Store remaining sugar cookie dough in a bowl in the refrigerator until ready to use.

For the Filling:

• In bowl of stand mixer fitted with paddle attachment, or medium bowl with a hand mixer beat together the cream cheese, sugar, lemon juice, and 1 Tbsp. of the lemon zest until smooth and creamy.
• Pour filling over cooled crust.
• Top filling with the remaining sugar cookie dough by simply crumbling it evenly over the top.
• Bake in preheated oven for 30 minutes, until cookie crumble is light golden in color.
• Top with remaining lemon zest as desired.

Recipe Adapted : LEMON SUGAR COOKIE BARS @ thesaltymarshmallow