Original Lemon Bars

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Original Lemon Bars are a light, tart, tangy, and delicious dessert recipe. Made with a shortbread layer of crust and topped with a sweet lemon filling. The perfect treat.

Lemon bars one of those recipes that is the perfect combination of sweet and tangy. It is also a great way to use a single lemon. That's right, this recipe uses a single lemon, the juice and zest.

It is also a quick to make treat that feels like it took hours to create when in reality it only takes minutes and a single bowl. If your pantry is anything like mine, then you probably already have all of the other ingredients needed for this recipe on hand already. I love when that happens.

Be sure to save this recipe and give it a try!

What ingredients for this recipe for lemon bars?

1. All-purpose flour
2. Butter
3. Powdered sugar
4. Vanilla extract
5. Salt
6. Eggs
7. Granulated sugar
8. Lemon, juice and zest

How to make this lemon bar recipe:

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. and lightly spray an 8x8-inch square baking dish with cooking spray. In mixing bowl combine flour, butter, powdered sugar, vanilla, and salt. It is best to mash the ingredients together until they resemble cookie dough.

Once fully combined, place the dough into the prepared baking dish, and press down evenly flat into the pan, you may your wet hands/fingers to prevent sticking.

With a fork, prick the dough all over completely. This will help the dough to cook evenly and not bubble up.

Place crust into the preheated oven and bake at 350 degrees F. for 20 to 22 minutes, until light golden brown.

While crust is baking, begin preparing the lemon layer. In mixing bowl, whisk together the eggs, egg yolk, granulated sugar, flour, lemon juice, and lemon peel until smooth, about 2 minutes.

Pour the lemon layer on top of cooked shortbread dough (you do not have to let it cool). It will be very liquidy.

Place the lemon bars back into the oven and bake at 350 degrees F. for 25 minutes.

Once fully cooked the lemon bars will come out completely set with a thin sugary surface, moist tangy-sweet lemon layer, and light buttery shortbread crust. Allow the lemon bars to cool completely before cutting them.

Tips to make the best lemon bars:

• When pressing the crust into the pan, wet your hands a little to prevent sticking.
• Use a single lemon for the measurements the recipe calls for, the juice and zest of one lemon.
• For some tasty shortbread cookies, simply use a cookie cutter, omit the lemon layer, and leave the dough in the oven about 3 to 5 minutes longer.
• Allow the lemon bars to cool completely before cutting.
• You may also garnish the cooked and cooled lemon bars with powdered sugar or top with meringue (the extra egg white whipped into soft peaks with 1 tablespoon of sugar).
• May use a mixer or a mixing bowl with a spoon, either is fine.

Original Lemon Bars

LaKita Anderson

Original Lemon Bars are a light, tart, tangy, and delicious dessert recipe. Made with a shortbread layer of crust and topped with a sweet lemon filling. The perfect treat.

5 from 12 votes

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Prep Time 15 mins

Cook Time 45 mins

Course Dessert

Cuisine American

Servings 12

Calories 204 kcal

Ingredients

  

1x2x3x

• For the Crust:
• 1 cup all-purpose flour
• ½ cup unsalted butter (1 stick), diced
• ¼ cup powdered sugar
• ¼ teaspoon vanilla extract
• ¼ teaspoon sea salt
• For Lemon Layer:
• 2 large eggs
• 1 large egg yolk
• 1 cup sugar
• 2 tablespoons all-purpose flour
• ¼ cup lemon juice
• 1 tablespoon lemon zest

Instructions

 

• Preheat the oven 350 degrees F. and set aside an 8x8-inch square baking pan sprayed lightly with cooking spray.
• In a medium bowl, combine together the flour, butter, powdered sugar, vanilla, and salt using a spoon until it begins to come together and then gently knead it by hand until all of the dough sticks together.
• Form into a ball and place into the prepared baking pan and press down in the bottom of the pan evenly. Wet your hands a little to prevent sticking.
• Using a fork, prick the dough all over to help the dough cook evenly and so no bubbles will form.
• Place the crust into the preheated oven and bake 15 to 20 minutes, until the crust is light golden brown and then remove from the oven.
• While the crust is baking, in the same bowl the dough was in whisk together the eggs, egg yolk, granulated sugar, flour, lemon juice, and lemon zest until it is fully combined and pour over top of the finished baking crust. It is fine if the crust is still warm from baking.
• The lemon mixture will be liquidy, but it will firm up so place back into the oven and continue to bake the lemon bars for 20 to 25 minutes until the edge of the bars is golden brown and the center is set.
• Remove the lemon bars from the oven and allow them to cool completely in the dish on a cooling rack before you slice into small squares.

Video

Notes

Tips to make the best lemon bars: 

• When pressing the crust into the pan, wet your hands a little to prevent sticking. 
• Use a single lemon for the measurements the recipe calls for, the juice and zest of one lemon.
• For some tasty shortbread cookies, simply use a cookie cutter, omit the lemon layer, and leave the dough in the oven about 3 to 5 minutes longer.
• Allow the lemon bars to cool completely before cutting.
• You may also garnish the cooked and cooled lemon bars with powdered sugar or top with meringue (the extra egg white whipped into soft peaks with 1 tablespoon of sugar).
• May use a mixer or a mixing bowl with a spoon, either is fine. 

Nutrition

Calories: 204kcalCarbohydrates: 29gProtein: 3gFat: 9gSaturated Fat: 5gCholesterol: 71mgSodium: 64mgPotassium: 29mgFiber: 1gSugar: 19gVitamin A: 308IUVitamin C: 3mgCalcium: 11mgIron: 1mg

*All nutritional information is based on third party calculations and is only an estimate. Each recipe and nutritional value will vary depending on the brands you use, measuring methods and portion sizes per household.

Keyword lemon bars

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Need a few more easy dessert recipes? Try these:

• Chess Squares
• Sticky Buns
• Brown Sugar Pie
• Peach Galette

Have any comments, questions, or other delicious ways to use these Original Lemon Bars? Please share them in the comments below!