Light & Luscious Dessert Recipe: Lemon Bars

Lemon bars are irresistibly tang- yet slightly sweet and buttery- thanks in no small part to the shortbread crust. The cake-like top with the powdered sugar only serves to complete the treat, making these lemon bars a totally addictive dessert.

In the past, we've found many lemon bars are too sweet, or their crusts are too soggy. We wanted to find a way to fix these problems and bring out the tangy citrus without drying the treat out too much. To fix the sweetness, we used the juice from three or four lemons with some added zest in the filling while dialing back a little on the sugar. For the crust, we used confectioners' sugar and cornstarch, finding those gave the perfect texture. To prevent sogginess, we pre-warmed the crust in the oven and added the filling to the warm crust. Keep reading below for this fantastic dessert recipe...

Lemon Bars

Ingredients

CRUST

• 1 3/4 cups flour
• 2/3 cups confectioners' sugar (plus more for decoration)
• 1/4 cup cornstarch
• 3/4 teaspoon salt
• 12 tablespoon butter, slightly cooler than room temperature, cut into 1" pieces

FILLING

• 4 large eggs, lightly beaten
• 1 1/3 cups sugar
• 3 tablespoon flour
• 2 teaspoons grated lemon zest from 2 large lemons
• 3/4 cup lemon juice from 4 large lemons, strained
• 1/3 cup whole milk
• 1/8 teaspoon table salt

Directions

1. Preheat the oven to 350 F. Lightly butter a 13"x9" baking dish and line with a sheet of parchment paper. Dot the paper with butter, then lay a second sheet crosswise over it.
2. Pulse the flour, confectioners' sugar, cornstarch, and salt in a food processor or blender. Add the butter and process to blend, 8 to 10 seconds. Pulse until the mixture is a pale yellow and resembles a coarse meal. Sprinkle the mixture into the lined pan, and press firmly with your fingers into an even 1/4" layer over the entire bottom of the pan and about 1/2" up the sides. Refrigerate for 30 minutes, then bake about 20 minutes.
3. While the crust is cooling and baking, whisk together the eggs, sugar and flour for the filling in a medium bowl, then stir in the lemon zest, juice, milk and salt to blend well.
4. when the crust is done baking ,reduce the oven to 325F. Stir the filling mixture to reblend, then pour into the warm crust. Bake about 20 minutes, or until the filling feels firm when lightly touched (about 20 minutes). Transfer the pan to a wire rack and let cool for 30 minutes. Lift the confection up by the parchment paper and transfer to a cutting board. Fold the paper down and cut into serving size bars.
5. Sift confectioners' sugar over the bars for decoration.
6. Enjoy!

Asian-Inspired Recipe: Crispy Low-Sugar Orange Chicken

Orange Chicken is a dish that people just can’t seem to get enough of, ourselves included! Unfortunately, most orange chicken recipes use a lot of sugar and then deep-fry the chicken, so it’s not always the healthiest choice…. (Although it may be the tastiest.) While our recipe still involves a lot of the original ingredients, we try to cut corners where we can to make this yummy dish a little healthier without skimping on taste—we know you’ll love it once you try it!

Low-Sugar Orange Chicken

(Serves 4) 

Ingredients 

• 1 pound boneless, skinless chicken breasts, 2-inch pieces
• 1 cup orange juice
• 2 teaspoons orange zest
• 2 teaspoons low-sodium soy sauce
• 1 teaspoon fresh ginger, grated
• 2 cloves garlic, minced
• 2 tablespoon all-natural honey
• 1 1/2 tablespoon low-sugar orange marmalade
• 1-3 teaspoons red pepper flakes
• 1/4 cup low-sodium chicken broth
• 1 egg, beaten
• 1/4 cup all-purpose flour
• 1 tablespoon cornstarch
• 1 tablespoon vegetable oil
• salt and pepper, to taste

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 375º F and spray a baking sheet with non-stick spray.
2. Place chicken in a small bowl and add salt, pepper and beaten egg. Toss well.
3. Shake off excess egg and, one-by-one, dredge chicken pieces in bowl of flour. Evenly spread out on baking sheet. Bake for 10-12 minutes, or until chicken is cooked through.
4. In a separate small bowl, combine cornstarch with chicken broth until completely dissolved. Set aside
5. In a saucepan, heat vegetable oil over medium heat and cook ginger and garlic until fragrant. 1-2 minutes. Add orange juice, zest, honey, red pepper flakes, soy sauce and marmalade. Bring to a boil and stir for 2 minutes, then lower heat and simmer until sauce thickens and reduces by 1/4.
6. Pour in cornstarch mixture and bring back to a boil, stirring for 2-4 minutes. Take off heat, but keep warm. Toss in chicken and coat thoroughly with sauce. Serve hot.

Super Healthy Snack Recipe: Low Calorie Berries & Oats Smoothie

Smoothies are a really great snack option because they’re delicious and portable, serving as a perfectly reasonable breakfast on the go or as an afternoon pick-me-up. However, it’s important to realize that, while smoothies seem like a healthy treat of blended fruit, a lot of them are filled with sugar and sweeteners. Thus, a calorie bomb is born.

The good news is that smoothies are a breeze to make at home and can serve as truly filling, healthy options to get you through the day. We chose oatmeal to add extra protein and fiber, and to thicken up this smoothie—thicker is better, people—when you try it, be prepared for the newfound energy kick and revel in this yummy discovery!

Berries and Oats Smoothie

Serves 1-2

Ingredients

• 1/3 cup frozen blueberries, unsweetened
• 1/3 cup frozen raspberries, unsweetened
• 1/3 cup frozen blackberries, unsweetened
• 1/4 cup instant oatmeal
• 1 cup almond milk (or vanilla almond)
• 2 teaspoons honey or agave nectar
• 1 teaspoon orange zest

Directions

1. In a blender, combine milk and instant oats. Pulse until smooth.
2. Add blueberries, blackberries and raspberries and blend for 20 seconds. If mixture is too thick, add a little more milk.
3. Add honey and orange zest.
4. Optional: Add spinach, kale, bananas or plain, Greek yogurt to add extra nutrients and creaminess, and blend until smooth.