If lemon desserts are your favorite, then today's recipe is for you! A small batch of lemon bars in a bread loaf pan to make 4 bars, or a double batch in an 8-inch pan to serve more people. The choice (and the serving size) is yours!
Since this is a small-batch baking site, I have a recipe for a small batch of lemon bars. It's made in a standard 9-inch bread loaf pan, though an 8-inch one will work fine, too. But over the years, this recipe has become so popular and I've received so many messages about you wanting to scale it up.
So, I'm sharing both today: the small batch and the large batch recipe.
My preference for lemon bars is a slightly sour, fresh lemon tasting bar with plenty of pucker. This recipe contains plenty of fresh lemon zest for that intense lemon flavor, and plenty of juice for the sourness. The extra rich, buttery shortbread crust on the bottom is the perfect counterbalance.
Just look at the ratio of filling to crust, and tell me you didn't just fall in love:
You will love this recipe for Lemon Bars
I made a small batch of lemon bars in my standard 9" bread loaf pan. <--Here's a link to the exact pan I use.
The recipe uses just 1 lemon, or however many lemons it takes to get 3 tablespoons of juice. It's packed with lemon zest.
My lemon bar recipe is slightly different from other lemon bars. Instead of the standard shortbread crust, mine has a bit more sugar, making it taste like a sugar cookie. I use powdered sugar in the crust to give it a subtle sweetness that still lends itself to being a tender yet crisp crust.
One note about this lemon bar recipe: the crust mixture seems overly powdery the first time you make it. You'll think 'this needs water or an egg, or something to hold it together!' But fret not, the crust will hold together after the heat of the oven melts the butter and bakes it.
This lemon bar recipe requires two bakes: first, the crust bakes separately. While you're waiting for the crust to bake, do not skip ahead and make the lemon filling, ok? Acidic lemon juice and eggs aren't the best of friends, and it's a small miracle that citrus curd actually exists in our world.
So, let the crust bake on its own; clean the sink, prep for the filling. Only when the crust is golden brown around the edges and fully ready to come out of the oven should you begin making the lemon filling.
The lemon filling just requires some steady but not vigorous whisking. You want to dissolve the flour and baking powder, but if you whisk too much, you'll make air bubbles in the filling. However, tiny air bubbles on top after baking are okay--we'll cover them with powdered sugar anyway, but it's best to try to limit the big air pockets.
Easy Lemon Bar ingredients
- Butter. For the shortbread crust, we need 12 tablespoons (6 ounces) or unsalted butter. It should be slightly cool--do not fully soften it.
- Powdered Sugar. We’ll use powdered sugar in the shortbread crust and sprinkle it on top when the bars are done.
- All-Purpose Flour. We need regular plain all-purpose flour for the crust and for the filling.
- Granulated Sugar. We will use granulated white sugar for the filling only.
- Lemons. It will probably require 2-3 lemons to create 2 teaspoons of fresh lemon zest and 6 tablespoons of fresh lemon juice. It depends on the size of your lemons, of course, but it’s better to have an extra lemon than not enough zest or juice!
- Eggs. The filling here is a baked custard that requires two whole eggs and two additional egg yolks. Reserve the leftover egg whites for another use.
- Baking Powder. A small amount of baking powder helps the filling rise and set.
Substitute for Meyer Lemon juice:
Sometimes, I use Meyer lemons to make this lemon bars recipe, but regular lemons are completely delicious here, too! If you want to approximate the Meyer lemon flavor, use 2 tablespoons of lemon juice and 1 tablespoon of freshly squeezed orange juice. The floral notes from the orange mimic the unique fragrance of the Meyer lemon.
How to make Lemon Bars
Preheat the oven to 350°. The best pan for these bars is a square glass or ceramic pan measuring 8” x 8”. If you only have a metal pan, line the pan very well (in both directions) with parchment paper. You do not want the acidic lemon curd to touch the sides of the metal pan. First, make the shortbread crust: In a medium bowl, add all crust ingredients. Use your fingers or a pastry blender to rub the butter into the flour, sugar and salt. You should have a coarse meal.
Press this mixture into the bottom of the loaf pan firmly. Bake for 25 minutes, or until the edges are slightly browned and the top is not wet to the touch. Once you remove the pan from the oven, you may then start making your filling. (Do not make the filling ahead of time and let it sit---eggs and lemon juice aren't the best of friends).
In a small bowl, beat with a hand-held electric mixer the granulated sugar, lemon juice, lemon zest, whole eggs and egg yolks. Beat this mixture very well until it becomes frothy--about 1 minute.
Finally, beat in the baking powder and flour until no lumps remain.
Pour this mixture over the crust that has been cooling. Return the pan to the oven for another 20-23 minutes, or until the filling is set.
Immediately remove the bars from the loaf pan and allow to cool before dusting with powdered sugar and cutting into squares.
How to serve Homemade Lemon Bars:
Lemon bars should be served slightly chilled to room temperature, sliced into neat squares and dusted with powdered sugar. The surface of a lemon bar can contain small bubbles after baking, so powdered sugar makes them prettier.
How to store these Easy Lemon Bars:
Slice up the lemon bars into squares, and place them in an airtight container. If you need to stack them, place a piece of parchment paper between the pieces so they don’t stick. They keep covered tightly in the fridge for up to 3 days. Beyond that, the crust may begin to turn a bit soggy.
Easy Lemon Bar Recipe notes
One final note: this recipe uses one whole egg plus one egg yolk. This means that you'll have a leftover egg white. Click here to check out my recipes that use egg whites.
Easy Lemon Bars FAQ
Before removing the pan from the oven, give it a slight nudge on the side. The filling should not be overly jiggly. Curd will continue to set as it cools. You can also press a finger pad gently on the surface of the curd--if no indentation reminds, they are done.
Lemon bars can crack two ways: if you over-beat the eggs when mixing and added too much air to the batter, the air will escape in the heat of the oven. Just mix the eggs in until they’re fully incorporated, but resist the urge to beat until foamy. Two, lemon bars can crack from drastic temperature changes. Upon removing them from the hot oven, place them near the oven on a cooling rack to gently cool. Never take hot custard and place it in a fridge immediately after cooking.
Remove your lemon bars from the oven before they turn brown on top. Browning means they’re over-cooked, and the custard mixture can curdle. They will be pale yellow, only very slightly jiggly and will not hold a fingerprint when they are done. For a prettier presentation, they are sprinkled with powdered sugar before being served.
More like this Recipe for Lemon Bars
I'm a true lemon lover, and have so many lemon desserts on this site to share with you: Meyer Lemon Scones, Lemon Blueberry Cheesecake, and Lemon Cake for Two are my favorite recipes here on the site.
Also, if lemon curd is your jam like it is mine, then you've got to try my Microwave Lemon Curd recipe!
So, if you're lucky enough to have Meyer lemons, use them here for this lemon bars recipe, but either way, the recipe will be perfect!
Homemade Lemon Bars (Easy Lemon Bar Recipe)
The best ever lemon bars.
Ingredients
FOR THE SHORTBREAD CRUST:
- 12 tablespoons cold unsalted butter
- ½ cup powdered sugar
- 1 ½ cups flour
- pinch of salt
FOR THE LEMON FILLING:
- 1 cup granulated sugar
- 2 teaspoons packed lemon zest
- 6 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
- 2 large eggs
- 2 large egg yolks, white reserved for another use
- ½ teaspoon baking powder
- 2 tablespoons flour
- powdered sugar for sprinkling
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350°. The best pan for these bars is a glass bread loaf pan measuring 9” x 5” x 3”. If you only have a metal loaf pan, line the pan very well with parchment paper. You do not want the acidic lemon curd to touch the sides of the metal pan.
- First, make the shortbread crust: In a medium bowl, add all crust ingredients. Use your fingers or a pastry blender to rub the butter into the flour, sugar and salt. You should have a coarse meal. Press this mixture into the bottom of the loaf pan firmly. Bake for 25 minutes, or until the edges are slightly browned and the top is not wet to the touch.
- Once you remove the pan from the oven, you may then start making your filling. (Do not make the filling ahead of time and let it sit---eggs and lemon juice aren't the best of friends). In a small bowl, beat with a hand-held electric mixer the granulated sugar, lemon juice, lemon zest, whole egg and egg yolk. Beat this mixture very well until it becomes frothy--about 1 minute.
- Beat in the baking powder and flour until no lumps remain. Pour this mixture over the crust that has been cooling. Return the pan to the oven for another 20-23 minutes, or until the filling is set.
- Immediately remove the bars from the loaf pan and allow to cool before dusting with powdered sugar and cutting into bars.
Notes
For the small batch version: Use a 9-inch of 8-inch bread loaf pan, lined with parchment. Here are the shortbread measurements for a small batch: 6 tablespoons cold unsalted butter, ¼ cup powdered sugar, ¾ cup flour, pinch of salt. Here is the small batch filling recipe: ½ cup granulated sugar, 1 teaspoon packed lemon zest, 3 tablespoons fresh lemon juice, 1 large egg, 1 large egg yolk (egg white reserved for another use), ¼ teaspoon baking powder, 1 tablespoon flour. Follow the recipe instructions as written; the baking time is the same.
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Nutrition Information:
Yield:
9Serving Size:
1Amount Per Serving: Calories: 420Total Fat: 18gSaturated Fat: 10gTrans Fat: 0gUnsaturated Fat: 7gCholesterol: 144mgSodium: 78mgCarbohydrates: 60gFiber: 1gSugar: 42gProtein: 6g
Katie says
I've got these in the oven right now and I'm super excited to try them! I just noticed that the recipe itself says 6 bars and your note at the top says 8. Thought you might want to correct that.
Barbara Kinzett says
Oh yummy Lemon bars . I am from New Zealand we have lemons in our garden most folk here have their own lemon trees, but I do see lemons in Super Markets from the USA cheaper than our own grown ones !
Bobbie says
Hi Christine, Really enjoying you smaller desert recipes. I have your first Desert for Two book. I have never made lemon bars in my life, so this is my first go. Are they supposed to look dry on top like cake? I followed your recipe above to the letter. Hope they turn out. My husband loves lemon!
Bobbie
Fay says
Hello Christina, could this recipe be "doubled", please?
Christina Lane says
Yes, use a 8x8" pan, lined with parchment paper. THey'll be a bit thinner than traditional lemon bars, though. But still delicious!
April says
Hi, Christina. Can I use granulated sugar instead of powdered sugar for this recipe?
Christina Lane says
For the crust, sure :)
Nicole says
Hi! I have a batch of these cooling right now! I made a few mistakes (incorporated too much air, etc) but things seem to have gone well - except the "remove immediately from the loaf pan" thing.
I couldn't figure out how to do that and a good portion of my lemon bars a re a (delicious) crumbled mess.
I used a glass baking dish (I greased it with butter "just in case" the massive amount of butter wasn't enough, lol!) I used a metal spatula a to loosen the side and tried to lift, but that causd it to break. I wound up upturning it onto a cookie rack then flipping it back over onto another... but that made the breaks really crumble and left an indent on the lemon curd.
I'm just wondering if you can speak more to the technique you use!
Carolyn Rieger says
Hi Christina. You only mentioned using parchment paper on a metal pan, not for glass? Is this correct?
Christina Lane says
Yes, but you can use parchment for glass (or spray the pan with cooking spray). I just didn't want the acidic lemon juice to touch a metal pan, so parchment paper is required if baking in a metal pan.
Courtney says
I have the same question about removing them from the pan “immediately “. I haven’t made them yet, but I’d hate for them to fall apart !
Christina Lane says
I replied above :) Move swiftly like a ninja and use parchment paper :)
Toni Wellhausen says
I have the exact same question as Nicole. How do you immediately get the bars out of the dish w/out making a mess? Although it did give me a chance to sample
the broken parts, I’d like a prettier presentation next time. Best lemon bars ever! Made them for our 21st anniv today (& one of your chicken dinners for main course). Thanks!
Christina Lane says
Did you use parchment paper and leave enough overhanging to form handles? If so, move quickly--grab the parchment, lift and move the whole thing very quickly! Don't let it jostle in the air and crack. This sounds crazy, I know!
I'm so glad you liked them :) Lemon bars are my #1 favorite dessert :)
Also, just wanted you to know that I have you remove them from the pan immediately so that the curd doesn't overcook.
McKenna says
Well shucks. Should have read the comments before making the bars. I have a glass pan but didn’t use parchment!!! Had a heck of a time trying to get them out ASAP! But heck are they good! I just love all of your recipes, Christina! THANK YOU
Terry Zoltowski says
I have an old metal citrus squeezer. Ready to buy a new one. Can you tell me the brand that you used in the video? Thank you for publishing recipes for two, especially desserts. Being diabetic, it's OK for me to have an occasional treat. When I bake, there's always too much temptation left. This way, my husband and I can indulge with not too much left over.
Christina Lane says
Hi Terry :) It's this one: https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B002XOB0P0/ref=as_li_qf_asin_il_tl?ie=UTF8&tag=dessertfort0b-20&creative=9325&linkCode=as2&creativeASIN=B002XOB0P0&linkId=d72a07eef71aa929eaaf4507cbf1b821
MJ says
My 10 year old made these earlier and oh my....so yummy!!! Definitely keeping this recipe! I love the portion size, too. Thank you!
Lynne says
Hello,
I'm afraid I find the so-called Meyer lemon insipid in flavor. A little-known fact: it isn't actually a lemon, but a sour orange - which is probably why your lemon/orange juice substitution works. I do intend to try these with real lemon juice, they sound delicious!