Lemon Bars with a buttery shortbread crust and a tangy, sweet lemon topping. A dusting of powdered sugar makes them irresistible!
Love lemony desserts? You’ll love this creamy Lemon Pie, Lemon Tart, or Lemon Cookies!
The Best Lemon Bars
Growing up, my mom made the best lemon bars, so I had a few must-haves for my own version.
The perfect Lemon Bar starts with a light, sweet shortbread crust that holds up to the tangy lemon custard. The crust should balance the bright, tart filling, which needs to be smooth, creamy, and not mixed into the crust.
Despite these must-haves, I wanted a simple recipe. This version uses everyday ingredients and a blender for the filling—quick and easy!
How To Make Lemon Bars
The full recipe is below, but here are my best tips for Lemon Bars:
- Use a glass pan: Metal can change the flavor.
- Line with parchment paper: This makes it easier to lift and cut the bars.
- Use fresh lemon juice: Bottled won’t taste as good, and you’ll need fresh lemons for zest anyway.
- Chill fully: This brings out the flavor and helps the custard set.
- Don’t over-blend: Blending too long adds air bubbles.
What Are Classic Lemon Bars Made Of?
A few ingredients worth going into detail about:
- Lemon Zest: Avoid the bitter white part—only zest the yellow skin using a microplane.
- Lemon Extract: A strong lemon flavor booster, like vanilla extract. It’s found near baking spices.
- Butter: High quality butter means better flavor. Use unsalted to control the salt.
- Vanilla: Vanilla bean paste adds more flavor, but vanilla extract works too.
- Heavy Cream: This helps balance the tartness and makes the custard creamier.
How To Get More Juice From Lemons
- Microwave the lemons for 15-20 seconds.
- Knead the lemons with your hand against the counter for 20-30 seconds.
- Cut the lemon in half horizontally and juice the lemon using a juicer.
Quick Tip
How to Cut Lemon Bars Cleanly: Chill bars in the fridge until firm. Use a hot knife—run it under hot water, dry, cut, and repeat for clean slices.
How To Tell When Lemon Bars Are Done
The edges should be set, and the center should no longer jiggle when gently shaken.
How To Remove Bars From The Pan
Line the pan with parchment paper, leaving extra hanging over the sides. Use it to lift the bars out easily for cutting.
Storage
Can I Freeze Lemon Bars?
Yes! The crust and custard freeze at different speeds, so they need space to freeze properly.
- Cut the bars and place them on a lined baking sheet with space between them.
- Freeze for 2-3 hours until solid.
- Wrap each bar in plastic wrap, then store in a bag or container for up to 3 months.
For short-term storage, keep them in an airtight container in the fridge for 4-6 days.
More Citrus-Based Desserts:
- Lime Cookies with a lime glaze
- Peach Lemonade made with real lemons
- Lemon Zucchini Bread with a lemon glaze
- Mini Fruit Tart with an orange-based filling
- Fruit Dip made with the zest of limes
Lemon Bars
These Lemon Bars feature a buttery shortbread crust topped with a tangy-sweet lemon filling. A dusting of powdered sugar adds the perfect finishing touch!
Equipment
- 9 x 13-inch non-metal pan
- Stand mixer or hand mixer
- Fine mesh strainer
Ingredients
- Cooking spray
- 16 tablespoons unsalted butter at room temperature, see note 1
- 2 cups granulated sugar divided
- 1 teaspoon vanilla bean paste or 1-1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 2 cups + 3 tablespoons flour divided
- 1 teaspoon salt divided
- 4 to 5 lemons see note 2
- 4 large eggs
- 1/4 teaspoon lemon extract optional, see note 3
- 1/3 cup heavy cream
- Powdered sugar for topping bars
Instructions
- Line a ceramic 9×13-inch pan (don’t use a metal pan—it will make the bars taste metallic) with parchment paper, leaving an overhang for easy removal. Lightly spray the pan with cooking spray and set aside.
- In a stand mixer with a whisk attachment (or a bowl and hand mixer), beat together room temperature butter and 1/2 cup granulated sugar. Beat until smooth and creamy, about 2–4 minutes. Scrape edges of the bowl as needed. Add 3/4 teaspoon salt, vanilla bean paste, and 2 cups of flour. Beat until a thick dough forms, scraping the sides as needed. (Dough too soft? Add 1–3 additional tablespoons flour.)
- Transfer dough to prepared pan and press evenly on the bottom of the pan and a little up the sides (about 1/2-inch). Take your time, ensuring dough is in an even layer and touching every bit of the edge of the pan so the lemon filling doesn’t seep through. Preheat oven to 350°F. Place pan in the freezer 15 minutes to allow crust to firm up. After 15 minutes, remove crust and again press all the edges to the pan, making sure the seal is 100% tight. Bake 22–25 minutes or until lightly golden brown at the edges.
- Meanwhile, microwave lemons for 15 seconds. Remove, and knead against the counter with your hand. (These steps help to get your lemons super juicy.)
- Very finely zest a lemon to get 2 teaspoons lemon zest. (Be careful to avoid the white pith of the lemons—that will make your bars bitter.) Juice lemons to get 2/3 cup juice.
- In a high-powered blender, add remaining 1-1/2 cups granulated sugar and lemon zest. Pulse just to break down the zest, about 5–8 times. Do not over-blend or you’ll get powdered sugar! Add remaining 3 tablespoons flour, lemon juice, remaining 1/4 teaspoon salt, eggs, heavy cream, and lemon extract (if using). Blend for 20 seconds or until just incorporated—again, being careful to not over-blend but ensuring all ingredients are emulsified together. Use a spatula to stir the mixture and let sit until needed.
- Stir blended mixture again and pour slowly and evenly over the hot crust (right out of the oven). Bake another 20–25 minutes or until bars very slightly jiggle in the center (like firm Jell-o). Allow bars to cool at room temperature for 2 hours, then chill in the fridge until the lemon layer is firm, about 2 more hours.
- Before enjoying, sprinkle the top of the bars with powdered sugar (through a fine-mesh sieve). Pull the parchment paper overhang to remove the entire slab of bars from the pan. Run a sharp knife under hot water, dry, make one cut, and repeat until all the bars are cut out. Enjoy!
Video
Recipe Notes
Note 1: The better the butter, the richer the flavor. I love Challenge® Butter. Choose unsalted to have perfect control over the amount of salt in the dough. Do not melt the butter so it can properly cream with the sugar.
Note 2: When zesting the lemon, avoid the white pith of the lemon—this is very bitter. Using a fine grater, zest only the very outside yellow part of the lemon for this recipe. This citrus juicer makes juicing the lemons a breeze!
Note 3: Lemon extract is a flavor enhancer (just like vanilla extract) that gives these bars a more intense citrusy lemon flavor. Lemon extract can usually be found near other baking extracts and spices in the grocery store; I recommend using a pure lemon extract.
Storage: Let leftover bars cool completely, then cover with plastic wrap and pop in the fridge for 4–6 days. To freeze them, Cut the bars out and set on a lined sheet pan, leaving room around all 4 edges. Place in freezer until frozen through (2–3 hours), then wrap each lemon bar individually with plastic wrap and store in a large bag or container and freeze for up to 3 months.
Nutrition
Serving: 1serving | Calories: 184kcal | Carbohydrates: 25.2g | Protein: 2.2g | Fat: 8.6g | Cholesterol: 51.3mg | Sodium: 13.3mg | Fiber: 0.3g | Sugar: 16.9g
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
I made these for an extended family dinner, and they were very good. My only comment is that step 2 has adding the liquid vanilla to some pretty dry stuff, and I ended up with vanilla-soaked blobs at the end of step 2. It worked out okay, but I’d recommend mixing the vanilla with the butter then adding the sugar and flour. Thank you for the recipe!
So glad you enjoyed these! Thanks for the comment and your feedback Amy 🙂
I’m going to try these with coconut oil rather than butter and stevia…
These look amazing! Do you think I could sub half and half for the heavy cream?
Thanks Shelby! Unfortunately I don’t think half and half would work on these :/
I made your lemon bars last night and too them to a event today. They are every bit as fabulous as you say.These will be my go-to lemon bar recipe from now on!! I have to say that refrigerating them overnight is a game-changer, and takes them on over-the-top!thanks
I’m so thrilled to hear you had a great experience with these and they were a hit! 🙂 Thanks so much for taking the time to leave a comment!
Chelsea I made these today using a metal pan. They still came out perfect. Did not change to time but kept peeking in the oven window to make sure they were not overcooking. Delicious!
I’m so thrilled to hear that these were enjoyed Jill! Thanks so much for the comment 🙂
Can I use a metal pan and if so should I still line it with foil?
Thanks for you help.
I would definitely line the metal pan with foil and the cook time will likely be a bit different 🙂
I’ve been trying it yesterday, and it’s delicious, but so incredibly sweet! Like – one bite and I have diabetes 😀 . It’s interesting, I’m a huge fan of you american foodporn bloggers (like you, cremedelacrumb, Pinch of Yum etc.) and I L-O-V-E your recipes, you make my life so much easier! You’re doing a wonderful job, BUT, each time I bake something according to american recipe, no one want to eat it, saying it’s too sweet. You must be used to completely different type of cakes.
So yeah, hello from Europe 😀
Hey Jane! So great to hear from you! Thank you so much for your kind compliments 🙂 And yes! Desserts are definitely sweeter in the states 🙂 My husband lived in England for 2 years and has told me how much sweeter our treats are!
Do you use a glass pan or a metal pan for these?
I use a glass pan! 🙂
Magical lemon bars!
Thank you Jen!!
I made these for a big birthday bash last weekend, and they were well received! I had many people asking me how I got them to be so perfectly balanced. I loved this recipe and wouldn’t change a thing! Thank you for making me look good at this big event 🙂
Aside from the fact that these lemon bars are making my mouth water – you’re killing me with those colors! That blue makes these lemon bars pop that much more. Too bad they can’t just pop right onto my table 😉