Are you all tired of winter yet? I am. I tire of the cold pretty quickly these days. I love living in Illinois but I wish that the winters were not so freaking endless. I start to long for green leaves and warm nights right about mid-January and by Valentine’s Day I am downright done with winter. Well, I am right in the midst of that period and am looking forward to sunshine and 80 degrees. So, I thought that I would share a recipe today for a sweet treat that brings to mind summer days. You can certainly make it all year long like I do and maybe it will help to ease the depression of dull gray winter skies. 

This recipe is for lemon brownies. I know. I know. That does not sound right and you can just call these lemon bars if you wish. Brownies are supposed to be chocolate. I mean, they are typically literally brown. I don’t know but I suspect that the name is derived from their color. But, these lemon treats are called brownies and I respect that. It is kind of cool when you think about it. I have always liked things that are a bit different; that don’t conform to conventions. Lemon Brownies are moist, delicious, sweet and tart like a lemon bar but are also dense and chewy like a brownie. If you love lemon you will love this recipe. If you cannot tolerate calling them brownies, then don’t. Call them squares or bars or hedgehogs if that makes you happy, but make them and enjoy them.

This is a recipe that I found on Pinterest and tweaked a little to my liking.  The brownies are made from scratch but don’t let that frighten you. They are super easy. They are great for potlucks or taking to the office.

For the brownies, you will need 1 cup of softened unsalted butter, 1 ½ cups granulated sugar, 2 tablespoons lemon zest, 2 tablespoons lemon juice, 4 large eggs at room temperature, 1 ½ cups all purpose flour, and 1 teaspoon baking powder for the brownies. For the glaze, you will need 2 cups powdered sugar, 1 teaspoon lemon extract or vanilla, and enough lemon juice to make your glaze the correct consistency (around 4 tablespoons). If you are using vanilla, you can use clear vanilla to make the glaze really white.

Let’s get this party started. 

Preheat your oven to 350 degrees and line a 9 X 13 baking pan with parchment paper.

Zest your lemons and squeeze out the juice, making sure to remove any seeds. I needed 2 lemons to get the right amount of zest and fresh juice because mine were smaller in size. Feel free to use bottled lemon juice to supplement if you don’t have enough for both the brownies and the glaze. Set aside both the zest and the juice in separate bowls or measuring cups.   

Whisk together the flour and baking powder and set aside.

Using a stand or hand mixer, beat the butter, 2 tablespoons lemon juice, lemon zest and sugar until light and fluffy. Scrape down the sides of the bowl periodically. This will take several minutes. 

Add the eggs one at a time and beat until combined.

Add the flour mixture gradually, scraping down the sides of the bowl as needed. Mix until just combined.

Spread the batter into the prepared pan evenly. Bake in a preheated oven for 25 to 28 minutes. Do not overbake. A toothpick inserted in the center should have some moist crumbs but no liquid batter. 

Cool the brownies on the counter. While the brownies are cooling you can mix up the glaze.

For the glaze, mix the powdered sugar, lemon extract or vanilla, and lemon juice in a large measuring cup or medium bowl with a whisk until smooth.  Start off with about half of the lemon juice and add more until you get the right consistency. You want a pourable glaze.

Once the brownies are cooled, pour the glaze over the top and spread to cover completely. Allow the glaze to harden and then cut the brownies.

These keep well in an air-tight container on the counter for a few days or you can keep them in the fridge for a little longer.  

I hope that this recipe brings a little sunshine into your day. Here’s to the prospect of sunny days, sandals, and warm breezes coming through open windows. Until next time, Lovies!

Print Recipe

Lemon Brownies

Lemon Brownies are moist, delicious, sweet and tart like a lemon bar but are also dense and chewy like a brownie. If you love lemon you will love this recipe.

Prep Time20 mins

Cook Time25 mins

Cooling time30 mins

Total Time1 hr 15 mins

Author: Wench Sherry

Ingredients

Brownies

• 1 cup unsalted butter
• 1 1/2 cups granulated sugar
• 2 Tbsp lemon zest
• 2 Tbsp lemon juice
• 4 large eggs at room temperature
• 1 1/2 cups all purpose flour
• 1 tsp baking powder

Glaze

• 2 cups powdered sugar
• 1 tsp lemon extract or vanilla
• 4 Tbsp lemon juice approximately

Instructions

• Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Line a 9 X 13 pan with parchment paper and set aside.
• Zest your lemons and squeeze out the juice, making sure to remove any seeds.  I needed 2 lemons to get the right amount of zest and fresh juice because mine were smaller in size.  Feel free to use bottled lemon juice to supplement if you don’t have enough for both the brownies and the glaze. Set aside both the zest and the juice in separate bowls or measuring cups.
• Whisk together the flour and baking powder and set aside.
• Using a stand or hand mixer, beat the butter, 2 tablespoons lemon juice, lemon zest and sugar until light and fluffy.  Scrape down the sides of the bowl periodically.
• Add the eggs one at a time and beat until combined.
• Add the flour mixture gradually, scraping down the sides of the bowl as needed.  Mix until just combined. 
• Spread the batter into the prepared pan evenly.  Bake in a preheated oven for 25 to 28 minutes.  Do not overbake.  A toothpick inserted in the center should have some moist crumbs but no liquid batter.
• Cool the brownies on the counter.  While the brownies are cooling you can mix up the glaze.
• For the glaze, mix the powdered sugar, lemon extract or vanilla, and lemon juice in a large measuring cup or medium bowl with a whisk until smooth.  Start off with about half of the lemon juice and add more until you get the right consistency.  You want a pourable glaze.
• Once the brownies are cooled, pour the glaze over the top and spread to cover completely.  Allow the glaze to harden and then cut the brownies.

Hi Everyone!  How are all my fellow foodies?  Staying dry, I hope. So, I have always heard that April showers bring May flowers.  But, here in Illinois, this year April showers brought May showers and May showers brought June showers.  It just keeps raining! It’s crazy. The farmers in the family are getting pretty anxious because some crops are not planted yet and others need to be replanted.  There are miniature swamps throughout the yard. And, there is flooding in many of our local communities. Fortunately, for us, we live in one of the highest spots in this county and our basement has never leaked.  Thank goodness!

But, anyway, May came and went quickly and now June is almost gone.  It seemed quicker than usual this year to me. I think because it was so very busy.  May is chockfull of celebrations for this family. We have several birthdays, including mine.  There are always graduations because we have such a large family. Mother’s Day, of course, is always celebrated in some way.  And, then there is Cinco De Mayo. Now, I have absolutely no Hispanic heritage but I do love Hispanic food. So, Cinco De Mayo seems like a perfect reason to enjoy some really good food and have some fun making it too.  I do love to make Mexican food. This year, we did a nacho bar with lots of toppings for blue and regular tortilla chips. I had shredded and seasoned chicken as well as taco-seasoned ground beef. Cody was home and we all loaded up our plates with chips and our favorite toppings and watched baseball while we munched.  Then, I made little churro bites by frying up some chunks of leftover pound cake and then coating them with cinnamon and sugar. It was a good, good meal.

I wanted to take something to work to celebrate a belated Cinco De Mayo so I whipped up some of my Mexican Brownies.  I really love this recipe because I use boxed brownie mix and add a few extra special ingredients and end up with a to-die-for spicy brownie.  It is super easy and quick and you probably already have the fixins in your pantry. Now, you could make a from-scratch brownie but my family really loves the boxed brownies that I use.  I do make them a little differently than it says on the box but I only change the pan size and the baking time. I always, always, always double the recipe so I use 2 boxes of the mix and then double up on the additional ingredients.  I bake them in a 9 X 13 pan for 40 – 45 minutes. The result is a thick and gooey brownie with a dense fudge-like center and a little crunch on the edges.

Hi Everybody!  The Kitchen Wench is back from a short hiatus.  You know how life gets crazy sometimes? At least, my life gets crazy.  Most of the time, I can handle it. I’m a world-class multitasker. I actually feel weird if I am not doing more than one thing at a time.  Lately, however, I have been trying to juggle too many bowling balls and got whacked on the head a few times. So, I have had to put a couple of things on the back burner (Ha!  See how I stuck that cooking reference in there?) Unfortunately, blog posts had to be put aside briefly. I was still cooking and baking…a lot…so I have some recipes to share as soon as I can get all the production work done.  The one that I am sharing today is a doozy and I have been anxiously awaiting a time when I could share it.

One of the bowling balls that has been hovering over my head was a move of my younger son, Alex.  He has some very dear friends who offered to rent a cute little house to him. He jumped at the chance.  He loved his apartment in downtown St. Louis. It had an amazing view and was within walking distance of Busch Stadium and lots of other great places.  But it was a pretty small studio apartment and he was craving some more space. So, we spent weeks preparing for the move. We quickly discovered that there is a huge difference in the amount of furniture needed for a studio apartment and a 2-bedroom house.  We began collecting furniture from family and second-hand stores and purchased a few new items. Alex had collected kitchen and decor items and stored them in our basement. We sorted through boxes and found lots of stuff that he could use in his new home. Sometimes, it pays to be a packrat.  Everything was moving along pretty smoothly until Alex had a car accident the week before the move and consequently totaled his car. Well, then, we had to scramble to get all the insurance stuff taken care of and get a rental car for him. Fortunately, he wasn’t hurt. If I ever catch the semi driver who forced him off the road and into the guardrail, I am gonna do some serious butt kicking, though.  You know that the guy didn’t even stop to see if anyone was hurt? Jerk. And then, the weekend that we had chosen to move, the weather became terrible with bitter cold and snow. Thank goodness for the family and friends who came to help (Nino, Patricia, Gigi and Steve). We were able to get most everything in one trip with our sanity intact. We did have to run out and purchase a split box spring.  Queen size box springs and narrow steep staircases do not mix. Go figure. My husband and I stayed until about 10:00 that night and were able to get most of the boxes unpacked and all the furniture placed. Well, anyway, that is one of the reasons that I have been absent lately.

And, this recipe always brings Alex to my mind, so I thought it appropriate to share it today.  You see, I developed this by accident – or rather by good fortune. I had promised Alex that I would make a special treat for him to share with his co-workers for this birthday.  I ran a few choices by him, and he decided on a recipe that I am sure you have seen online or on Pinterest. It is called Knock You Naked Brownies and they do look fantastic. So, I got ready to make them and discovered that I did not have the correct ingredients.  Well, then I was in a pickle. I don’t live all that close to a grocery store and I was running short on time. I looked at the ingredients that I did have in my pantry and decided to come up with my own similar recipe. I was pretty unsure about the result. I sent the whole pan back to Missouri with Alex without even testing them.  The next weekend when I saw Alex again, he brought up the brownies. I was awaiting the negative review, but he said that they were the best thing I ever made. He said that he left them in a common area of his office where he could hear his co-workers’ reactions and there were many moans and exclamations of delight. Needless to say, I was incredibly happy and made another batch asap so that I could write down the measurements and method before I forgot.

I’m not sure exactly what magic happens in these brownies but the filling and brownie layers morph into a wonderful ooey-gooey and decadent love potion.  They are wonderful the first day but get better and better over time. And, they last for days and days on the counter! That magnificent filling keeps the brownie layers from drying out.  They are thing of beauty – even if I do say so myself. They also happen to be pretty easy to make. It does take longer than a regular old pan of brownies, but I promise that they are worth the wait.