Like me, my mom loves to try new recipes. In fact, nearly every time we go home, we're treated to some new dish. Of course, we still have our family favorites, which she also makes sure to have on hand. What can I say? I'm a lucky girl! This particular recipe is a new discovery of my mom's, which is quickly becoming another favorite. In fact, she's already made them on a few separate occasions this summer. When my grandparents came to visit, I wanted to make these for my grandma, who is a fan of anything lemon or raspberry. I figured combining the two was sure to please her!

I halved the recipe, because my grandma had already brought cookies and peach pie (see above: lucky girl!), so feel free to double what's below and bake in a 9 x 13 pan. These have a similar texture to your standard lemon bar, but the raspberries on top make them extra special. Like the blueberry crumb bars, these are best served cold!

P.S. I realized after making that while I halved the recipe, I failed to halve the amount of lemon juice in the recipe. These babies were TART. If you want mouth-puckering lemon flavor, go ahead and make my mistake...I prefer them with a much more subtle lemon flavor. Correct measurements below!

Raspberry Citrus Bars
adapted from allrecipes.com 


Ingredients:
-1 stick butter
-3/8 cup confectioners' sugar
-1 1/8 cup all-purpose flour, divided
-2 eggs
-3/4 cup sugar
-1/6 cup lemon juice
-1 tbsp grated orange peel
-1/2 tsp baking powder
-1 small container raspberries

Directions:
1. Cream butter and confectioners' sugar in a mixing bowl. Mix in 1 cup of flour until dough forms. Press dough into a greased 8x8 pan. Bake at 350F for 20 minutes, until lightly browned.
2. Clean out mixing bowl and beat eggs, sugar, lemon juice, and orange zest. Mix in remaining flour (1/8 cup) and baking powder.
3. Slice raspberries in half. Remove crust from oven. Top with halved raspberries until surface is full. Pour filling mixture over the raspberries and crust. Return to oven for 30 minutes, until the filling is set and lightly browned. Cool on a wire rack before refrigerating.