Lemon Meringue Dream Bars

★★★★★

Quick Info:
Difficulty: Medium
Yield: 14-16 bars
Attribution: Halverson's Supper Club

Description: I asked Chef Brandon from Halverson's Supper Club to create this recipe to celebrate my Gold Award Ceremony. He used the Little Brownie Bakers 100th anniversary of Girl Scouts commemorative cookie "Savannah Smiles"!

Ingredients:
For The Crust:
½ pound Unsalted Butter, room temperature
1 tsp Vanillat
1 box Savannah Smiles Cookies, crushed
1 box Shortbread Cookies, crushed
For The Filling:
6 large Eggs, room temperature
3 cups Granulated Sugar
2 Tbsp Grated Lemon Zest, 4-6 lemons
1 cup Freshly Squeezed Lemon Juice
1 cup Flour
For The Meringue:
8 Egg Whites
1 pinch Cream Of Tartar
4 Tbsp Granulated Sugar

Directions: 

Preheat the oven to 350℉.

For the crust, cream the butter and sugar until light in the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment. Combine the flour and salt and, with the mixer on low, add to the butter until just mixed. Dump the dough onto a well-floured board and gather into a ball. Flatten the dough with floured hands and press it into a 9 by 13 by 2-inch baking sheet, building up a ½-inch edge on all sides. Chill.

Bake the crust for 15 to 20 minutes, until very lightly browned. Let cool on a wire rack. Leave the oven on.

For the filling, whisk together the eggs, sugar, lemon zest, lemon juice, and flour. Pour over the crust and bake for 30 to 35 minutes, until the filling is set. Let cool to room temperature.

Place egg whites and cream of tartar in the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the whisk attachment. Beat egg whites until soft peaks form and then gradually add sugar and continue beating until stiff peaks form, approximately 1 to 2 minutes. Use to top lemon filling.

Contains: Wheat, milk, flour, soy, lemons

May Contain: Tree nuts, peanuts