Lemon Bar Love

The lemon bug has definitely been going around this summer. First, we made the lemon cake for a contest in baking club at work, and the lemon yogurt seems to be in scarce quantity at the grocery store. Then, when I was catching up with one of my bestest friends, and roommate from Freshman year of college, Mrs. SMGR, she was telling me about the very first thing she made with my parents wedding gift: the Cuisinart food processor. She was describing the lusciousness of the lemon bars she conquered, using the Cuisinart to whip up the crust and how she will forever think of my family when she gets to use it. She is such a sweetheart and rocks my face off. Example: uh...what other bridesmaids get to rock Converse??

So, it was my lucky weekend the other weekend...my old roomie flew out for a wedding and I had her to myself for a whole weekend! It's reallly rare to get one-on-one time with this girl so we seized the day! We started at Pajama Baking Company; a bakery/coffee shop/Market on Old South Pearl I'm obsessed with (Their peach scones are out of this world and everything else they make looks divine.) Then we headed back to my place to make, da-dah, lemon bars.

Since I'm a single girl, and therefore don't have all the kitchen essentials for lack of a wedding registry, I didn't have anything to make the crust with. No Cuisinart; not even a pastry cutter. What to do?? Go to Williams and Sonoma and spend some of those wedding gift cards, or course! Sarah very generously bought me my first wedding present, with her her, uh, wedding present gift cards.

We whipped up those lemon bars, which were just as amazing as she described and now I will think of my very good friend every time I'm getting my dough on with my fancy pastry cutter, just as she will think of me and my family everytime she's getting her Cuisinart on.

Mrs. SMGR accidentely ran off with the recipe, so I will have to have her send it to me for future lemon bar ventures. It comes from her favorite bakery in Santa Cruz that she remembers from growing up and always makes a visit to when she's in town.

Catching up with another college roommate at the close of the weekend, she tells me, "Guess what I did?? I made lemon bars!" I had one for breakfast this morning and they give mine and Mrs. SMGR's a serious run for our money.

Lemon fever, I tell you.