Lemon Graham Squares

Often,  even tho I love to cook and bake, my time seems very limited sometimes-- with work, social commitments and friends and family--so it's always a nice surprise  when I find a recipe that is really quick and really easy and most of all really good. 

I love the taste of lemon and these little graham cracker squares are packed with lemon flavor.  I used the juice a two lemons, but depending on how juicy your lemons are you might need a third.   This would be a great bar to take to potlucks, family gatherings, or to work--to woo your co-workers.   

Since it is just myself and the Handyman at home, and I have no co-workers, I had to give some of these bars away---to anyone who came thru my door. They would have been too dangerous to keep to myself.

The first day, the crust and the topping are  kind of crunchy or crispy and it is just right with the lemon filling.  I loved it.

The recipe doesn't say to, but I did keep them refrigerated after baking them--that creamy, lemony filling kind of begged to be refrigerated, but it does tend to make the graham crackers moist and not so crispy. Still good, but not as good as the day you bake them

Here's the thing tho--it's only a  9-inch pan, so if you have people over, they will get eaten all gone and then you don't have to worry about it!

I found these bar in the Taste of Home, Ultimate Cookie Collection cookbook. I've had this cookbook for about 5 years, but I think I glanced at it when I first got it and them it got stuck in a drawer or upstairs in a closet.  I had no room to keep all my cookbooks in one place.  Now that my kitchen is done,   I have been having so much fun looking thru old cookbooks...everything is displayed in my kitchen.  I've never had them all at my fingertips before---now they are all in sections, by theme, by author/chef--like I said,  SO MUCH FUN!

I'm really enjoying this cookie cookbook tho. 

Lemon Graham Squares
Taste of Home Ultimate Cookie Collection

1 can (14oz) sweetened condensed milk
1/2 cup lemon juice
1 1/2 cups graham cracker crumbs
3/4  cup all-purpose flour
1/3 cup packed brown sugar
1/2 tsp baking powder
dash salt
1/2 cup melted butter

In a bowl, combine the milk and lemon juice, mix well, set aside. In another bowl, combine the cracker crumbs, flour, brown sugar, baking powder and salt. Stir in butter until crumbly.

Press half of the crumb mixture into a greased 9-inch square baking dish.  Pour lemon mixture over crust; sprinkle with remaining crumbs.   Bake at  375F for  20-25 minutes or until lightly browned. 
Cool in pan on a wire rack.
Cut into bars.