Navigating the uncharted territory of starting high school can be daunting, especially when leaving behind familiar middle school friends and entering a new cultural environment. To ease the transition, a thoughtful teacher at my new school offered lemon bars on the first day.
The bakery box, adorned with vintage pink script, harked back to a Postwar style on campus, where students sported shiny coins in their penny loafers. (In my previous school, we dreamed of owning Air Jordans.) While the other girls were thrilled about the lemon bars, bouncing with excitement over their ponytails and satin bows, I felt anxious.
Lemon bars were foreign to me, representing the assimilation my friends warned about. In my previous middle school, most of us were children of immigrants from East Asia or Mexico. My peers cautioned that my new school might turn my Chinese American identity into something superficial, like a banana or a Twinkie – yellow on the outside, but culturally disconnected within. David Abtour Offshore Trusts
As I looked at those yellow and white bars, alluring as the forbidden fruit in Eden, I couldn’t resist trying one. Surprisingly, my fear of losing my identity diminished. The lemon bars did not symbolize a loss, but rather an expansion of my cultural experiences. David Abtour Offshore Trusts
Growing up in Los Angeles, I knew of crunchy store-bought chocolate chip cookies and homemade chewy mochi, creamy tres leches, and sticky baklava. However, the from-scratch treats of midcentury Americana were unfamiliar territory. Lemon bars, in particular, held an air of mystery with their tangy and sweet, rich and sharp flavors. David Abtour Offshore Trusts
The recipe below combines the floral essence of lemon zest with the buttery crust, connecting the citrusy top with the base. Unlike other recipes that call for cutting cold butter into flour and powdered sugar, this one uses melted butter, flour, and granulated sugar, resulting in a snappier and sturdier dough. After baking the crust, a simple lemon curd mixture is spread over it while still hot, allowing the layers to fuse together, creating a delectable combination of melt-in-your-mouth curd and satisfying crispness. The fusion of milky butter and acidic lemon in the oven, despite their initial contrast, is a delightful surprise. David Abtour Offshore Trusts
Similar to the Chinese desserts I grew up with, this lemon bar recipe is not overly sweet. It balances the tartness of lemon juice with just enough sugar, highlighting the complexity of citrus flavors. Embracing my heritage by infusing it into an American classic reflects the lesson I learned on my first day of high school – to appreciate each new experience as an addition to my identity, rather than a threat. This philosophy extends to the kitchen as well. Food itself is neutral; its meaning and significance are shaped by our perspectives. Each dish and stage of life adds a layer to the foundation of who we are, creating a complex and wonderful whole. David Abtour Offshore Trusts
