London Bars

Submitted by mydesigirl

"Welcome to one of my adopted recipes. I have yet to make this, but I hear it is good, yet needs a tweak or two, based on a very helpful reviewer. When I do make it, I may try adding the pecans to the crust and sprinkling a few on top of the meringue for a garnish.***ADOPTED AGAIN***"

 

• Ready In: 1hr 40mins
• Ingredients: 7
• Serves: 72

ingredients

• 3⁄4 cup butter or 3/4 cup margarine, softened
• 1 1⁄4 cups sugar, divided
• 4 large eggs, separated
• 2 1⁄2 cups all-purpose flour
• 12 ounces raspberry preserves
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 1⁄2 cup pecans, chopped

directions

1. Cream butter in a large mixing bowl; gradually add 1/4 cup sugar, beating until light and fluffy.
2. Add egg yolks, one at a time, beating well after each addition.
3. Stir in flour, blending well.
4. Press mixture into a lightly greased 15 x 10 x 1" jelly-roll pan.
5. Bake at 350 degrees Fahrenheit for 25 minutes or until lightly browned.
6. Remove from oven; cool in pan.
7. Spread raspberry preserves over baked crust.
8. Beat egg whites (at room temperature) in a medium mixing bowl until foamy.
9. Gradually add remaining sugar, 1 tablespoon at a time, beating until stiff peaks form.
10. Fold in vanilla.
11. Spread meringue over preserves.
12. Sprinkle with pecans.
13. Bake at 350 degrees Fahrenheit for 15 minutes or until lightly browned.
14. Cool slightly; cut into 2 x 1-inch bars with a warm knife.
15. Remove to wire racks to cool completely.
16. Store in airtight containers.

Reviews

[Jellyqueen]

These were fantastic. I was like L4C, the dough is very stiff and takes some work getting it to stretch for the entire pan, but it did and it turned out fine. I did use strawberry preserves, because that is what I had on hand, and I also used a bit more than called for. This is a very rich dessert. I will be making it again, but I think next time, I may cut the sugar for the meringue in half.

 

[love4culinary]

Okay. These bars were delicious, but I did have a few issues. 1) I had a hard time getting the amount of dough to stretch through the pan. It worked, but I think maybe a bit more dough would have been helpful. 2) there definitely was not enough preserves (at least not in my opinion). I used about 4 more ounces of preserves in order to get a nice layer over the bars. I did feel as though there was a bit too much meringue, so I left off just a tad bit of it. Overall, this recipe is fantastic, and they make for fabulous crowd pleasers. I finished these minutes before my guests arrived, and they were gone before I knew it... They didnt even give me a chance to photograph these lovely little finger-food delights... Next time! Because there WILL be a next time. These were thoroughly enjoyed. (But next time I may leave the nuts off! :) )