Lemon Meringue Pie Bars

The past two weekends, I have been at the lake--cooking, eating, playing spades, skiing, boating, and floating. The cabin was FULL, and the kitchen is SMALL. Needless to say, it wasn't the best set up to pictures of the five dishes I was simultaneously cooking for each meal. Had I remembered to take pictures, all you would have seen was a huge mess. This post, therefore, will be minimalist. I only have one picture of these bars, and it's of my plate after I had already taken a bite out of it. Hey, it's better than no post at all!

My mom and another of the house guests are huge lemon fans. Last weekend, my mom made her famous lemon bars, and of course, they didn't last until this weekend. After the second weekend at the lake, we were able to convince one of the guests--the lemon lover--to stay just one more night with us in town. We went to town (first unpacking and doing laundry) cooking. They started with chicken fettuccine alfredo (with a hint of pesto!), and we just had to bake something. My partner in crime wanted something lemon, clearly, and while we found a lemon meringue pie recipe, we didn't have the stamina left after skiing to stand over a double boiler.

After finding a box of graham crackers in the cabinet, we decided to use that for a crust that would be topped with the filling from Mom's lemon bars...followed by meringue. Voila! Everything we wanted in one.

Crust:
10 graham crackers/one sleeve, crushed (tip: toss them in a gallon bag and smash them with a rolling pin or wine bottle)
1/2 cup brown sugar
1 1/2 sticks butter, melted (I know...just do an extra crunch or two before you go to bed)

Toss crumbs and sugar. Add melted butter. Press firmly into the bottom of a greased  9" x 13" pan..

Filling:
12 oz. cream cheese, softened (1.5 packs)
1 1/2 cups powdered sugar
3 eggs
zest and juice from one lemon
pinch salt

Beat the cream cheese before adding any ingredients so that it is easier to work with. Add the powdered sugar in tow batches so it doesn't snow all over the kitchen. Add eggs one at a time. Add lemon zest, juice, and salt. Place on top of the unbaked crust and bake for about 25 minutes or until the filling is set. Cool to room temperature. You may even put them in the refrigerator until the next day if you don't have time to make the meringue then.

Meringue:
5 egg whites
1 t cream of tartar
3/4 cup sugar

Once the bars have cooled, start your meringue. Separate the eggs. Place the whites in a CLEAN, DRY, METAL, or GLASS bowl. NOTE: egg whites (and cream) do not whip in plastic bowls or bowls that haven't been thoroughly washed and dried. Beat the whites and cream of tarter on medium-high until they are frothy. Add the sugar one tablespoon at a time with the beater on high speed. They are finished once stiff peaks form.

Spread this over the completed bars. Broil it just until the meringue starts to brown. That's it! Cut and eat immediately. Store in the refrigerator.