Confession: as I write this, I am eating one of these Easy Meyer Lemon Bars for breakfast with my coffee. OH MY GOODNESS, these are good. When we planted a Meyer lemon tree in the spring, I knew I wanted to make something extra special with its fruit. This recipe definitely fits the bill, AND it’s super easy to make!
There’s a surprising amount of variety out there for lemon bar recipes. Some call for separating egg yolks, while some call for baking the crust and cooking the lemon curd on the stovetop. Some are filled with a firm filling, some with more of a pudding-like consistency.
I wanted to make lemon bars that really featured the delicious Meyer lemons in all their tart, sweet glory, and make it as easy as possible. I whittled the options down to a recipe that only uses one bowl and one pan, does not require that you cool the crust before filling it, and uses whole eggs rather than just the yolks. I’m never making lemon bars any other way again!
Meyer lemons are not your average lemon. They are known to be sweeter than other varieties- so sweet, in fact, that you can eat the fruit by itself! This means they are a bit less acidic, and it also means you can use less sugar in the bars to sweeten it. With five whole eggs and plenty of lemon juice and zest, these scrumptious dessert bars actually maintain some nutritional value, despite the sugar and refined flour used to make them.
Not that we care too much about nutrition in our desserts, especially around the holidays, right? Right.
(Pardon me for a moment while I go retrieve a second Meyer lemon bar from the kitchen for breakfast…)
Yum. That’s better. I’m going to have to lock my fridge and throw away the key pretty soon here.
To make the crust, just mix together some butter, powdered sugar, a little bit of salt, and flour. It will be a bit of a crumbly dough that sticks together when you press it, kind of like a more doughy pie crust. Press it into a well-greased large baking pan, and bake until starting to brown.
Then, pour the topping on the crust after it’s cooled for only a few minutes- a mixture of 5 whole eggs, sugar, Meyer lemon juice and zest (from about 4 Meyer lemons), a pinch of salt, baking powder, and a little bit more flour to help firm it up. Bake until set, allow to cool, and you’re done!
Unless of course you want to get fancy and garnish the bars with more powdered sugar, lemon zest, blackberries, and mint. It makes them extra pretty to bring to holiday parties or take photos for your food blog (haha).
Can I freeze lemon bars?
Yes! I recommend freezing them individually after baking and slicing. Start by flash freezing them by placing them on a rimmed baking sheet with some space in between each bar and freezing for 1-2 hours, until they’re frozen. Then, you can wrap them each individually in plastic wrap and store in an airtight container or zip top bag, and take them out individually as you want them. That way, they won’t freeze together or smush onto the plastic wrap before they’re frozen.
I have 5 of these delicious Meyer lemons left. What should I make? Maybe this Iced Ginger Honey Lemon Tea? Give me your other suggestions in the comments below!
Here’s the recipe for these super easy Meyer lemon bars.
Easy Meyer Lemon Bars
Ingredients
For the Crust:
- 1 cup butter softened (2 sticks)
- 1/2 cup powdered sugar
- 1/4 teaspoon kosher salt
- 2 cups all-purpose flour
For the Topping:
- 5 eggs
- 1 1/2 cups sugar
- 3/4 cup Meyer lemon juice from about 4-5 lemons
- 2 tablespoons Meyer lemon zest from about 4-5 lemons
- pinch kosher salt
- 1/2 teaspoon baking powder
- 1/4 cup all-purpose flour
- extra powdered sugar, lemon zest, blackberries, and/or mint leaves for garnish (optional)
Instructions
- Liberally grease a 9x13 inch baking pan with a little bit of the softened butter. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.
- In a large mixing bowl or stand mixer, mix the softened butter (1 cup/2 sticks), powdered sugar (1/2 cup), and kosher salt (1/4 teaspoon) on high until well combined.
- Add the flour (2 cups) and mix on low speed until dough begins to just stick together and clump up (you should be able to form it into a shape easily with your hands, and you shouldn't see any visible flour).
- Press the dough mixture evenly into the bottom of the prepared baking pan with your hands.
- Bake at 350 for 20-25 minutes, or until just starting to brown.
- Meanwhile, to make the topping: In the same mixing bowl, mix together the 5 eggs, sugar (1.5 cups), lemon juice (3/4 cup), lemon zest (2 tablespoons), a pinch of kosher salt, and baking powder (1/2 teaspoon) on medium-high speed until well combined and pale in color.
- Add the flour (1/4 cup) and mix until smooth and not lumpy.
- After crust has baked, remove from oven and turn the temperature down to 325 degrees F.
- After the crust has cooled in the pan slightly (you should be able to touch the pan without a potholder), pour the topping in.
- Bake at 325 degrees for 15-20 minutes, or until set (it shouldn't wiggle when you shake the pan gently).
- Remove from oven and allow to cool in pan for at least 20 minutes.
- Cut into squares and top with powdered sugar, blackberries, lemon zest, and/or mint leaves, if desired.
Notes
- Storage: Store these in your refrigerator to keep them cool and firm.
- Use regular lemons: if you don't have Meyer Lemons, use regular lemons. You will need a few more (around 8) to get the right amount of juice, since they are smaller and less juicy. You may want to add a little more sugar to the topping as well, since they are less sweet.
- Did you know you can make your own powdered sugar?
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The provided nutrition information does not include any added sodium from seasoning to taste, any optional ingredients, and it does not take brands into account. Feel free to calculate it yourself using this calculator or by adding the recipe to Yummly.
Robyn Ridgley
First time I’ve ever made lemon bars, so I was scouring recipes carefully; mine came out excellent —and as good as any I’ve gotten from a bakery in Beverly Hills.. I am thrilled with this recipe I did not put berries on the top but it is everything I hoped and wanted it to be note: I used organic Meyers lemons that a friend gave me
Elizabeth Lindemann
So glad you liked it!
Terrterr
I used this recipe to make lemon bars for a friend who is a lemon bar connoisseur, and she absolutely loved them! I’m not a fan of cooked fruit, but I did taste a bit of the filling, and it was quite tasty. Anyway, I ran into the same issue as a previous poster with runny filling. It was as if there was too much lemon juice. I beat the egg mixture longer and added a little more flour, and I still had to bake it for an extra 15 minutes to get it to set. I was a little concerned that I was going to ruin the whole batch, but it still came out great!
Elizabeth Lindemann
So glad you liked it! Thanks for the tip for increased cooking time and adding more flour to the filling – I’m going to keep that in mind next time I make it!
Cindy
Fantastic recipe. I made them gluten free with Bob’s 1 to 1 baking flour.
Elizabeth Lindemann
Great to know it works with gluten free flour – I’m going to try that myself soon as I am trying to cut back on gluten!
Lois
The best lemon bars I’ve ever tasted! The Meyer lemons add so much flavor!
Elizabeth Lindemann
So glad you liked them!
Sarah
Hi! I tried making these today, and the topping was VERY runny when I poured it over the crust. Is that the way it should be? I followed the recipe exactly. It look an extra 10 minutes longer in the oven than the recipe specifies for it to set.
They seem quite soft and delicate, so I’m leaving them to completely cool in the baking dish, and then I’m going to put them in the fridge for a while before attempting to cut and remove them.
Any idea what may have happened? Thanks!
Elizabeth Lindemann
Interesting! It’s definitely possible that it just needed a little longer to cook- so many factors can affect that such as oven temp, egg size, etc. The fridge should help them solidify a bit too. My only suggestion is to maybe mix the filling for longer- like 2-3 minutes. This will help the eggs come together a bit, similarly to how whipped cream comes together after a long time mixing it. The eggs will be a little stiffer, and may result in a more solid result. Hope that helps, for you or anyone else reading this!
Dale
These are great!! I’ve made these three times now. Something happened the second time, they didn’t set. I just baked these for the third time and had to give them an extra 5 minutes in the oven, till it didn’t jiggle. I hope the third batch comes out as great as the first ones. The second batch tasted great just was a little undercooked.
Elizabeth Lindemann
So glad you liked them! I find baking time depends on a variety of factors, so it makes sense that one batch would take longer than others. Just give it a little more time if it seems undercooked, and you should be fine!
RobinB
So easy and delicious!!
Elizabeth Lindemann
So glad you liked them!
Katie
Made these today! I’m a huge fan of tart lemon bars and these were absolutely perfect! Thanks for a great simple recipe. I will be sure to made these again.
Elizabeth Lindemann
So happy you liked them!
Valerie
Ok I just had to comment. I am not a fan of lemon, I like the fruit but not usually anything else. These are Amazing !!! Thank you Thank you so much for this recipe. I had a bag of myer lemons and was thinking what to do with them. I looked online for easy to do Lemon recipes. I am so glad I did. Had to have one as soon as they were finished. Again thank You so much Elizabeth!
Elizabeth Lindemann
Aw this comment made my day! So happy you liked them and thanks so much!
Terry Brown
I’ve made these a few times and they are great. First time I added cranberries to the crust layer and most recently I added fresh blueberries to the lemon layer and they turned out great.
Elizabeth Lindemann
Oh wow I love the idea of adding cranberries/blueberries! So happy you liked the recipe!
Jacquelyn Richardson
Easy and delicious!
Elizabeth Lindemann
Thanks so much! Glad you liked them :-)
Susan
Just made these wonderful little bars with some Meyer lemons I got for Christmas. They actually are easy to make (1 bowl) , and taste great. My husband and I were sampling them while they were still warm, hats how great they are. Thank you for this recipe!
Elizabeth Lindemann
So happy you both liked them! Thanks so much!
Rianna
Thank you so much for this recipe! It was perfect. These are the best lemon bars I’ve ever had.
Elizabeth Lindemann
So glad you liked them!!
Betty
Question: the ingredients call for a cup of butter and the instructions call for 1/2 cup.. which is it? Surely you aren’t using the other 1/2 cup for greasing the pan. I’m confused. I’m looking forward to trying your recipe if you can help me on that score.
Thank you..
Elizabeth Lindemann
Oh man, sorry about that! In an effort to make my recipes easier to read (ie not have to scroll up and down all the time), I went back and added the ingredient amounts in the instructions. But I made a few mistakes along the way. Thank you SO much for catching this! It should be 1 cup for the crust, with a little bit of it used to grease the pan. I’m going to fix the instructions now. Hope you like them!
Sussan
I love lemon bars and these look delish. But is there any way to make them gluten free and dairy free with substitutions.?
Elizabeth Lindemann
That’s a great question! I’ve never tried it before, but I’d use ghee instead of butter (ghee IS butter, just without the dairy particles in it, so it’s appropriate for a dairy free diet), and gluten-free flour. This recipe is pretty forgiving, so I think that should do the trick :-) Let me know how it comes out if you try it!
Susie
Thanks for sharing this wonderful recipe, I have enjoyed it and so has my friends.
Elizabeth
I’m so happy you and your friends like the recipe! These lemon bars are one of my favorite things in the world.