Lemon Cream Bars

I'm seriously CRAVING citrus fruit lately!  Lemons, limes, grapefruit, oranges, you name it... I crave it.  I'm not totally sure why, but I do know that citrus kills cancer cells in your body and is a great source for vitamin C!  So... these lemon bars are organic, refined sugar-free, and they pretty much melt in your mouth!  I once had someone tell me that they are like ambrosia for your tongue!  So they must be good right?!

These bars are also super versatile so if you want to convert them to gluten-free or dairy-free it's super easy!  I'll show you how in the recipe below!

Lemon Cream Bars!

Ingredients:

Crust:
1 1/2 cups whole wheat pastry flour
1/4 cup powdered Lakanto sweetener
1/2 tsp. real salt
2 tsp. lemon zest
3/4 cup cold butter, cut into pieces

Filling:
4 eggs
1 cup raw honey
1/4 cup classic Lakanto sweetener
1 tsp. baking powder
​1/3 cup lemon juice (about 2 large lemons worth)
1 heaping Tbs. lemon zest

Topping:
1 8 oz package of cream cheese
1/4 cup powdered Lakanto sweetener
1 Tbs. maple syrup
2 tsp. vanilla extract
extra lemon zest to sprinkle on top

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.  Grease 9x13 inch pan with organic, grass fed butter and set aside.
2. Thoroughly wash two large lemons and pat dry.  Zest both lemon rinds, then slice in half and juice both lemons.
3. Combine all ingredients for the crust in a medium bowl.  Mix thoroughly with a fork or if you're like me... I just used my hands.  The dough will resemble coarse crumbs at first, so continue to kneed it together until it forms a ball that sticks together.  Mixture should not be sticky.
4. Press dough evenly into your buttered pan, and bake for 15 minutes.  (The crust will be slightly golden brown on top.)
5. While the crust is baking, whisk together all the ingredients for the filling.  When it's thoroughly mixed it should kind of foam up.  The mixture will be fairly runny and it will thicken when it bakes.
6. Pour mixture onto hot crust and return to the oven for 16-18 minutes or until the mixture is slightly browned around the edges.  It should also be fairly set in the middle.
7. Make sure your bars cool COMPLETELY before you make the topping.  I'd even recommend refrigerating it for an hour or two before you top it. 
8. To make the topping, whip together all the ingredients with and electric mixer until mixture is smooth and well combined.  Spread on top of bars using a rubber spatula.  Zest a lemon over the bars to give it that beautiful glazed lemon look.

*Use organic ingredients when feasible.
*Store bars in fridge.

**What to make these bars gluten-free?  Easy!  Simply replace the pastry flour in the crust for almond flour.
**What to make these bars dairy-free?  Also super easy!  Just replace the cream cheese with a couple cans of coconut cream!