Creamy Lemon Ginger Bars
A cross between lemon bars & cheesecake with a refreshing ginger twist
Servings: 12
Ingredients
Crust:
- 140 g McVitie’s digestives or Graham crackers
- 1 tbsp sugar
- 50 g (3 ½ tbsp) melted butter
Filling:
- 125 g European cream cheese or 75 g (2.6 oz) American full-fat cream cheese, very softened + 50 g (3 ½ tbsp) milk or yogurt
- 165 g (scant ¾ c) sugar
- 1.5 tbsp cornstarch
- ⅓ c lemon juice
- ½ tbsp lemon zest
- 3 eggs
- 1 egg yolk
- ¾ tsp vanilla
- ¾ tsp turmeric
- ½ tbsp ginger paste (see note)
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 150 °C (300 °F). Line an 8x8 inch (20x20 cm) pan with foil or parchment paper, leaving some overhang to pull out the bars later. Set aside.
- Make the crust: Blend the cookies in a food processor, then add the sugar and melted butter and pulse to combine evenly. Press the buttery crumbs evenly into the bottom of the prepared pan. Bake for 8-10 minutes. Remove from oven and let cool slightly.
- Increase the oven temperature to 180 °C (350 °F).
- Make the filling: With electric beaters, mix the cream cheese and sugar together in a large bowl until creamed and smooth. Mix in the other filling ingredients.
- Bake: Pour the filling over the baked crust and return to oven. Bake for 35 minutes, or until the center is no longer wobbly but not totally solidified. The bars will set up in the refrigerator.
- Chill: Once baked, set the pan on a cooling rack to cool for an hour, then refrigerate for at least 3 hours before serving.
- Once chilled and firmed up, pull the dessert out of the pan using the overhanging parchment paper. Cut into bars. The bars will keep in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 5 days.
Notes
- Use a mortar and pestle to mash up some fresh ginger into a pasty consistency. Grating the ginger could work, too. Alternatively, you can buy pre-made ginger paste or make a bigger batch in a blender.