Blissful And Indulgent Creamy Pink Grapefruit Bars

5 from 2 votes

Blissful And Indulgent Creamy Pink Grapefruit Bars

Blissful And Indulgent Creamy Pink Grapefruit Bars are perfectly Zen and satisfy that 'I need something small but sweet' craving! They are just like lemon bars with a shortbread base and creamy citrus curd, but with the distinctly sweet flavor of pink grapefruit.

Prep Time10

Cook Time40

Rest and Chilling Time3

Total Time3 50

Course: Dessert

Cuisine: American

Servings: servings

Author: Jenny DeRemer

Cost: $0.18 per serving

Equipment

either an 8 x 8 or a 9 x 9 cake pan
parchment paper - If you are baking in a non-stick cake pan you must line with parchment; the non-stick surface is not something you will want to use a knife on when cutting the bars, so parchment will enable you to lift the bake out safely and then cut.

Ingredients

for the shortbread base

1 cup all purpose flour
¼ cup confectioners sugar + additional for dusting
1 teaspoon brown sugar
¼ teaspoon salt
½ cup unsalted butter softened to room temperature and cut into pieces

for the grapefruit curd

1 ½ cups granulated sugar
¼ cup all purpose flour
4 large eggs room temperature
1 tablespoon lemon zest may substitute kumquat if using kumquat juice in place of lemon juice
¾ cup pink grapefruit juice or Ruby red
¼ cup lemon or kumquat juice
**optional - pink food coloring, about 3 drops if you want the bars pink as I have in my photos

Instructions

Preheat the oven to 350° F. Lightly grease either an 8 x 8-inch or a 9 x 9-inch square cake pan with unsalted butter. **NOTE - If you are baking in a non-stick cake pan you must line with parchment; line the cake pan with parchment paper that overhangs 2-inches on both sides.

assemble the shortbread base

Combine the flour, confectioners sugar, brown sugar, salt, and butter in a food processor. Pulse until mixture begins to clump together. Remove the dough from the barrel and press onto the bottom of the prepared cake pan. Bake at 350˚F for 20 minutes, or until lightly browned on the top.

prepare the grapefruit curd

In a clean and dry food processor barrel, pulse the sugar and flour together. Add the eggs pulsing well. Add the zest, juices, and pulse again until all is incorporated fully. **NOTE - the bars will bake up only mildly pink if food coloring is not used. Add 3 to 5 drops of PINK food coloring if you want the bars pink as I have in my photos. 3 drops yielded me this nice pretty pale pink.
Pour the citrus curd over the hot shortbread base and bake an additional 20 minutes or until filling no longer jiggles, and the edges are lightly browned. **NOTE - as it often happens when baking, these bars may crack on the top. It's okay, as they will be finished with a dusting of confectioners sugar in the end, and it lets tasters know they are homemade!
Allow the bake to cool completely in the pan, about 1 hour. DO NOT SKIP THIS STEP. The silkiness will go from amazing to crazed and bumpy and cracked without the room temperature cool down. Then refrigerate for 2 hours minimally until sufficiently chilled. These must be chilled to cut!
Use a sharp knife that has been run under hot water then dried to cut 9 squares, then each square in half into 18 bars. **NOTE - if you used parchment, lift the bake out of pan with by the parchment overhang and then cut. Store leftovers in the refrigerator.

Notes

If you are baking in a non-stick cake pan you must line with parchment; the non-stick surface is not something you will want to use a knife on when cutting the bars, so parchment will enable you to lift the bake out safely and then cut.

On their own, the combination of juices will not bake up pink per se; I have used 3 drops of pink food coloring to enhance the color I have achieved in my photos. The food coloring is completely optional and has no affect on the taste or the nutritional value of the bars.

Nutrition