How To Bake Lemon Bars

One of the most popular lemon dessert recipes to prepare in the spring and summer are these homemade lemon bars. The warm buttery crust and the rich, oozy, tangy lemon filling blend along beautifully. These attributes make the lemon bars irresistible and delicious treats.

They take only 15-20 minutes to prepare by hand, making them simple to create. The remaining steps are simple: bake the bars in the oven, cut them into even squares, and consume the cooled bars over many days.

Tips for making lemon bars

The best lemon flavor comes from freshly squeezed lemon juice and lemon zest; using bottled lemon juice won't produce the same results.

Lining the baking pan with parchment paper will make it much simpler to cut your lemon bars into clean squares since you can use it as a type of hammock to lift the entire block of lemon bars out of the pan. You can also butter or use nonstick cooking spray on your baking pan.

Use well-floured hands while kneading the dough to prevent it from sticking to your fingers.

Ingredients

For the Crust

250 g unsalted butter at room temperature

½ cup granulated sugar

2 cups all-purpose flour

⅛ teaspoon salt

For the Filling

6 large eggs

3 cups granulated sugar

4 tablespoon lemon zest

1 cup fresh lemon juice

1 cup all-purpose flour

Icing sugar, for dusting

Procedure

To begin, preheat your oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit and line a 13 x 9-inch baking pan with parchment paper so that it extends over the sides.

Combine a cup of granulated sugar and 250 grams of unsalted butter in a large basin, to make the buttery shortbread crust.

Beat the butter and sugar with an electric hand mixer or stand mixer, for about three minutes or until it is light and fluffy.

Add two cups of all-purpose flour and a dash of salt to a different bowl. Then, with the mixer running on low, slowly add the flour-salt combination to the butter mixture and stir until just combined.

Using the paddle attachment on a large stand mixer, combine the shortbread batter for the lemon bars.

Transfer the dough to the prepared baking dish with well-floured hands, then gently press the dough into an even layer while creating a 1-inch edge up the pan's side.

Put the crust in the oven and bake it for 15 to 20 minutes, or until it turns golden. While leaving the oven on, remove from it to cool.

Prepare the filling while the crust is parbaking. Combine six eggs, three cups of granulated sugar, four teaspoons of lemon zest, one cup of lemon juice, and one cup of all-purpose flour in a separate bowl.

Pour the lemon filling on top of the crust once it has cooled. Back in the oven, bake for a further 35 minutes.

Take them out of the oven and let them cool before slicing. When the core of your lemon bars stops jiggling, they are baked. Square up your sticky gooey lemon bars and sprinkle them with powdered sugar.

How to slice lemon bars

Remember to wait until your bars are set before cutting, and then dampen your knife with water. To cut through, make one downward motion. Repeat this process until all of the lemon bars have been cut into slices, wiping off and dampening your knife after each pass.

Line your baking dish with parchment paper, leaving extra paper hanging over the sides for easier cutting. After your lemon bars have firmed up and cooled, take them out of the pan and slice them as directed above on a sizable cutting board.