Lemon Bars Recipe: How to Make Lemon Squares
Written by MasterClass
Last updated: Oct 1, 2024 • 4 min read
Piquant and vibrant lemon bars are one of the best lemon desserts. Not too sweet and lightened by the natural brightness of lemon, the lemon bar has a cleaner, more acidic flavor profile that ends your meal on a lighter note. Read ahead to learn how to make the best lemon bars.
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What Are Lemon Bars?
Lemon bars are a dessert consisting of a buttery shortbread crust topped with refreshing lemon curd and a dusting of powdered sugar. Lemon curd is a preserved citrus product made from lemon juice thickened with egg yolks, cornstarch, and butter. Known as sablé Breton in the world of French pastry, shortbread crust has a higher ratio of butter than most other doughs, which results in an incredibly flaky, tender crumb. Instead of kneading, gently press the mixture into a baking dish using the base of a measuring cup.
With a short list of ingredients and a relatively quick bake time, these lemon squares might become your new favorite lemony dessert.
5 Tips for Making Lemon Bars
For clean, even lemon squares, submerge a sharp knife in hot water and dry it with a kitchen towel between each slice. Here’s what else to know about this popular dessert recipe:
- 1. Get the most lemon flavor. Use lemon juice and zest to get as much tart lemon flavor as possible into the bars. Be careful to stop grating the lemon as soon as you reach the bitter white pith. In addition to the lemon zest and juice, add a bit of lemon extract to the lemon filling to take it to the next level.
- 2. Use room-temperature egg yolks. Before baking, separate the egg whites from the yolks then bring the yolks to room temperature. Working with room-temperature yolks will help to stabilize the ingredients and make for a more even baking process. Save the egg whites for another project, like Joanne Chang’s vanilla Swiss meringue buttercream.
- 3. Temper the eggs. Fillings that are too loose or have the texture of scrambled eggs can be unappetizing. Tempering eggs allows you to avoid both problems. To temper eggs, mix a small amount of the hot liquid (such as hot milk or hot water) into the room-temperature eggs. Then, mix the egg in with the rest of the hot liquid. The egg will thoroughly combine with the hot liquid without scrambling if done correctly.
- 4. Try different varieties of citrus. Use different types of citrus to experiment with the flavor profile of simple lemon bars. Meyer lemons will yield a more floral, less acidic taste, while tangerines, clementines, blood oranges, grapefruits, or Cara Cara oranges will change the color of the bars. Try making key lime bars if you can get your hands on the small, green citrus fruit.
- 5. Make gluten-free lemon bars. Swap in your favorite gluten-free flour for the all-purpose flour in a traditional shortbread crust for a spectacular gluten-free dessert.
Classic Lemon Bars Recipe
makes
12 barsprep time
10 mintotal time
1 hr 10 mincook time
1 hrIngredients
For the crust:
For the curd:
For assembly:
Note: The total time does not include 1 hour of inactive time.
Make the shortbread crust:
- 1
Preheat the oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit.
- 2
Lightly grease a 9-inch square baking pan with nonstick cooking spray and line it with parchment paper, leaving plenty of overhang. (Alternatively, grease a pie plate or tart pan.)
- 3
In the bowl of a food processor, combine the flour, sugar, and salt.
- 4
Add the butter and pulse until the mixture looks fine and crumbly.
- 5
Transfer the shortbread-crust mixture to the prepared pan. Using your hands or a measuring cup, gently pat the crust down into an even layer.
- 6
Using a fork, poke holes across the surface of the crust.
- 7
Place the crust in the refrigerator for 30 minutes.
- 8
Bake the crust until the shortbread is just barely golden brown, about 20 minutes.
- 9
Remove the pan from the oven and transfer it to a wire rack to cool to room temperature, about 15 minutes.
Make the lemon curd:
- 1
While the crust bakes, make the lemon curd.
- 2
In a medium mixing bowl, beat the egg yolks together.
- 3
In a medium saucepan over medium heat, whisk together the sugar, salt, cornstarch, lemon zest, lemon juice, and water.
- 4
Cook the mixture over medium-low heat, whisking, until hot (135 degrees Fahrenheit).
- 5
Increase the heat to medium and cook until the custard is thick, about 3 more minutes.
- 6
Reduce the heat to low.
- 7
Temper the egg yolks by slowly streaming a few spoonfuls of the hot curd into the yolks.
- 8
Slowly add the egg yolk mixture to the saucepan.
- 9
Increase the heat to medium and cook until thickened.
- 10
When the curd begins to bubble, whisk continuously for 2 minutes.
- 11
Remove the curd from the heat and whisk in the butter.
- 12
Strain the curd through a fine-mesh sieve into a large bowl, using a rubber spatula to push as much of the custard through the strainer as possible.
Assemble and bake the lemon bars:
- 1
Use an offset spatula to spread the lemon curd evenly across the cooled baked crust.
- 2
Return the lemon bars to the oven and bake at 350 degrees Fahrenheit until the curd is set but retains a bit of jiggle, about 20 minutes.
- 3
Remove the lemon bars from the oven, dust with confectioners’ sugar, and let them cool, about 15 minutes.
- 4
Using a sharp knife, cut the lemon bars into 12 squares. Leftovers stored in an airtight container or wrapped tightly with plastic wrap will keep for up to 4 days.
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