Mom’s Special Lemon Bars

My friend Sheila Ballweg-Pulju shares this treasured recipe for lemon bars today in honor of her mother, Genevieve (Stamm) Ballweg. Sheila and her sister, Gayle Coles, have been baking this easy recipe, which teases taste buds with its refreshing tart flavor, for more than 40 years. It brings back special memories of their mother making it for family gatherings or social events when they were growing up in Langdon, North Dakota. Both Sheila and Gayle were teachers, following in the footsteps of their mother, who taught third grade at St. Alphonsus Catholic School in Langdon for several years. CJK

Mom’s Special Lemon Bars

(Sheila Ballweg-Pulju)

Crust:
3/4 cup graham crackers, crushed

1/4 cup butter, melted

1/4 cup brown sugar

1/4 tsp. baking powder

1/3 cup flour

Filling:

1 cup sweetened condensed milk

1/2 cup lemon juice

1/2 tsp. lemon zest, optional

Preheat oven to 350°F.

Mix the crust ingredients together and press 3/4 (or all)* of the mixture into a 9 x 9-inch ungreased glass baking dish.

Mix the filling ingredients until smooth and spread evenly over the crumbs. *If some of the crust mixture is reserved, sprinkle the remaining crumbs over the lemon mixture before baking.

Bake for 20 minutes at 350°F. 

Yield: 16 to 20 bars

A note from Sheila: These bars freeze well. I especially like to eat them when they are cold or half frozen.

A note from Carol: Sheila is such a good cook and baker! We’ve had a lot of fun sharing both recipes and meals together over the years. To see a couple more of her recipes, visit Food, Faith and Fellowship’s archives: Bittersweet Chocolate Truffle Tart (Feb. 7, 2011) and Red Velvet Cake (Feb. 13, 2011).