We’re finally in the midst of summer and despite some random rain storms, the sun has been shining and the weather has been beautiful here. One of my favorite things about summer is the many seasonal dessert options. I feel like summer calls for desserts that are light, refreshing, and often fruit flavored. Lemon bars are one of my favorite summer desserts as they match all of the criteria above and are perfectly bright yellow to match the summer sun.
While I was thinking about lemon bars, I was reminded of the sun from Tangled. Tangled is one of my favorite animated princess movies and I love how the sun image connects Rapunzel not only to the Kingdom of Corona, but also to her mom and dad. Given the theme of family in the movie, I felt like these special sun lantern lemon bars would not only be perfect for summer, but also for Father’s Day.
To start, , make sure to line both the bottom and the sides of your pan with foil. I was able to do this with just one piece of foil, but you can also use two pieces of foil laid perpendicular to each other. Once the pan is covered, spray it liberally with cooking spray.
To make the crust, combine all of the ingredients in a food processor. This can also be done by hand, but it will take a bit more effort to combine the butter into the flour mixture as you’ll want to grate the butter and then rub it into the flour using your hands. Once combined, the dough itself will be a bit crumbly. Don’t worry, as once you press it into the pan, it’ll come together.
While the crust is chilling, I’d recommend prepping the lemons as juicing four can take some time. Once the crust is baking, prepare the lemon filling by whisking together all of the ingredients.
Once the crust comes out of the oven, let it cool for about 5 minutes while you lower the temperature of the oven. Pour the lemon filling into the still warm crust and bake until it is firm to the touch.
After the bars are baked, place the entire pan on a wire rack to cool. While they’re cooling, prepare the decoration. To add the sun image to the bars, I created a stencil using a Cricut machine. To do this, I uploaded the sun image template from Disney Family into the Cricut design space and resized to a little under 3 inches. I then used the machine to cut the image out on a light cardstock.
Once the bars were cooled, I used a 3 inch round cutter to cut out the bars. The bars can also be kept in a square shape, but I liked how the circles looked with the sun. I then placed the stencil over the round bar and used a small mesh strainer to sift powdered sugar over it. Once the image is covered with sugar, carefully remove the stencil to reveal the sun image.
I hope you enjoy these refreshing sunny summer treats!
Rapunzel’s Lantern Festival Lemon Bars
Ingredients
Crust
- 1 ¾ cups all-purpose flour
- ⅔ cup powdered sugar
- ¼ cup cornstarch
- ¾ teaspoon salt
- 12 tablespoons unsalted butter, cold and cut into 1-inch pieces
Lemon Filling
- 4 large eggs, lightly beaten
- 1 ⅓ cup granulated sugar
- 3 tablespoons all-purpose flour
- 2 teaspoons grated lemon zest
- ⅔ cup lemon juice, about 4 lemons
- ⅓ cup whole milk
- ⅛ teaspoon salt
Decoration
- Tangled sun stencil
- powdered sugar
Instructions
Crust
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Line a 9-in x 13-in baking pan with aluminum foil so that the bottom and sides of the pan are fully covered. If one piece of foil doesn’t cover both, use two placing one in the pan longways and the other perpendicular to it. Press the foil into the pan so that it is flush. Spray liberally with cooking spray and set asie.
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Place flour, sugar, cornstarch, and salt into a food processor. Process until combined, about 15 seconds.
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Place the butter into the food processor and process until the dough is pale yellow and resembles a coarse meal, about 30 to 60 seconds. The dough will still be a bit crumbly but the butter shouldn’t be visible.
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Sprinkle the dough into prepared pan and press firmly using fingers, creating a layer about ¼ inch thick on the bottom and ½ inch thick on the sides.
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Place the pan in the refrigerator for 30 minutes to chill and preheat the oven to 350 F.
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Bake for 20-25 minutes, until crust is golden brown. While the crust is baking, prepare the filling.
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Once baked, place pan on a wire rack and let cool about 5 minutes before filling. Reduce oven temperature to 325 F.
Lemon Filling
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In a medium bowl, whisk eggs, sugar, and flour together.
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Stir in the lemon zest, lemon juice, milk and salt.
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Once crust has cooled briefly, stir the mixture to reblend and pour into the warm crust.
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Bake for 20-30 minutes, until the filling feels firm when lightly touched.
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Transfer the pan to a wire rack and let cool completely.
Decoration
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Cut cooled lemon bars into 3-inch circles using a round cookie cutter.
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Gently place stencil on top of a lemon round and, using a small fine mesh strainer, lightly dust with powdered sugar.
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Keep in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 2 days.
Recipe Notes
adapted from Cook’s Illustrated