Meyer Lemon Brown Butter Bars
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If you’ve ever wondered what sunshine tastes like, look no further than these sweet and tangy Meyer lemon brown butter bars. Bright and bursting with Meyer lemon zest and juice, I’ve never liked a lemon bar more!
The secret to the best lemon squares is pairing the fruity Meyer lemon filling with a press-in brown butter shortbread crust. Brown butter is the fastest way to add depth of flavor to any recipe, giving these bars a richness that balances nicely with the lemon filling.
Perfectly sweet-tart, serve the chilled lemon bars with a generous dusting of powdered sugar for the best spring dessert!
Love baking with Meyer lemons? Find more inspiration in this round up of favorite fresh Meyer lemon recipes!
How to Make Brown Butter Lemon Bars
Fresh Juice – Use fresh Meyer lemon zest and juice for the best citrus flavor! Meyer lemons are sweeter than regular lemons – if you don’t have Meyer lemons and want to use regular lemons instead, increase the sugar in the filling to 1 cup.
Brown Butter Crust – To make the crust, brown butter in a heavy saucepan. Pour browned butter into a large mixing bowl and let cool for 5 minutes. Whisk in sugar, vanilla, and salt until smooth. Fold in flour until incorporated, then press the crust firmly and evenly into prepared baking pan.
Pre-Bake Crust – Bake the crust at 350°F for 22 to 24 minutes, until the top is set and edges are golden. Remove crust from the oven and reduce over temperature to 325°F.
Meyer Lemon Filling – When the crust is almost finished baking, make the Meyer lemon filling. Sift together flour, sugar, and salt in a large bowl. Whisk in eggs, Meyer lemon zest, and juice until smooth and fully incorporated.
Bake Filling – Slowly pour the lemon filling over the warm pre-baked crust. Carefully return pan to oven and continue baking the bars at 325°F until filling is firm and no longer jiggles, 22 to 25 minutes.
Cool Bars – Remove bars from the oven and cool for 1 hour on a wire rack, then chill in the refrigerator (uncovered) for at least 2 hours before serving.
Serve Bars – When you’re ready to serve the lemon bars, lift parchment and transfer to a cutting board. Cut into squares with a sharp knife and dust squares with powdered sugar just before serving.
Freeze Lemon Bars
Once the bars are sliced (skip the powdered sugar topping), arrange them in a single layer on a baking sheet and freeze until firm, 1-2 hours. Once the bars are frozen, wrap individually in plastic wrap and store them in a freezer bag up to 2 months.
When you’re ready to enjoy, thaw the bars overnight in the refrigerator (still wrapped to prevent condensation from forming). Dust lemon bars with powdered sugar before serving.
How to Double the Recipe
If you’re making treats to share, this recipe easily doubles for a 13 x 9-inch rectangular baking pan. Simply double the ingredients and bake as directed (the baking time will remain the same).
More Meyer lemon recipes you’ll love:
Did you try these Brown Butter Lemon Bars? Let me know by leaving a comment and rating below!
Print
Meyer Lemon Brown Butter Bars
- Prep Time: 35 minutes
- Cook Time: 50 minutes
- Total Time: 1 hour 25 minutes
- Yield: 12 to 16 bars
- Category: Dessert
- Method: Bake
- Cuisine: American
Description
Sweet and tangy Meyer lemon brown butter bars make the best treat! You’ll love these easy lemon bars with a generous dusting of powdered sugar.
Ingredients
Crust
- 3/4 cup unsalted butter
- 3/4 cup sugar
- 1 tsp vanilla
- 1/8 tsp salt
- 1 1/2 cups flour
Filling
- 3/4 cup sugar
- 3 Tbsp flour, sifted
- pinch of salt
- 3 large eggs, at room temperature
- 2 Tbsp fresh Meyer lemon zest
- 1/2 cup fresh Meyer lemon juice
- powdered sugar, for dusting
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350°F and line an 8-inch square baking pan with parchment paper.
- Make the crust: Cook butter in a heavy saucepan over medium heat, stirring constantly until it foams, turns clear, and then turns a medium brown, about 5 minutes. Pour browned butter into a large mixing bowl and let cool for 5 minutes.
- Add sugar, vanilla, and salt; whisk in until smooth. Fold in flour until incorporated.
- Press dough evenly into bottom of prepared baking pan. Bake the crust for 22 to 24 minutes, until the top is set and the edges are golden.
- Make the filling: When the crust is almost finished baking, make the filling. Sift together flour, sugar, and salt in a large bowl. Whisk in eggs, Meyer lemon zest, and juice until smooth and fully incorporated.
- Reduce oven temperature to 325°F and slowly pour filling over hot crust. Carefully return pan to oven and continue baking until filling is firm, 22 to 25 minutes. Remove bars from the oven and cool for 1 hour on a wire rack, then chill in the refrigerator for 2 hours.
- To serve, carefully lift parchment and place bars on a cutting board. Cut into squares with a sharp knife and dust squares with powdered sugar just before serving.
Notes
Lemons: Use fresh Meyer lemon zest and juice for the best citrus flavor! Meyer lemons are sweeter than regular lemons – if you don’t have Meyer lemons and want to make these bars with regular lemons, increase the sugar in the filling to 1 cup.
To freeze lemon bars: Once the bars are sliced (skip the powdered sugar topping), arrange them in a single layer on a baking sheet and freeze until firm, 1-2 hours. Once the bars are frozen, wrap individually in plastic wrap and store them in a freezer bag up to 2 months. Thaw the bars overnight in the refrigerator, and dust with powdered sugar before serving.
Double the recipe: This recipe easily doubles for a 13 x 9-inch baking pan. Simply double the ingredients and bake as directed (the baking time will remain the same).
Keywords: Meyer Lemon, Lemon, Lemon Bar, Lemon Square
These are dee-frickin-licious! Wow! The Meyer lemons on my tree are not quite ready so I used ‘regular’ lemons…oh so good. I wish now that I had doubled the recipe….also, I did add more sugar because of the lemons available. Can’t wait to make them again. Thanks Laura!
Oh yum, so glad you tried these bars! 🙂
I love everything lemon from my morning tea to lemony chicken to lemon curd desserts. I can’t wait to add these to my favorite list. Thank you for sharing. 😘
OMG These are the Best Lemon Bars I have ever made. I served them to friends for dessert this past weekend and everyone said the same thing “THE BEST LEMON BARS” ever!!!!
Thank you so much and your recipe was very easy to follow, which I also appreciate.
Love your recipes!!!
Phyllis Marie
That’s so wonderful to hear, thank you for your feedback! 🙂
The perfect recipe for my Meyer lemons! Such easy and delicious lemon bars!
★★★★★
Hi Kim, I’m so glad you tried this recipe! 🙂
These bars are so delicious and I can’t wait to make them again for my family at Easter! This recipe is going in the forever-rotation.
★★★★★
Thanks so much for your feedback, Liane! 🙂