Golden Lemon & Orange Coconut Bars

My absolute favorite lemon bars have a ton of coconut in them.  Coconut reminds me of Hawaii, Phuket and Boracay, and thinking about past tropical vacations is always a lovely daydream.  For this recipe, I adapted slightly from Mary Engelbreight's Cookies Cookbook by subbing in Orange.  The flavors were less tart, mildly orange-y.  Good thing I had a potluck to attend otherwise I could have eaten these all myself!

Finished Lemon-Orange Coconut bars!

Ingredients:
Crust:
1 cup unsalted butter, room temperature
1/2 cup confectioners sugar
1/4 teaspoon salt
2 cups of flour

Coconut-Lemon-Orange topping:
4 large eggs, room temperature
1  1/4 cups granulated sugar
1/4 cup flour
1/2 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon freshly grated lemon zest
1 1/2 teaspoons freshly grated orange zest
1/4 cup fresh lemon juice
1/4 cup fresh orange juice
3 cups sweetened flaked coconut

Equipment:
Stand mixer with paddle and whisk attachments (or hand mixer)
9"x13" pan
Aluminum foil
Cooking spray for greasing the pan & foil
Spatula
Sharp knife
Instructions:
1. Preheat the oven to 350°F. Grease the 9"x13" baking pan with cooking spray.  Line with foil, allowing the ends to extend over the two short sides of the pan.  Grease the foil.  

Baked crust completed

2. In the mixing bowl of the stand mixer using the paddle attachment, beat the butter, confectioners' sugar, and salt. Beat until light and fluffy.  On low speed, gradually add in the flour.  Press the mixture evenly into the bottom of the pan.  Bake for 16 minutes, until golden around the edges.

Cooling bars

3. Meanwhile, clean the mixer bowl and dry.  Now using the whisk attachment, beat the eggs until they are frothy.  Beat in the granulated sugar.  Beat in the flour and the baking powder, then beat in both zests and the juice.  Add the coconut, stirring on the lowest setting, until the topping is thoroughly mixed.
4. Spread the topping evenly onto the hot crust with the spatula.  Bake for 28 minutes, or until the edges are golden and the coconut is lightly browned in a few spots. 
5. Allow to cool in the pan for a few minutes.  If necessary, run the sharp knife along the edges to release the foil from the pan.  Lift the foil by it's long ends and transfer the bars to a cutting board.  Using the sharp knife, cut into 24 squares.  Store well-sealed in the refrigerator, using wax paper to separate the layers if you are stacking them.