In all my years of baking, I’m pretty sure I’ve never baked anything with oranges. I really can’t say why, other than that I’m not a huge fan of citrus in general. Sure, I like it. But, if given the choice, I’ll usually take chocolate.
In any case, I started thinking about the ubiquitous lemon bar and began wondering why oranges don’t get their own bar. So, I decided to give it a shot.
First, I started with a sweet almond shortbread crust. My love of shortbread is well-documented. Not only do I love shortbread cookies, I also adore a shortbread crust. This one, in particular, is a favorite.
Then, I plied a custard filling with lots of orange juice and orange zest. All that orange-ness isn’t overwhelming. The citrus flavor is a bit more subtle with these than with traditional lemon bars, and I like that flavor delicacy.
To me, the beauty of these bars is the contrast of the tart orange filling with the sweet crust. If you’re looking for more orange flavor, I’d suggest adding a bit more zest to the filling.
Ingredients
- 1 & 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
- 1/2 cup confectioners’ sugar
- 1/2 cup ground almonds
- 3/4 cup (12 tablespoons) unsalted butter, cold and cut into cubes
- 4 large eggs
- 2 cups granulated sugar
- 2/3 - 3/4 cup freshly squeezed orange juice (1-2 large oranges)
- zest of 1 large orange (about 2 tablespoons)
- 1/2 cup all-purpose flour
- 1/2 teaspoon baking powder
- confectioners’ sugar, for dusting top of bars
Instructions
Preheat oven to 350°. Lightly grease a 9”x 13” baking pan. Line with parchment paper. Lightly grease paper.
To make the crust, whisk together flour, confectioners’ sugar, and almonds. Cut in butter using a pastry blender or a fork or your hands. Mix until mixture resembles loose meal and holds together when pinched.
Spread crust mixture evenly in bottom of prepared pan. Bake for 20 minutes, or until lightly browned. Allow to cool slightly.
In a large mixing bowl, lightly beat eggs. Add sugar, orange zest, and orange juice, and mix well. Mix in flour and baking powder.
Pour filling mixture on top of partially baked crust. Bake 30-35 minutes, or until edges are browned and center is set. Allow to cool completely before cutting into bars.
Sprinkle tops of bars with confectioners’ sugar before serving.
http://www.bakeorbreak.com/2013/01/orange-bars/
January 7th, 2013 at 3:09 pm
They look delicious, thanks for sharing
January 7th, 2013 at 6:16 pm
These orange bars both sound good and look good! I think I have almost kilo of oranges at home
January 7th, 2013 at 8:37 pm
I think I am with you on this.
Have I made orange bars?
Maybe tangerine?
Well these look good, really good.
A large slice with hot tea.
January 8th, 2013 at 10:35 am
Mmm…now you have me thinking about all the possibilities for lemon bars.
January 8th, 2013 at 11:36 am
I think this sounds like a great idea. I’ve recently seen recipes for orange and mandarin curd, which I’m also ready to try. I have a ton of Cuties, those darling, easy to peel mandarins, that will get put to use in this form for sure! Why should lemons and limes get all the fun?
January 8th, 2013 at 2:28 pm
These look and sound absolutely stunning!! beautiful and delicious way to start the year!
Mary x
January 8th, 2013 at 4:09 pm
Love these! One of my favorite things in the winter is the total excuse to eat as much citrus as possible. I hope this is the start of a beautiful union of you and even more citrus baked goods
January 8th, 2013 at 9:53 pm
BRILLIANT! I love oranges, and it really is shocking that no one really thinks to switch them in for lemons in creamy bars. What a lovely idea – have to bookmark this for when I get back from Winter Break for sure
January 8th, 2013 at 10:50 pm
I have no idea why they never use oranges either, lemons and limes get all the love. They look good, definitely worth a try. Thanks.
January 9th, 2013 at 1:27 pm
Can you substitute almond flour for the ground almonds? How finely do you ground the almonds?
January 9th, 2013 at 5:08 pm
Deborah, I ground the almonds pretty finely, so almond flour would likely work.
January 10th, 2013 at 9:16 am
I am going to try this over the weekend, I think I am almost over my holiday sugar coma. I’m going to cut the recipe in half..I’m wondering if a drizzle of dark chocolate to “dress these up for company” would work…things to ponder..Thanks for the inspiration!
January 15th, 2013 at 4:38 pm
I just made these and they were delicious. I used clementines and pecans. I’m excited to try other citrus and nut combos.
January 15th, 2013 at 4:40 pm
Oh, and I wanted to say that most curd/shortbread bars I’ve tried were way too sweet and the shortbread too dense, but these were perfect. It’ll definitely be my new go to recipe.