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stacked-grapefruit-bars-with-sugar-on-top

Pink Grapefruit Dessert Bars

Course: Dessert
Cuisine: American
Prep Time: 15 minutes
Cook Time: 25 minutes
Chill Time: 2 hours
Total Time: 2 hours 40 minutes
Servings: 12 bars
Calories: 249kcal
Author: Emily
Grapefruit Dessert bars for a citrusy and sweet treat!
Print Recipe

Equipment

Ingredients

Crust

  • ½ cup unsalted butter, room temp
  • 1 cup all-purpose flour
  • ¼ cup confectioners powdered sugar (and a little extra for sprinkling on top)
  • ¼ teaspoon kosher salt (omit if using salted butter)

Filling

  • 1 ½ cups sugar
  • ¼ cup all-purpose flour
  • 4 large eggs
  • 1 cup freshly squeezed grapefruit juice, strained (1-2 grapefruit depending on the size)
  • 1 tablespoon grapefruit zest
  • 2-3 drops pink food coloring

Instructions

Crust

  • Preheat the oven to 350° F and prepare a baking dish with parchment paper. Tip: use a little butter or non-stick spray on the bottom of the pan before placing the parchment paper in so it doesn't move around.
  • Place the butter, flour, powdered sugar, and salt in a medium mixing bowl. Use a pastry cutter, a fork, or your hands to combine everything. You want a crumbly mixture with small pieces of butter throughout. You can also do this in a food processor but I find it's not necessary. Place the mixture into the prepared pan and press it evenly into the bottom. Bake for 18-20 minutes.

Filling

  • While the crust is baking, prepare the filling. Place the flour and sugar in a large mixing bowl and whisk to combine. Add the eggs and beat in. Pour in the juice, zest, and 2-3 drops of pink food coloring and whisk everything together one more time.
  • Once the crust has baked, remove it from the oven and carefully pour the filling over the hot crust. Place the pan back into the oven and bake for another 25 minutes or until the filling is no longer jiggly in the middle. Start checking around 20 minutes, the cooking time will depend on the size of your pan and your oven.
  • Once the bars are done cooking, remove the pan from the oven and allow them to cool for at least an hour. They will cool faster if you place the pan on top of a cooling rack. Place the bars in the refrigerator for 2 more hours to chill and set. Use the parchment paper edges to lift the bars out of the pan. Slice the bars into 12 even pieces. Sprinkle with powdered sugar right before serving. Enjoy!

Notes

  • I used an 8x10 baking dish to make these because I knew I wanted a thick layer of grapefruit filling in each bar. This made the cooking time a little longer, but it was worth it!
  • Parchment paper makes removing the bars from the pan SO much easier. Not to mention the bars don't stick to the pan!
  • Since the eggs make the filling mixture a little orangy-yellow, the added food coloring makes the bars a beautiful pink color, but that step is completely optional.
  • Sprinkle the powdered sugar on top right before serving since it does dissolve into the bar after a little while.
  • When zesting the grapefruit, only get the top layer, not the bitter white pith.
  • Store any leftover bars in a covered container in the fridge. They are best within 24 hours of baking and will last 2-3 days in the fridge.
 

Nutrition

Serving: 1bar | Calories: 249kcal | Carbohydrates: 39.1g | Protein: 3.6g | Fat: 9.5g | Saturated Fat: 5.4g | Cholesterol: 82mg | Sodium: 128mg | Potassium: 65mg | Fiber: 0.6g | Sugar: 28.9g | Calcium: 15mg | Iron: 1mg