Lemon Bars

Prep Time: 20

Cook Time: 40

Cooling and Chilling Time: 3

Total Time: 4

Serves 16

These easy lemon bars are one of my favorite desserts! They have a sweet and tangy lemon filling and crisp, buttery shortbread crust. I love them with a dusting of powdered sugar on top.

Equipment

8x8 Baking Pan

Ingredients

Shortbread Crust

1 cup all-purpose flour, spooned and leveled
⅓ cup powdered sugar, sifted if lumpy, plus more for dusting
¼ teaspoon sea salt
½ cup unsalted butter, 1 stick, melted, plus more for the pan
½ teaspoon vanilla extract

Lemon Filling

1 cup granulated sugar
1 tablespoon lemon zest, optional
¼ cup all-purpose flour, spooned and leveled
4 large eggs
½ cup fresh lemon juice

Instructions

Preheat the oven to 350°F. Grease an 8x8-inch baking dish and line it with parchment paper on all sides. Leave an overhang on at least two sides of the pan to help you remove the bars after baking.
Make the shortbread crust: In a large bowl, whisk together the flour, powdered sugar, and salt. Add the melted butter and vanilla and use a spatula to mix until a greasy dough forms. Transfer the dough to the prepared pan and use your hands to press it evenly over the bottom and ⅛-inch up the sides.
Bake the crust for 18 to 20 minutes, or until lightly browned around the edges. Remove from the oven and dock with a fork.
Meanwhile, make the lemon filling: Place the sugar in a large bowl. If using the lemon zest, add it to the bowl and use your fingers to work it into the sugar to release its fragrant oils.
Add the flour and whisk to combine, then whisk in the eggs followed by the lemon juice.
Pour over the hot crust and bake for 20 to 25 minutes, or until the filling is set. It should no longer jiggle when you gently shake the pan.
Remove from the oven and let cool for 1 hour at room temperature. Transfer to the refrigerator and chill for another 2 hours.
Dust the chilled bars with powdered sugar, slice, and serve.

Notes

Makes 16 bars

Find it online at https://dailycove.info/lemon-bars-recipe/%3C/em%3E%3C/p%3E%3C/div%3E%3C/div%3E%3Cscript%3Ewindow.wprm_recipes = {"recipe-77633":{"type":"food","name":"Lemon Bars","slug":"wprm-lemon-bars","originalServings":"16","originalServingsParsed":16,"currentServings":"16","currentServingsParsed":16,"currentServingsFormatted":"16","currentServingsMultiplier":1,"rating":{"count":34,"total":156,"average":4.589999999999999857891452847979962825775146484375,"type":{"comment":17,"no_comment":1,"user":16},"user":0},"originalSystem":0,"currentSystem":0,"ingredients":[{"uid":0,"amount":"1","unit":"cup","name":"all-purpose flour","notes":"spooned and leveled","unit_id":4675,"id":1023,"type":"ingredient","unit_systems":{"unit-system-0":{"amount":"1","unit":"cup","unitParsed":"cup"}}},{"uid":1,"amount":"\u2153","unit":"cup","name":"powdered sugar","notes":"sifted if lumpy, plus more for dusting","unit_id":4675,"id":1062,"type":"ingredient","unit_systems":{"unit-system-0":{"amount":"\u2153","unit":"cup","unitParsed":"cup"}}},{"uid":2,"amount":"\u00bc","unit":"teaspoon","name":"sea salt","notes":"","unit_id":4678,"id":1055,"type":"ingredient","unit_systems":{"unit-system-0":{"amount":"\u00bc","unit":"teaspoon","unitParsed":"teaspoon"}}},{"uid":3,"amount":"\u00bd","unit":"cup","name":"unsalted butter","notes":"1 stick, melted, plus more for the pan","unit_id":4675,"id":1466,"type":"ingredient","unit_systems":{"unit-system-0":{"amount":"\u00bd","unit":"cup","unitParsed":"cup"}}},{"uid":4,"amount":"\u00bd","unit":"teaspoon","name":"vanilla extract","notes":"","unit_id":4678,"id":1077,"type":"ingredient","unit_systems":{"unit-system-0":{"amount":"\u00bd","unit":"teaspoon","unitParsed":"teaspoon"}}},{"uid":5,"amount":"1","unit":"cup","name":"granulated sugar","notes":"","unit_id":4675,"id":1060,"type":"ingredient","unit_systems":{"unit-system-0":{"amount":"1","unit":"cup","unitParsed":"cup"}}},{"uid":6,"amount":"1","unit":"tablespoon","name":"lemon zest","notes":"optional","unit_id":4692,"id":1155,"type":"ingredient","unit_systems":{"unit-system-0":{"amount":"1","unit":"tablespoon","unitParsed":"tablespoon"}}},{"uid":7,"amount":"\u00bc","unit":"cup","name":"all-purpose flour","notes":"spooned and leveled","unit_id":4675,"id":1023,"type":"ingredient","unit_systems":{"unit-system-0":{"amount":"\u00bc","unit":"cup","unitParsed":"cup"}}},{"uid":8,"amount":"4","unit":"","name":"large eggs","notes":"","id":1064,"type":"ingredient","unit_systems":{"unit-system-0":{"amount":"4","unit":"","unitParsed":""}}},{"uid":9,"amount":"\u00bd","unit":"cup","name":"fresh lemon juice","notes":"","unit_id":4675,"id":1190,"type":"ingredient","unit_systems":{"unit-system-0":{"amount":"\u00bd","unit":"cup","unitParsed":"cup"}}}],"originalAdvancedServings":{"shape":"round","unit":"inch","diameter":0,"width":0,"length":0,"height":0},"currentAdvancedServings":{"shape":"round","unit":"inch","diameter":0,"width":0,"length":0,"height":0}}}