Raspberry Lemon Cream Bars

Mmmmmmm! Raspberries and blackberries. I love them any way I can get them. I love them in savory dishes. I love them as desserts. I love them in salads. And I love to eat them all by themselves.

Both raspberries and blackberries are packed with vitamins and nutrients. One cup of fresh berries provides30 milligrams of Vitamin C as well as 8 grams of fiber. These little berries really know how to pack a punch. 🙂

I am always buying both raspberries and blackberries (blackberries being slightly preferable to me) but Larry won’t eat them at all. So either I eat them all, which I have no problem doing, or I use them in recipes and dishes to share with others. My most recent raspberry treat was made to share, and I used them to make raspberry lemon cream bars. Once again, they were gone in a flash and everyone loved them. 🙂

Raspberry Lemon Cream Bars

Once again, these tasty treats only used a few basic ingredients. They were simple to make and simply delicious to eat.

Preheat the oven to 350* F or 190* C.

Spray cooking spray in a 9×13 baking pan.

Crust

3/4 cup softened butter

1 cup firmly packed brown sugar

1 cup quick oats

1 1/3 cups flour

1/2 tsp salt

1 tsp baking powder

Mix everything together well, making sure there are no butter clumps and everything sticks together. Spread about 3/4 of the mixture into the prepared pan, making sure to completely cover the bottom. Press it firmly into place, which will also help spread it out evenly.

Filling

1 14-oz can of sweetened condensed milk

1/2 cup lemon juice

1 tsp lemon zest

1 tsp lemon extract, optional

1 egg

1 package of raspberries, cut in 1/2

1 TBSP flour

2 TBSP sugar

Gently mix the flour and sugar in with the raspberries to coat them. Not only does this help flavor them, but it also helps to prevent the raspberries from “bleeding” into the custard. Then evenly distribute the berry mixture over the top of the crust.

Combine the rest of the ingredients together and evenly pour over the raspberries. Top with the remaining crumble mixture and spread evenly over the top of the custard.

Bake for about 30-40 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted in the middle comes out clean and the custard filling is set.

Once the pan has cooled completely, place it in the refrigerator for about 1-2 hours before slicing. Be prepared though, once you slice them, they won’t be around for long. The lemon and raspberries celebrate each other and the flavors of each one just really pop and come to life. Enjoy. 🙂

Have a great day and make everyday great. Stay safe and stay well. ‘Til next time.