Lemon Brownies

July 16, 2012

lemOn brownies

I am constantly looking for different ways to fuel my rather unhealthy lemon obsession, and, since I've already made an elephantine amount of lemon bars (don't worry, there will be more!), I decided to try something new...something kinda-sorta similar to a lemon bar but without the jelly-belly center.

Low and behold, I stumbled upon this incantation of a lemon bar/brownie hybrid! They're not quite as lemony as lemon bars, which makes them perfect for silly people who don't like their recipes on the tart side, but they are still lavish enough to pacify citrus-y dessert longings. To paint a better picture; imagine biting into your favourite brownie, only instead of a rich chocolate flavour, your teeth sink into a chewy, cakey, lemon bar.

I'm almost 100% positive that you have everything needed to make a batch, so you have my permission to take a break from sunning & surfing. (Your oven misses you!)

lemOn brownies


Lemon Brownies
makes about 25-30 brownies

ingredients
Zest from 2 lemons (Depending on how deep your lemon love runs, you can use more or less lemon zest.)
1 1/2 cups granulated sugar
3 room temperature eggs
1/4 teaspoon almond extract
2 Tablespoons fresh lemon juice
1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 cup (that's 2 sticks) unsalted butter, melted and slightly cooled

for the glaze
1 1/2 cups confectioners' sugar
1/4 cup fresh lemon juice
Zest from 1 lemon

method
Preheat the oven to 350 F. Line a 9x13-inch baking pan with foil, leaving a slight overhang along the edges. Lightly butter the foil.

In a large mixing bowl, combine the lemon zest and granulated sugar. Use your fingertips to rub the lemon zest into the sugar until moist and fragrant; Set aside.
In separate, small bowl, combine the eggs, almond extract, and lemon juice. Whisk to combine; Set aside.
Add the flour, salt, and melted butter to the lemon/sugar mixture. Whisk until well combined. Add the egg mixture and mix until smooth.
Spread the batter into prepared pan.
Bake for 30-35 minutes, or until the center is set and a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean.
Remove the pan from the oven and place it on a cooling rack. Cool completely before adding the glaze.

For the glaze: In a medium-size bowl, combine the confectioners' sugar, lemon juice, and lemon zest. Whisk until smooth.
Pour the glaze over the cooled brownies (if needed, use a small off-set spatula to spread it around the entire pan).
Use the foil overhang to remove the brownies from the pan. Cut into squares or rectangles, and serve with iced tea or coffee!

Recipe adapted from Sweet Anna's

36 comments:

  1. I love the idea of throwing a little almond extract in with the lemon, and the texture looks a bit like a sheet cake - looks like the perfect bring-along for a barbecue.

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  2. Oh yum, these look divine! A lemon glaze makes me go weak in the knees ;).

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  3. I love lemon so much!! and thes elook delicious!!

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  4. Ahhh I love lemons too!! Need to make these :)

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  5. Those look terrific! I am a sucker for lemony treats.

    Cheers,

    Rosa

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  6. Oh I absolutely adore anything lemon! These look so different but SO GOOD! Im off to buy some lemons. haha :)

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  7. Hi Valerie, I am glad I am not alone with a lemon obsession...:) This looks fantastic, I can literally smell lemon from the screen (or from a slice of lemon that is floating in my tea next to me) :)

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  8. You and me both! I love everything lemon and these look scrumptious!!!!

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  9. love this!! i just love lemony baked goods and this sounds so delicious and easy!

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  10. Hi Valerie, I just discovered your blog and I LOVE it! Every recipe is more mouth watering than the last. I too, have a lemon obsession so we should definitely be friends : ) These lemon brownies look divine. I can't wait to try them!

    Danielle xo

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  11. Your lemon "brownie" caught my eye (As I too am a lemon obsessed girl!)and I loving what you have here! I agree, that glaze looks simply fantastic and I'm afraid I wouldn't be able to stop at one (or two or three!) Brilliant!

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  12. I think that your lemon brownies sound very good as I am a true lemon fan.

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  13. I adore lemon bars and I can't wait to try these!

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  14. What an awesome hybrid! I love this idea!

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  15. Lemon brownies!? What a great idea. I too have an obsession with lemon in baking. The lemon glaze looks addictive!

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  16. I made two of these to take to an event and they turned out perfectly. I think they are far better than a traditional lemon bar. Next time I make them I plan to sneak some coconut in the bottom layer to see how it turns out. Thanks so much for a new favorite!

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  17. @Teresa, Coconut sounds wonderful!! (I'm so glad you liked the recipe.)

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  18. Susan, Mom of 2 BugsAugust 5, 2012 at 12:51 AM

    Valerie, the lemon flavor was everything you described (you can't have too much lemon) and the texture was perfect for an introduction to little ones' palates. Truth be told, I made these for my 7 year old who has begged for the lemon slices in my water since he was a toddler. While he loved them obviously, my very picky four year old sweet talked me into three pieces. Wow! Plan to make one of your lemon meringue pie recipes tomorrow...

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  19. Susan, I'm so happy that you (and your little bugs), enjoyed the brownies! And I love that your son already likes lemon slices in his water. :D

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  20. I just made these and they are wonderful! I just had one problem...lightly buttering the foil didn't work for me and I had to dig the brownies off of the foil with a spatula and they aren't at all pretty (and the bottom layer stuck completely). Luckily, I was only making them for myself so looks don't matter. I will definitely try again and maybe use Baker's Joy and parchment paper. Great recipe! Thank you!

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  21. Hi April, Sorry the brownies stuck to the foil! I always forget to mention that when you line a pan with foil, the shiny side should always be facing up...it's a bit less sticky, but still requires some butter.

    Aside from the mess, I'm glad to hear that you liked them! :)

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  22. Yum, lemon flavour in baked goods is wonderful and I cannot wait to try this recipe.

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  23. I tasted these lemon brownies when a nurse friend brought them to a meeting. We all went crazy they were so delicious. I made them for my family last night and they were every bit as wonderful. They are absolutely fabulous. Everyone's favorite! Thanks!

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  24. Thanks for letting me know, Mary! I'm so happy to hear that everyone enjoyed the brownies!!

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  25. Very good! I love these. Add a few rasberries on the side and what a pretty colored dish this makes.

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  26. I baked these for my mother for Mother's Day and shipped them off to Minnesota! They traveled great. I also accidentally put in .25 c lemon juice to the batter(doubling the amount) so I baked them longer and added a little less to the glaze (as well as a little less powdered sugar). Delicious! Can't wait to make them again (correctly :).

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  27. @humblesunset: I don't think it's possible to add too much lemon to anything. Your accident sounds delicious! :D

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  28. Hi Valerie,
    I, too, had problems getting some of the brownies off the foil. I felt like they were sufficiently cooled. After I had cut and moved them to a container, I tried one. The taste was very lemony and perfectly sweetened. The downside was that they were very soft and fell apart somewhat.
    The next day when I tried another, it was totally different in texture. The glazed was hardened and the brownie as a whole was very firm. Much more appetizing.
    So I'm wondering if leaving them in the foil overnight might make it easier to get out?
    Anyway this is a keeper.
    Debbie V.

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  29. @Debby V. Brownies (and bars in general) are usually better the 2nd day - and since things have had time to "set" the texture is usually different.

    I'm sorry the brownies stuck to the foil. Sometimes I wish I could be in everyone's kitchen...just to see what's going on. If you make the recipe again, be sure to butter the shiny side of the foil (and maybe butter it more thoroughly?). Or try using parchment paper instead. Last but not least, it's okay to wait until the next day to slice them - if you can wait that long. ;)

    Hope that helps! I'm glad you enjoyed the brownies despite the grabby foil. :)

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  30. I loved these lemon brownies. I used parchment paper and they came out of the pan perfectly. I made them in the evening and took them to work the next day, my co-workers loved them. Thank you for sharing your recipes!

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  31. Did them this afternoon, I crave lemonny tastes as well. I added some finely chopped almonds on top of the glaze , divine...






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  32. @Nathalie Beauvois, Chopped almonds sound wonderful - great idea!! Thanks for letting me know. :)

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  33. Made these for Christmas and they are FANTASTIC!!! I'm lucky to have a lemon tree in my backyard so I made these on a whim during my sister-in-law's and my cookiepalooza baking day. They were my favorite thing of the day. I got LOTS of requests for the recipe. REALLY, really good! Thanks for sharing!!

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  34. P.S. I didn't add foil or parchment as a liner. I just sprayed with PAM baking spray and they popped right out. Not sure why people use liners. Spray works just fine in my opinion. And the edges weren't crusty...yet I always under bake so that could have been it.

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  35. Oh my goodness I make these all the time for friends, family, and events! Everybody just loves them! Thank you so, so much for this wonderfully scrumptious recipe! :)

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Thanks for visiting, and for taking the time to read through my ramblings!
If you have a recipe comment or question, I'd love to hear from you.

Happy Baking!
♥ Valerie

 

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