Easy Lemon Bar Recipe (With Video Tutorial)
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This easy lemon bar recipe includes the perfect blend of zesty lemon flavor and irresistible sweetness with a shortbread crust that has an exquisitely light crunch.
I’m so very excited about this easy lemon bar recipe post and video tutorial! I hope you’ll watch it and comment below. It includes two very special guests: Terri, the reader who gave me the Dixie cornbread recipe, and another surprise guest (watch to find out).
But back to these luscious lemon bars! When I say this is an easy lemon bar recipe, you know I mean it! We first have to combine the butter, flour, and sugar to make the base, which we pre-bake. While that’s baking, we stir together the remaining lemon filling ingredients and pour them over the top, and bake once more. Then all you have to do is patiently wait for them to cool before sprinkling them with confectioner’s sugar.
These lemon bars are perfectly sweet but with a deliciously tangy and tart lemon flavor. Because we pre-bake the shortbread base, it has an exquisitely light crunch to it that I cannot get enough of! The combination of this with the soft and smooth lemon curd filling that just melts in your mouth is irresistible, let me tell you!
I hope you enjoyed watching this tutorial on how to make lemon bars as much as we did making it.
Recipe Ingredients
- All-purpose flour
- Butter
- Confectioner’s sugar
- Granulated sugar
- Eggs
- Lemon juice
- Baking powder
How to Make Easy Lemon Bars
Making the Shortbread Crust
First, we’re going to make the base. Sift together flour and confectioner’s sugar.
Cut in butter until the mixture clings together.
Press base into a baking dish.
Bake at 350 degrees for 25 minutes or until lightly brown.
Making the Lemon Filling
Combine and beat together the eggs, granulated sugar, and lemon juice.
Sift flour and baking powder.
Stir the dry ingredients into the wet ingredients.
Pour this over the baked lemon bar crust.
Bake at 350 degrees for 15 minutes or until slightly brown and set.
Remove from the oven.
Cool and then sprinkle in the confectioner’s sugar.
Cut into bars and try not to eat all of these lovely before offering them to family and friends!
I sure do hope you enjoy 😀.
Storage
- These lemon bars are a great make-ahead dessert, as you can store them in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 6 days.
- You can also freeze the un-dusted bars for up to 4 months. Thaw them in the fridge and then dust with confectioner’s sugar before serving.
Recipe Notes
- You can use either bottled lemon juice or fresh lemon juice.
- If using lemons to make fresh lemon juice, you can also add the lemon zest for added lemon flavor.
- To add more flavor to the base, go ahead and add a teaspoon of vanilla extract.
- For easier removal, line your baking dish with parchment paper. Then you can use the leftover parchment paper hanging over the sides as handles to easily lift the lemon bars out of the pan.
- Refrigerate the bars before cutting them to make it easier to cut them into clean squares.
You may also like these bar recipes:
Three Layer Chocolate Fantasy Bars
Gooey Butter Bars From Scratch
Or if you are hankering for more lemon recipes:
Ingredients
Base
- 2 cups all-purpose flour
- 1 cup softened butter
- 1/2 cup confectioner's sugar
Filling
- 4 eggs
- 1/2 tsp baking powder
- 2 cups granulated sugar
- 4 tbsp confectioner's sugar
- 1/3 cup lemon juice
- 1/2 cup all-purpose flour
Instructions
Base
- Sift together flour and confectioner's sugar. Cut in butter until the mixture clings together. Press into a 9x13-inch baking dish. Bake at 350 for 25 minutes or until lightly brown.2 cups all-purpose flour, 1 cup softened butter, 1/2 cup confectioner's sugar
Filling
- Combine and beat together the eggs, granulated sugar, and lemon juice. Sift flour and baking powder and stir the dry ingredients into the egg mixture. Pour the batter over the baked crust.4 eggs, 2 cups granulated sugar, 1/3 cup lemon juice, 1/2 cup all-purpose flour, 1/2 tsp baking powder
- Bake at 350 for 15 minutes or until slightly brown and set. Remove from the oven. Cool and then sprinkle with confectioner's sugar before cutting into bars.4 tbsp confectioner's sugar
Nutrition
Lemon bars are one of my favorites. going to have to try these. I Used to bake them for around 400 when I worked but was a box mixed so home made will certainly be a treat. I love anything lemon. And my Grandma made the best Lemon Merange pie of anyone. She showed me several times how she made it but it just does not taste like hers did. It must have been that touch of love she had for us all.
I agree Karan, there are some things that can never taste exactly like Grandmas.
I vote for Bill to sing at the 2012 superbowl! Lawd knows he could do any worst than that skinny little thing name after some kind of lettuce did!
LOL!!
LOL at Bill. Hey Christy and Terri! I love anything Lemon so have got to try these soon. Let’s start a campaign to have Bill sing at the next Super Bowl.
Susan, So glad you love lemon too and hope you will try these amazingly delicious bars. ~waves~
Heh… It’s Baaaaaaaaaack! Had fun doing that. Need to have me call in again and I can sing the national anthem wrong in front of the whole world.. lol!
Your guest star Terri Leverett treated my co worker and me to your lemon bars and recipe. The lemon bars now rank as one of my favorate deserts; I will be making some very soon and anxious to share this with my family and friends.
Dear John
I had a hunch that you would leave a comment here. I just received your very kind letter of Lemon Bar’s praise included with my Radon System’s repair invoice. Thank you so very much! My friend Christy will also be tickled to hear that I gave your co-worker Travis, originally from Cartersville GA, a taste of home too and got a 5-star rating out of 5 stars. YIPPEEE. I was THRILLED to read that as of now (having never had them ever before) Lemon Bars are among your favorites. I am so glad I had made an extra batch to share. Let all us SPlate folks know how your first batch turns out. ~waves to u~ Terri
ROTFL! Okay, I’m pretty sure the song break in the middle while the crust was baking was the COOLEST thing I’d seen in a long time! 🙂 It reminded me so much of hanging out with my grandmother, mother and aunt in the kitchen – crazy things happened while we waited for something to cook.
Oh, HONEY!!! Thank you for this one, too!! I keep sending links to my husband who misses the south almost as much as I do. It I can’t get back home, at least home can come to my mouth.