I have to say something rather controversial here: I find chocolate covered strawberries very annoying, especially around Valentine’s Day. Strawberries aren’t even in season in February! Somehow you end up with a steroid-induced strawberry that tastes somewhere between acetone, nitric acid, and nothing, enrobed in chocolate–which is way sweeter than the Arnold strawberry–and only enhances its ugly tartness.
Okay, end rant. Let’s say something positive, Alex. *Deep breath* I’m glad I got that off my chest. Citrus fruits, by contrast, are in abundance in winter! A wonderful red grapefruit is delicious in February! I have a mad love affair with lemon bars and could eat those year round, and so I wanted to try a spin on them, introducing the more seasonal fruit for a Valentine’s Day-themed treat. It has a buttery shortbread crust at the base, caramelized sugar crunch at the top, and delicious sweet-and-sour grapefruit and lemon in between.
Before you say grapefruit is too bitter for you, did you know that adding a small amount of salt to grapefruit (or anything bitter, really) reduces the bitterness? You get all of the delicious flavors of grapefruit without the harsh bitterness that turns you off.
This recipe also uses a Meyer lemon which is a lot more floral, but you can just as easily use a regular lemon.
Give it a try for your sweetie this Valentine’s Day, whether that’s your spouse, yourself, or your mom! And let me know how they like it!
Ingredients
Shortbread crust:
1 cup flour
1 stick salted butter
1/4 cup white sugar
Filling:
Zest of one grapefruit and one Meyer lemon
4 eggs
1 1/2 cups white sugar
Juice of 1 grapefruit, about 1/2 cup
Pinch of sea salt
Juice of 2 Meyer lemons, about 1/4 cup
1 drop red food coloring gel
Powdered sugar, for dusting on top
Process
Preheat oven to 350F / 175C. Spray and line an 9″ x 9″ pan with parchment paper, allowing for an overhang.
Cream butter and sugar. Slowly add in flour. Press the mixture into prepared pan and bake for 20 minutes, or until the crust is golden.
While crust is baking, prepare the filling. Beat eggs with zest and sugar until light and ribbony.
Add a pinch of salt to the grapefruit juice and combine with lemon juice.
Drizzle juices into egg mixture until well combined. Add one drop of red food coloring gel to get a coral pink color.
Pour filling onto hot crust and return to oven to bake for 40 minutes, or until the bars do not jiggle when you move the pan.
Allow to cool completely in the pan. Using the overhang of parchment paper, lift the bars out and place on a cutting board. Sift powdered sugar on top and cut into 1.5″ squares. You will have about 36 little squares.
Keep in refrigerator for up to a week.