Luscious Lemon Bars with Buttery Shortbread Crust

These Luscious Lemon Bars with Buttery Shortbread Crust deliver everything you want in a classic lemon dessert. Bold citrus flavor, a thick buttery crust, and a soft, creamy filling that slices beautifully every time.

Prep Time30

Cook Time50

cooling time2

Total Time3 20

Course: Dessert

Cuisine: American

Keyword: Dessert Bars Recipe, dessert recipe, easter recipe, fruit recipe, Mother's Day Dessert, summer dessert, sweet snack, Valentine's Dessert

Servings: pieces

Calories: 235kcal

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Kitchen Essentials

Aluminum Cake Pan

Food processor

Ingredients

For the Crust

1¾ Cups All-Purpose Flour spooned and leveled
¼ Cup Cornstarch
1 Teaspoon Salt
1 Cup Confectioners’ Sugar
1 Cup Unsalted Butter 2 sticks, cold and cut into ½-inch pieces
Extra confectioners’ sugar for dusting

For the Lemon Topping

6 Large Eggs
3 Cups Granulated Sugar
⅔ Cup Lemon Juice bottled or about 5–6 lemons if fresh-squeezed
⅔ Cup All-Purpose Flour
2 Tablespoons Lemon Zest optional, but lovely Tip: If using fresh lemons, zest them before juicing.

Instructions

How to Make Luscious Lemon Bars

Step 1: Prepare the Pan and Oven

Adjust an oven rack to the middle position and preheat the oven to 350°F.
Line a 9×13-inch metal baking pan with heavy-duty aluminum foil, pressing it neatly into the corners and up the sides. Leave an overhang on all sides to make removal easy later. Spray the foil with nonstick cooking spray.
Grandma-style wisdom: Don’t skip the foil overhang. It makes lifting and slicing the bars so much easier.

Step 2: Make the Shortbread Crust

In a food processor fitted with the blade attachment, combine the flour, cornstarch, salt, and confectioners’ sugar. Pulse briefly to mix.
1¾ Cups All-Purpose Flour, ¼ Cup Cornstarch, 1 Teaspoon Salt, 1 Cup Confectioners’ Sugar
Add the cold butter pieces and process until the mixture resembles coarse crumbs, about 10–15 seconds.
1 Cup Unsalted Butter
Sprinkle the mixture evenly into the prepared pan. Press it firmly into an even layer, building up a thin ¾-inch edge around the sides to keep the filling from seeping underneath.
Chill the crust for 30 minutes in the refrigerator or 15 minutes in the freezer.
Bake the crust for 15–20 minutes, until lightly golden.

Step 3: Make the Lemon Filling

While the crust bakes, whisk together the eggs, granulated sugar, lemon juice, lemon zest (if using), and flour in a large bowl. Whisk until completely smooth, making sure there are no lumps of flour.
6 Large Eggs, 3 Cups Granulated Sugar, ⅔ Cup Lemon Juice, 2 Tablespoons Lemon Zest, ⅔ Cup All-Purpose Flour
When the crust comes out of the oven, give the lemon mixture one final stir and immediately pour it over the hot crust.
Return the pan to the oven and bake for 35–40 minutes, or until the filling is set and no longer jiggly in the center.

Step 4: Cool, Slice, and Serve

Let the lemon bars cool completely on a wire rack. This will take several hours, but it’s important for clean slices and the right texture.
Once cooled, use the foil overhang to lift the bars out of the pan and transfer to a cutting board. Carefully loosen the foil from the edges.
Slice into squares or triangles using a sharp knife. Just before serving, dust generously with confectioners’ sugar.
Extra confectioners’ sugar

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Notes

Storage & Make-Ahead Tips

Refrigerator. Store lemon bars in a covered container in the refrigerator for up to 4 days.
Serving. These bars are delicious chilled or at room temperature, but I personally love them cold. The lemon flavor really shines.
Make-Ahead Friendly. These lemon bars are even better the next day, making them ideal for prepping ahead of time.
Freezer Friendly too. These lemon bars freeze beautifully for up to 3 months.

Helpful Notes

Use heavy-duty aluminum foil to prevent sticking. Regular foil may tear or cling to the crust.
Parchment paper can also be used, but foil provides the cleanest lift for this recipe.
For extra lemon flavor, don’t skip the zest—it adds brightness without extra liquid.
Use bottled lemon juice or fresh. I have made this recipe with both, and it turns out wonderful.
Unsalted Butter VS Salted Butter. This recipe calls for unsalted butter. This way, you know exactly how much salt is in the recipe by adding it separately. If using salted butter, omit the salt from the recipe.

Nutrition