The tender, melt-in-your-mouth crust is just not going to happen on a gluten-free diet, but this recipe gets close. I based this on Simply Sugar and Gluten Free's Lemon Coconut Bars. It's an excellent recipe, but it wasn't lemony enough for me. So, I tweaked it a bit, as follows.
Crust:
1 1/2 C sorghum flour
1/2 C sunflower seeds*
1/2 C coconut oil (or butter)
1 T coconut palm sugar or cactus honey powder
Lemon Custard:
6 eggs
1/2 C honey
1 1/2 T arrowroot (or cornstarch)
2 t lemon zest
3/4 lemon juice (fresh-squeezed or don't bother - takes about 6 lemons)
1/4 C + 2 T milk (almond milk for dairy-free version)
3/4 C ground or shredded coconut (the finer the better) for on top
Preheat oven to 350F. Butter or cooking spray a 13" x 9" pan. In a food processor w/ steel blade, add the sorghum flour and sunflower seeds and process until the seeds are finely chopped. Add the coconut oil and sugar and pulse until the mixture is crumbly, like a pie crust. Do not over-process. Press into the prepared pan and bake until golden brown, 8-10 minutes.
In the same food processor, without washing it out, add the eggs and pulse until the yolks are broken. Add the honey, arrowroot, lemon zest, lemon juice, and milk. If you're using cornstarch, mix it thoroughly with the milk before adding it. Pulse in one second bursts until combined.
Pour lemon custard over the hot crust. Sprinkle shredded coconut over it. Bake for 18-22 minutes, until set in the center. Cool completely, cut into bars, and refrigerate. This is Important: The crust will not be good until it's refrigerated. When warm or room temperature the texture is sandy and disappointing. Make yourself wait. When it's cold, it's the right texture and absolutely delicious!
* raw unsalted = best, but I've used roasted/salted with no ill effects
