You only need 7 ingredients to make these lemon bars. The lemon curd filling is extra thick and creamy and sits on an irresistible butter shortbread crust. Always bake lemon bars at a lower temperature to avoid over-baking. They’re simply the best lemon bars and are perfect for picnics, bake sales, spring brunches, baby showers, and bridal showers.
Today I’m teaching you how to make lemon bars. I love this lemon dessert recipe so much that I published it in my 1st cookbook, Sally’s Baking Addiction. These are the best lemon bars and I don’t use that statement lightly. After 1 taste, I’m confident you’ll agree. Everyone needs this recipe.
The process is pretty simple and I’m walking you through each step in the video tutorial below. Pick up some fresh citrus and let’s get baking. Spring is in the air!
Video Tutorial: Lemon Bars
These are classic lemon bars featuring a soft butter shortbread crust and a tangy sweet lemon curd filling that’s baked to the perfect consistency. The lemon layer is thick and substantial, not thin or flimsy like most other lemon bar recipes.
Only 7 Ingredients in these Lemon Bars
- Butter: Melted butter is the base of the shortbread crust.
- Sugar: Sugar sweetens the crust and lemon curd filling layers. Not only this, it works with the eggs to set up the lemon filling. If reduced, the filling will be too wet.
- Flour: Flour is also used in both layers. Like sugar, it gives structure to the lemon filling. These days, I add slightly more flour to the shortbread crust compared to my cookbook version. You can get away with 2 cups, but an extra 2 Tablespoons really helps solidify the foundation of the lemon bars.
- Vanilla Extract: I use 2 teaspoons of vanilla extract in the shortbread crust. Not many lemon bar recipes call for vanilla extract and I promise you it’s my best kept secret.
- Salt: Without salt, the crust would be too sweet.
- Eggs: Eggs are most of the structure. Without them, you have lemon soup!
- Lemon Juice: I highly recommend using lemon juice squeezed from fresh lemons. You can also use another citrus like blood orange, grapefruit, or lime juice.
How to Make Lemon Bars in 5 Steps
- Prepare the crust: Mix all of the shortbread crust ingredients together, then press firmly into a 9×13 inch baking pan. Interested in a smaller batch? See my recipe note.
- Pre-bake: Pre-baking the crust guarantees it will hold up under the lemon layer.
- Prepare the filling: Whisk all of the filling ingredients together. No cooking on the stove!
- Bake: Pour the filling on the warm pre-baked crust, then bake for around 20 minutes or until the center is just about set. I slightly increased the baking temperature from my cookbook version. Either temperatures work, but 325°F is preferred.
- Cool: I usually cool the lemon bars for about 1 hour at room temperature, then stick the whole pan in the refrigerator for 1-2 more hours until relatively chilled. They’re wonderful cold and with a dusting of confectioners’ sugar on top!
Prepared in only 2 bowls and a baking pan, clean up is a breeze. These lemon bars win 1st place every time because they’re the perfect balance of tangy and sweet. In fact, I made them for my friend’s baby shower last weekend and they were the first dessert to disappear. And that’s saying a lot considering the competition: homemade chewy fudgy frosted brownies and adorable mini animal cracker cookies. 🙂
2 Guaranteed Tricks to Make the Best Lemon Bars
- Use a glass pan. Ceramic is fine, but glass is best. Do not use metal. I always detect a slight metallic flavor in the lemon bars when baked in metal pans.
- Use fresh juice. Store-bought bottles are convenient, but you miss out on a lot of flavor. You will definitely taste the difference! I have a super old citrus juicer, but I recently purchased this juicer for my mom and she loves it. Highly recommended.
White Air Bubbles on Top of Baked Lemon Bars
Do you notice air bubbles, perhaps even a white layer of air bubbles, on top of your baked lemon bars? That’s completely normal. It’s the air from the eggs rising to the surface. Some batches have it, some don’t. Regardless, the lemon bars taste the same and a dusting of confectioners’ sugar covers it right up!
Blood orange bars! See my recipe note about substituting flavors.
Want to kick it up a notch? Here are my lemon meringue pie and lemon cheesecake recipes.
Craving lots of texture with your bars? You’ll love my oatmeal lemon crumble bars.
Plenty of lemon recipes to love on my site including these lemon crinkle cookies and lemon thumbprint cookies! Regardless of what you choose, lemon-y desserts are always a great choice when looking for springtime or Easter dessert recipes.
PrintLemon Bars
- Prep Time: 10 minutes
- Cook Time: 40 minutes
- Total Time: 3 hours, 50 minutes
- Yield: 24 bars
- Category: Dessert
- Method: Baking
- Cuisine: American
Description
You only need 7 ingredients to make these lemon bars. The lemon curd filling is extra thick and creamy and sits on an irresistible butter shortbread crust. Always bake lemon bars at a lower temperature to avoid over-baking. See recipe notes for important tips. They’re simply the best lemon bars and are perfect for picnics, bake sales, spring brunches, baby showers, and bridal showers.
Ingredients
Shortbread Crust
- 1 cup (16 Tbsp; 226g) unsalted butter, melted
- 1/2 cup (100g) granulated sugar
- 2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 2 cups + 2 Tablespoons (265g) all-purpose flour (spooned & leveled)
Lemon Filling
- 2 cups (400g) granulated sugar
- 6 Tablespoons (46g) all-purpose flour
- 6 large eggs
- 1 cup (240ml) lemon juice (about 4 lemons)
- optional: confectioners’ sugar for dusting
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 325°F (163°C). Line the bottom and sides of a 9×13-inch glass baking pan (do not use metal) with parchment paper, leaving an overhang on the sides to lift the finished bars out (makes cutting easier!). Set aside.
- Make the crust: Mix the melted butter, sugar, vanilla extract, and salt together in a medium bowl. Add the flour and stir to completely combine. The dough will be thick. Press firmly into prepared pan, making sure the layer of crust is nice and even. Bake for 20-22 minutes or until the edges are lightly browned. Remove from the oven. Using a fork, poke holes all over the top of the warm crust (not all the way through the crust). A new step I swear by, this helps the filling stick and holds the crust in place. Set aside until step 4.
- Make the filling: Sift the sugar and flour together in a large bowl. Whisk in the eggs, then the lemon juice until completely combined.
- Pour filling over warm crust. Bake the bars for 22-26 minutes or until the center is relatively set and no longer jiggles. (Give the pan a light tap with an oven mitt to test.) Remove bars from the oven and cool completely at room temperature. I usually cool them for about 2 hours at room temperature, then stick in the refrigerator for 1-2 more hours until pretty chilled. I recommend serving chilled.
- Once cool, lift the parchment paper out of the pan using the overhang on the sides. Dust with confectioners’ sugar and cut into squares before serving. For neat squares, wipe the knife clean between each cut. Cover and store leftover lemon bars in the refrigerator for up to 1 week.
- Freezing Instructions: Lemon bars can be frozen for up to 3-4 months. Cut the cooled bars (without confectioners’ sugar topping) into squares, then place onto a baking sheet. Freeze for 1 hour. Individually wrap each bar in aluminum foil or plastic wrap and place into a large bag or freezer container to freeze. Thaw in the refrigerator, then dust with confectioners’ sugar before serving.
Notes
- Special Tools (affiliate links): 9×13-inch Glass Pan | Glass Mixing Bowls | Silicone Spatula | Silicone Whisk | Juicer | Fine Mesh Sieve
- Halve the Recipe: Halve each of the ingredients to yield around 12 squares in a 9-inch square baking pan. Same oven temperature. Bake the crust for 16-18 minutes and the bars for 20 minutes or until the center no longer jiggles.
- Sifting: More often than not, the flour doesn’t fully incorporate into the lemon filling unless it’s sifted with the sugar. As directed in the recipe, sift the two together before adding the eggs and lemon juice. I don’t always do this (and didn’t even do it in the video above!) but it’s preferred to avoid any flour lumps. If you have a sifter, it’s worth using. If you forget, it’s not a huge deal. Here is my favorite sifter. You use it again to dust the lemon bars with confectioners’ sugar.
- Lemon Juice: For exceptional taste, I highly recommend fresh lemon juice. Here is a wonderful inexpensive juicer if you don’t have one. Or use another fresh-squeezed citrus like grapefruit, blood orange, lime, or regular orange. You can slightly reduce the sugar if using a sweeter citrus. I recommend no less than 1 and 2/3 cup granulated sugar in the filling as it’s needed for structure.
- Room Temperature: Bringing the eggs and lemon juice to room temperature helps them mix easier into the flour and sugar. However, I never notice a taste or texture difference when using cold. Room temperature or cold, use whichever!
Love! I really stick with healthy recipes, but this is always my sugar splurge- and trust me, it’s worth it 🙂
I’ve tried these bars as a citrus mix flavor and just a classic lemon… both are great ! especially with the amazing shortbread
Also note that the halved recipe in a 9×9 pan makes thinner crust (and finished bars). I do prefer adding a bit extra lemon juice for big flavor
If your unsure about making these: they are no fail, easy, and delicious! Prepare for compliments
HI I’m a little confused by the flour for the crust, it says 2 cups + 2 tablespoons (265g) but 2 cups is 400 g. The filling calls for 2 cups of sugar which is listed at (400 g) so I am confused.
Hi Emily, different ingredients will weigh different amounts for the same volume because they are different densities. You can read more about properly measuring baking ingredients in this post!
Delicious as written! Tangy, yet sweet. Great flavor. We loved the crust.
I have never made lemon bars from scratch before because I though it would be too complicated. This recipe was super easy to follow and the bars taste great!! I also made some candied lemons for garnish because I bought a huge bag of lemons and I had a few left over. I can’t wait to try this with blood oranges as they’re my favorite citrus. Thanks for sharing!!
Amazing! I trimmed the edges of to make them prettier for our holiday party tomorrow and my boyfriend has already eaten most of the trimmings since they’re so good. If juicing by hand I recommend getting at least 6 lemons to reach the 1 cup amount. I only had a 9×11 glass pan so they came out a little thicker and took a few extra minutes of baking which was to be expected. I’ll be making these again!
I make these several times a year and they never seem to last long. Thank you for this wonderful recipe which is a favorite in our home!
I just made these and they look beautiful. But I realize that I forgot to include four of the tablespoons of flour in the curb. Should I scrap the whole batch and make a new batch they’re not wobbly in the center but I’m curious the best step forward? Thanks so much
Hi Natasha, It’s hard to say, but it they seem set, they may be ok! It may be hard to tell until they’re cut.
What happened? I am an experienced home Baker, I follow the recipe to the letter, even sifting as recommended which I almost never do. The custard was so thin after I put the lemon juice in, it didn’t set up at all. I went to tap on the glass pan I suggested to see if the middle was set up and the entire thing sloshed as it was still complete liquid. It was a bust and I can’t figure out what went wrong! Help!
Hi Stacey, thank you for trying this recipe! The custard is quite thin going into the oven, but it’s odd that it wouldn’t bake at all after putting it in the oven. The eggs/flour are bound to thicken it when heat is applied. Was your oven temperature off? Perhaps the bars were too low in the oven? Try again on the center rack and you can even try turning up the heat to 350°F (177°C).
These are delicious! If I wanted them a little tarter, would it be better to add a little more lemon juice or a little zest? And if I do add lemon juice, should I add more flour? Thanks!
Hi Chris, you would need to increase all the filling ingredients proportionally. You could try using a slightly smaller pan for thicker bars. We recommend sticking with the recipe for best results!
Hi, I am aboput to try this recipe because of the great reviews…one question though, I want to make 2 batches and I just realized I only have enough unsalted butter for one. Can I use regular butter and if so, what would that do to the crust and should I then leave out the 1/2 teaspoon of salt? Really appreciate your assistance, thank you!
Hi Tina! For the second batch, you can use salted butter and leave out the added salt. Happy baking!
Hi there! I love your lemon meringue pie recipe and wanted to give these a shot for Easter! I just had a few questions! Would these do well with meringue on top, and if yes, could I bake the bars on Saturday and add the meringue on a Sunday? Would it affect the cooking time of the bars to broil the meringue brown in the oven, or affect the consistency or taste of the bars? Do you have any tips to adding meringue or would it be best to find a different recipe!
Hi Sarah! I haven’t tested it, but you could try adding a meringue topping. Cover them completely and then broil very briefly on the day you want to serve the bars.
Easy and delicious! I have tried to make lemon bars many times using my family recipe. I could never get them right. Sally’s recipe is so simple. Making the crust was a breeze. Mixing the lemon part was easy too. Sally’s tips and story that go with the recipe make it all so clear. ‘hit the pan to see if center wiggles slightly.”. That direction led me to a creamy perfectly cooked lemon bar. The bars are a bit more tart than I’m used to and I love it! I will make again and again.
YUM! Like almost everything I’ve made from this site, these lemon bars are ridiculously good. I might have enjoyed a slightly saltier crust and a slightly less sweet filling, but that’s just a personal preference. Great texture, a super buttery crust, and delicious when still slightly warm (after an hour counter cool) as well as cold straight from the fridge. Will definitely make these again.
The first time I made them, everything went well and they tasted great! The crust was a little thick because I used an 8×8 pan but no worries, still enjoyed them. The second time I made them the crust floated to the top, my lemon bars were upside down! Can you figure that one out? Anyway, this is a very simple recipe and tastes delicious. I usually have all the ingredients on hand so I can make them in a moment’s notice.
I’m so glad you enjoy these! Prick the warm crust with a fork before pouring the filling on top. Steam needs to escape and doing this will hold the crust in place.
Have to bake these on Friday for Sunday Easter brunch. Would you recommend I simply refrigerate them from Friday to Sunday? Or should I freeze & defrost?
Thank you
Hi Melanie, you can refrigerate them for that time period. Enjoy!
These are the bomb! Probably my favorite dessert and I have made them dozens of times.
Any thoughts on adding berries to them? How would I go about doing that? (Raspberries or blackberries?)
Hi Brandy, I’m so glad to read that you love these lemon bars. The filling is a little too loose to hold berries, so for best results, I don’t suggest it.
If you would like to add berries, I would suggest serving them with a blueberry compote on the side. This way, those who enjoy berries can have them, and others who like the bars plan can have them their way too! Sally, what do you think of this idea?
GREAT idea!
I made these for the first time yesterday and they turned out great! I made them gluten free and thought I would share my modifications in case it helps others.
I replaced the flour with a blend of (by weight) 35% sweet rice flour, 17.5% white rice flour, 17.5% potato flour, 15% millet flour, and 15% almond flour. I also added a teaspoon of guar gum to the flour blend. I used this flour blend in both the crust and the filling. I reduced the butter in the crust to 200g based on others’ comments and previous experiences with gluten free flours going dense and greasy in butter-heavy recipes. I was very happy with the crust–not too dense nor too crumbly, with a lovely shortbread taste. It was a perfect base for the lemon filling, which was wonderfully tart (I used four and half lemons to get a cup of juice).
I did get the white foamy layer on top of the filling that others have mentioned. It smelt eggy and looked unappealing, so I scraped it off with a sharp knife after cooling the bars in the fridge overnight. I dusted the top with icing sugar and now they look great and do not smell or taste eggy at all!
I made a full batch and used a 10 inch square pan because that’s the only glass pan I had on hand. In my coolish oven, the crust took 32 minutes before it started to go light brown, and the filling took 30 minutes. I took it out when it was still jiggling a little in the middle and was worried it hadn’t set, but I didn’t want to leave it in any longer as the white foamy layer was starting to brown. The filling is very moist but holds it shape and is not overbaked, and the bars look like they do in the photos, if a little thicker.
Overall I’m very happy with these delicious lemon bars, which converted to gluten free without any issues, and received rave reviews from other members of the household who don’t have to eat GF. A winner for me!
10/10 for this Lemon bar recipe! Very lemony and delish! Make the whole 9×13 pan – you’ll love it!
Zing!
I got up early this morning to bake; it was to make this lemon bar recipe Sally.
I juiced nine small organic lemons to make one cup of lemon juice. Beautifully tart… eating more than one at a time is too many. I will be trying all the citrus fruits to make this bar again.
Thank you I enjoy searching for recipes on your site.
I loved how thick the curd is in this recipe; the taste is great.
My question is:
I did not use parchment, and just greased by Pyrex pan. The crust turned out kind of 1) hard in general, and 2) REALLY hard to dislodge from the pan.
Do you think the problem is that I baked the crust too long in the first phase, or something else? (I left it in the longer range of time, but I didn’t see any golden edges, so probably left it in for an extra 5 minutes.)
Thank you for your help.
P.S.—-love your recipes!
Hi Mary, we’re glad you enjoyed these! It sounds like your crust was a bit over baked. For next time, a slightly shorter bake time on the crust should help. Parchment paper also helps easily remove them from the pan. Hope this helps!
Hey Sally, I’ve made your lemon bars a few times and they are (pardon the pun) BAR NONE! Still, it’s been a while since Inlast baked them and somehow today I am confused that my butter measurements aren’t working out. My scale for 230g requires over 3 sticks of butter and that has to be too much, right?
Hi Jill, is each stick 1/2 cup of butter? If so you’ll need just two sticks of butter for one cup total.
Made these today, just tried one and wow! So yummy. I unfortunately did not buy enough lemons to have a full cup of juice so I added about 3-4 tablespoons of zest. I was surprised the recipe didn’t call for zest. It adds such a fresh zing! I just tried one (even though they are definitely too warm) and they are VERY tart, I love them. I’m curious to see how the crust holds up. My oven just would not brown it even after thirty minutes so I just went on ahead. I will note that my filling on top was still pretty wobbly after 28 minutes, in the center, and I didn’t want it to curdle. I think it will likely finish setting in the fridge over night. Better to have it a bit runny that scrambled lemon eggs. Can’t wait to make these for events in the future!
Would a glass 8×8 pan or a glass pie plate work for making a half batch of these bars? I would love to make this recipe but I am having difficulty finding a glass 9×9 pan. Thanks for any help you can provide!
Hi Amanda, Yes, absolutely! Follow the same bake time as the 9×9 pan.
Sally, these were super easy to make! Unfortunately they came out with a strong egg taste from all of the eggs that are used. Can less eggs be used? What else do you recommend?
Hi Julia, they could be over-baked if they taste eggy. If you try them again try shortening the bake time. Decreasing the eggs will prevent the curd from setting up, so we don’t recommend it unless you also try adjusting the flour in the curd as well. (Or add a bit of cornstarch.) Thanks so much for giving these a try!
Awesome recipe! I cut the lemon juice in half and supplemented with lemoncello! It was soo good!
I love ALL this Wonder woman’s recipes. I take this one and substitute lime or sub some pomegranate – and you cannot go wrong
My family and I devoured these bars. Made the recipe with limes from our tree. My question is may I use Splenda as my husband is not supposed to eat sugar?
Hi Lyn! We’d love to help but we are not trained in baking with sugar substitutes. For best taste and texture (and so you don’t waste your time trying to adapt this recipe since it may not work properly), it may be more useful to find a recipe that is specifically formulated for sugar substitutes. We’re glad you enjoyed the lime bars!
Funny! I was scrolling for tips or someone using limes! How many limes or amount of lime juice did you use? Did you make any other changes to the recipe?
The lemon bars were easy to make and tasted delicious! When making them, I ended up needing 7 lemons to get the right amount of lemon juice (I recommend anyone making this get extra lemons). I also ended up having to bake for 30 minutes (the lemon curd was still very liquid at 26 minutes). However, once finished they were amazing!!!
I had one question/issue I’m hoping someone can help me with. I made them Saturday and stored them in the refrigerator in an airtight container. When I opened the container Monday, the powdered sugar disappeared and the bars looked wet on top. Not pretty at all like they were when first made! What happened?! Is there a way to store them do that doesn’t happen? Please help!!
Hi Marcy, thank you for trying this recipe! The moisture on top is completely normal– they just absorbed the confectioners’ sugar topping. You can add another light dusting on top or wait to dust them until immediately before serving.
Can you make these when you have an already made curd? Would it just shorten the bake time? I have leftover lime curd I made using your lemon curd recipe!
Hi Jayleen! Lemon curd (store bought or homemade) is too thin and won’t bake up properly. Best to follow the recipe as written for best results.
These are fabulous! I’ve made this recipe several times since the holidays even doubling the recipe and without fail PERFECTION every time! Family and friends rave about these lemon bars. I froze a dozen from my last batch and they defrosted beautifully. This is one I’m definitely keeping as a go to. I love your recipes Sally. Keep up the excellent work!
Ummm let me just say that I’m 22 (F) and not experienced much in baking and tried this recipe. OMG …it came out amazing with the best consistency. Will definitely be coming back for more recipes 🙂
These were so good. I couldn’t figure out why the next day they tasted like pennies. I went back to the recipe and sure enough you warned us about using metal pans. Weird it still happened even through the parchment. Definitely listen to the tip about making these in the glass pan!