Description
Lemon cream cheese delight bars bring zesty sunshine to classic dessert expectations. Creamy layers and tangy citrus create a perfect balance for sweet cravings you’ll savor with each delectable bite.
Ingredients
Scale
- 2 (8 oz / 226 g) packages cream cheese, softened
- 2 (8 oz / 226 g) packages refrigerated crescent roll dough (Pillsbury Recipe Creations)
- ½ cup white sugar
- 3 tbsps white sugar
- 2 lemons, zested and juiced
- 2 tbsps butter, melted
- Cooking spray
Instructions
- Preparation: Preheat oven to 350°F and line a 9×13-inch dish with foil, generously spraying with cooking spray to prevent adhesion.
- Base Layer: Unroll first crescent roll dough sheet, pressing seamlessly across the entire dish bottom, ensuring complete and uniform coverage.
- Filling Creation: Whip cream cheese, sugar, lemon zest, and lemon juice until achieving a smooth, velvety texture that gleams with citrusy brightness.
- Layering: Spread the lemon cream cheese mixture evenly across the first dough layer, reaching every pan corner with luxurious precision.
- Topping Technique: Drape the second crescent roll dough sheet over the cream cheese, stretching carefully to match dish dimensions, then brush with melted butter for a rich, golden finish.
- Final Flourish: Sprinkle a delicate mixture of remaining lemon zest and sugar across the buttered surface, creating a sparkling, aromatic topping.
- Baking and Cooling: Bake for approximately 30 minutes until the top transforms into a rich golden-brown, then allow to cool at room temperature for 20 minutes.
- Serving Preparation: Transfer the entire dessert to a cutting board using foil edges, slice into precise squares, and refrigerate for one hour to set the perfect chilled consistency.
Notes
- Zest Maximization: Freshly grate lemon zest directly before mixing to capture maximum citrus oils and enhance flavor intensity.
- Cream Cheese Smoothness: Ensure cream cheese is at room temperature to prevent lumps and create a silky, uniform filling texture.
- Dough Handling: Gently stretch crescent roll dough to avoid tearing and ensure complete pan coverage without creating holes.
- Cooling Crucial: Refrigerating for at least one hour helps bars set perfectly, allowing clean cutting and intensifying the lemon cream cheese flavor profile.
- Prep Time: 20 minutes
- Cook Time: 30 minutes
- Category: Desserts, Snacks
- Method: Baking
- Cuisine: American
Nutrition
- Serving Size: 13
- Calories: 215
- Sugar: 13 g
- Sodium: 220 mg
- Fat: 10 g
- Saturated Fat: 5 g
- Unsaturated Fat: 4 g
- Trans Fat: 0 g
- Carbohydrates: 27 g
- Fiber: 0 g
- Protein: 3 g
- Cholesterol: 30 mg