Sugar free and Gluten free Lemon Bars

The recipe I found online, and then made some changes. Here's the original:

"for the shortbread

1 1/2 cup gluten free flour

1/2 cup powdered sugar

3/4 cup butter softened

for the filling

4 eggs

1 1/2 cups granulated sugar

3/4 cup lemon juice

2 tablespoons flour

2-3 teaspoons grated lemon zest, optional

preheat to 350

combine shortbread ingredients, mix well

press into the bottom of a greased 9x13 baking pan

bake for 20 min

remove pan from oven

beat filling ingredients together in a medium sized bowl

pour over warm crust

return to oven and bake for 15-20 min more or until custard sets up

remove from oven and cool for 10-15 min"

Ok so that's a lot of sugar! I took the sugar out all together and replaced it with stevia. Instead of ½ cup powdered sugar in the shortbread mix I used ¼ cup stevia granules. For the gluten free flour mix I used ½ cup ground white corn flour and 1 cup rice flour. I also added a few drops of vanilla extract to the shortbread mix.

1 cup rice flour

½ cup white corn flour

¼ cup stevia

3/4 cup butter softened

4 eggs

¾ cup stevia

3/4 cup lemon juice

2 tablespoons cornstarch

For the filling I cut the sugar out too. Instead of 1 ½ cup sugar I used half that. I measured out ¾ cup stevia.

I ended up baking the shortbread for about 35 minutes because I wanted it to be really firm before pouring the lemon filling over. I checked it at 20 minutes, but it was still wet in the middle.

I combined the filling ingredients except the lemon juice in the blender and let it mix on high for like 3 minutes. I put the lemon juice in for the last minute or so, until it all looks combined. I just didn’t want the lemon juice to sit there in the mix and curdle.

I didn’t remove the tray of shortbread from the oven. I pulled out the rack and poured the lemon mix over the pan and then quickly but carefully pushed the rack back in. I didn’t want the temp to drop in the oven and I didn’t want the lemon filling to get the shortbread soggy. So this just made the most sense to me.

I baked it for an additional 10-12 minutes, but definitely kept an eye on it. I let it cool for about 30 minutes before cutting a corner piece just to try it. I was kinda disappointed, it tasted like I added too much stevia. But I put the tray in the refrigerator overnight uncovered and something magical happened. I guess it just needed time to cool and the flavors mellowed out in the cold. I cut a piece this afternoon and it was just perfect. Tart and sweet, not too sweet and I didn’t get that stevia aftertaste you can sometimes get if you use too much.