Sweet, savory and decadent lemon basil bars! These won’t last long! A super summery dessert!
Craving something savory and Sweet? Try these Lemon Basil Bars, they are well worth the calories! Every single one of them!
After tennis, we always bring food and wine to share with the other team. The great thing about our league matches is the social aspect. We all get to hang out with the ladies and chit chat and eat great food and drink wine.
This past week was our last regular-season game (we made it to the playoffs for the State tournament so we all are pretty excited), so in celebration of our accomplishments, we went all out for our last tennis picnic. Everyone brought extra food and beverages! We ate like queens! Shrimp cocktail, broccoli salad, fruit pizza, ham and cheese wraps, fried chicken and cookies. I made mini lamb sliders with tzatziki (recipe to come on a later post) and these decadent Lemon Basil Bars.
I love thinking of flavors that just belong together as I love lemon bars and I love basil. The two flavors just seem like they belong together, so why not make lemon basil bars? That’s what I thought! I found this nice guide for other great flavor combinations. Check it out. You will be surprised! I love some of the ideas and was more than impressed with the research that went into this article!
Give these bars a try. They are a perfect way to use all your fresh summer basil. I know that everyone will devour them at your next party or get together!
If you are looking for other great dessert ideas why not check out these recipes on the website!
Lemon Basil Bars
Ingredients
For the Crust
- 1 stick butter, melted
- 1 cup butter
- 1/2 cup sugar
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 2 teaspoons lemon extract
For the Custard
- 1 stick butter, room temperature
- 1/2 cup sugar
- 3 eggs, room temperature
- 1/2 cup flour
- 1/2 cup lemon juice
- 2 teaspoons lemon rind, zested
- 1/4 cup chopped basil
- powdered sugar for garnish
Instructions
To make the Crust
- Preheat the oven to 350 degrees . In a medium-sized bowl combine the butter, flour, sugar, vanilla, and salt. Line an 8x8 baking pan with parchment paper (this is important otherwise it will stick) Spray with cooking spray. Place crust mixture in bottom of the pan and spread out evenly with hands until the bottom of the pan is evenly covered. Bake for 20 minutes or until crust is a golden brown. Set aside to cool completely.
To Make the Filling
- With a stand mixer or a hand mixer, blend together the sugar, butter, and eggs until light and fluffy (about 2 minutes). Lower speed on mixer and mix in the lemon rind, lemon juice, and basil until incorporated. Slowly mix in flour. Pour mixture over crust and bake for 40 minutes or until golden brown. When cool, remove lemon bars from pan and carefully remove parchment paper. Sprinkle with powdered sugar and cut into squares.