Lemon bars with zing -- and then some

Bright, tangy lemon bars are as luscious as lemon pie, as summery as lemonade. Take them to a picnic and everyone will be happy.

Good lemon bars have a fine pastry crust topped with a layer of lemon custard and a thin coating of powdered sugar. Those are the basics, but bakers often add their own touches, as we found in searching out some of the best examples.

Doing the tropical twist

If you like coconut cookies, you’ll love the lemon princess squares at Brown’s Wilshire Bakery. Coconut is mixed into a sweet dough that is layered, sandwich fashion, with light lemon filling. The squares are so big you can cut each in half and still have generous servings. They’re chewy, even a bit crunchy, unlike the classically smooth lemon bars, but they’re finished in the same way -- with a dusting of powdered sugar.

$1.25 at Brown’s Wilshire Bakery, 5509 Wilshire Blvd., Los Angeles, (323) 935-1261.

Silken pleasure

Small bakeries may not produce the bars every day, so it’s important to order in advance. Once on hand, they sell out quickly.

We arrived at Amazing Cakes in Anaheim just as the bars emerged from the oven. Still warm, they were delicately lemony and soft, the filling layered on an all-butter shortbread crust. Owner-baker Suzi Hancock uses only natural ingredients, so the topping is made with fresh juice. While your order is being packed, you can inspect the cleverly decorated cake samples that fill the showroom. Hancock specializes in cakes but added these and other cookies to her offerings about a year ago.

$1.50 each at Amazing Cakes, 524 N. Magnolia Ave., Anaheim, (714) 995-3399.

Standing firm

Karen Levine, owner of the new Buttercake Bakery on the Westside, based her ultra-lemony bars on a cookbook recipe. The butter crust is pre-baked until golden brown, then baked again under an assertive lemon topping made with “a huge amount of lemon juice,” and chilled. We stored our Buttercake bars in the refrigerator for a couple of days and found that the crust retained its cookie-like texture. This is good to know if you have to pick up the cookies in advance for the picnic or party -- they’ll be in great shape.

$2.25 each at Buttercake Bakery, 10595 W. Pico Blvd., Los Angeles, (310) 470-6770.

A secret ingredient

Roman’s Fresh Bakery & Grill in Sherman Oaks is a big neighborhood cafe with lots of people clustered around the order counter. You’ll find the lemon bars in a separate room devoted to baked goods. Baker Jean Claude Schatt explains that the topping contains condensed milk, a departure from other bars we tasted. Spread on sugar cookie dough, it’s rich, sweet and lemony.

$1.50 each at Roman’s Fresh Bakery & Grill, 15100 Ventura Blvd., Sherman Oaks, (818) 205-1010.

Pecan splendor

Ground toasted pecans are mixed into the shortbread crust for the lemon bars at Wildflour Baking Co. in Sierra Madre. The topping has strong lemon flavor because it’s loaded with fresh juice and zest -- “just all good stuff,” says Kelly Flaherty, co-owner with Joan Collins. Both women taught at the California School of Culinary Arts in Pasadena before opening the bakery a few months ago. Collins gets the credit for developing the recipe.

$1.50 each at Wildflour Baking Co., 328 W. Sierra Madre Blvd., Sierra Madre, (626) 355-9000.