Rasberry Lemon Swirl Bars!

I am a true lover of any fruit that is put infront of me! So when I saw this recipe on one of my favorite new blogs (http://www.healthyindulgences.blogspot.com/) I decided to go for it! I LOVE lemon bars, the texture, flavor and they could only taste better topped with fresh rasberry glaze.

This is definatley a recipe that works best with two people, so graham helped me out. This is also not a "vegan" friendly recipe as it calls for two eggs but it falls under vegetarian.

I fell in love with this blog after I read Laurens passion, "Health food that doesn't taste like health food is my mission, with a focus on making over the most decadent junk foods." She focuses on organic recipes without gluten and free of the "bad" sugars. I tend to prefere cooking over baking becuase there is definately more of a science to baking. The first time I looked at this recipe I quickly skimmed over it, but after a few days of debating I decided to give it a go!

Ingredients:
1/4 cup butter (I used vegan butter)
1 tablespoon erythritol or xylitol (explained below)
1/4 teaspoon pure stevia extract
Pinch of salt
1/2 cup plus two tablespoons almond meal
1/4 cup oat or buckwheat flour
1/4 teaspoon xanthan or guar gum

Filling:
2 large cage free organic eggs
1/2 cup erythritol
1/8 teaspoon pure stevia extract
1/4 cup organic lemon juice
2 teaspoons lemon zest
Pinch of salt
1/4 teaspoon xanthan gum

Rasberry Swirl:
1/2 cup organic rasberries
1 teaspoon organic lemon juice
1 teaspoon erythritol
Fresh rasberries for garnish

After I read this I must admit I was deeply confused on what some of these ingredients were! So I went to my best friend Google.

Erythritol is a naturally-derived sugar substitute that looks and tastes very much like sugar, yet has almost no calories. It comes in granulated and powdered forms. Erythritol is approximately 70 percent as sweet as table sugar (sucrose). Erythritol is usually made from plant sugars. Sugar is mixed with water and then fermented with a natural culture into erythritol. It is then filtered, allowed to crystallize, and then dried. The finished product is white granules or powder that resembles sugar.

• Premium Quality
• Gluten Free
• All Natural Kosher

Xanthan Gum is made from the outer layer of a tiny, inactive bacterium called Xanthomonas campestris. It is an excellent all purpose thickener for dressings, gravies and sauces. It's unique ability to hold small particles of food together makes it the ideal substitute for gluten in gluten-free baking. Most recipes call for only 1 or 2 teaspoons, so it goes a long way!

I found all of these products at Kroger. They have the best organic friendly/vegetarian section that is closest to where I live. With all of the ingredients in hand, Graham and I started baking!

First, heat the oven to 350 degrees. Soften butter for shortbread. Cream butter and erythritol together, then work in flours and gums with a fork until throughly combined. Add a pinch of salt and stevia.

Press or spread into an 8' by 4' loaf pan lined with buttered parchment (I just buttered my pan evenly). Bake at 350 until lightly browned, 15-20 minutes. Let crust cool while you prepare the filling.tick in the freezer to speed up the process.

Beat erythritol with eggs, lemon juice, and zest. Add gums. Add a pinch of salt and stevia to taste. Pour over shortbread crust.

Puree rasberries with lemon juice and erythritol. I massed with a fork for chunky pieces. Drop rasberry puree onto lemon filling in different spots and swirl with the spatula. Bake for 20 minutes until just set. I left the center of mine slightly jiggly and it firmed up after colloing.

These bars were so rich and creamy, I thought I was eating lemon rasberry cheescake! Graham and I dug into these with forks and they somehow disappeared by the next day :) Enjoy!