Hibiscus Lemon Squares

Are you as smitten with hibiscus as I am? I mean, the color alone is worth swooning over, but I love that tart taste as well. I mainly drink hibiscus as tea, but it was only a matter of time before it found its way into my baking.

*this recipe is sponsored by Imperial Sugar.

You can find hibiscus tea blends easily in the grocery store, but I wanted the straight stuff. I found it on Amazon. Judging from the size of the bag in my pantry, there are a lot more hibiscus creations in my (and your) future.

Not only I am head-over-heels with the tart and sweet lemon squares, but the color is also so precious. It's almost rose-gold in color...soft and sweet. Ballet slipper pink. If you want to bump up the color so that these really SCREAM "hibiscus," add a few drops of pink food coloring to the filling mix.

Lemon squares are the perfect vehicle for some hibiscus love. You'll steep dried hibiscus flowers in water to make a tea and also in the lemon juice for the bars. Because we're replacing some of the lemon juice in the filling, we're boosting the lemon flavor with a bit of extract right in the crust.

Speaking of the crust, it comes together a bit like pie crust...cutting in bits of butter until they're mixed throughout. Don't be afraid to get your fingers in there. They're really the best tool to use here.

A note on mixing in the hibiscus tea: be sure to mix it with the lemon juice BEFORE adding to the egg mixture. Hibiscus is funny and can turn purple or grey-ish if mixed in the wrong order. Trust me on this one.

Oh! Do not forget a generous dusting of powdered sugar over the top. That dusting is an essential element of lemon squares.

Perfect for a spring picnic, darling for a Mother's Day brunch...Hibiscus Lemon Squares will be your new favorite. Go get the recipe at Imperial Sugar! ♥