If you love the tangy flavor of lemon, also try our lemon lime loaf, coconut lemon energy balls, or our lemon poppyseed banana bread. This cheerful take on classic lemon bars features the heavenly combination of lemon and coconut. Their appearance might be deceiving; these pretty bars are tart and bold, with the perfect ratio of cookie crust to lemon filling. A rich, buttery, coconut shortbread crust is topped with a tangy lemon custard-like filling, then baked to golden perfection. You don’t need any fancy ingredients or kitchen tools and the recipe is so simple to make. Most of your time will be spent twiddling your thumbs waiting for them to cool so you can dig in!
Flour – all-purpose flour will be the base for the thick cookie crust. Brown sugar – adds the right amount of sweetness to offset the tangy lemon filling. Salt – enhances the other flavors. Sweetened flaked coconut – for texture and flavor. Unsalted butter – adds richness and moisture to bring the crust together. Coconut oil – adds a subtle coconut flavor and moisture.
Granulated sugar – a fine granulated sugar will dissolve well. Eggs – give the filling its soft, creamy texture. Lemon juice + zest – a generous amount of fresh lemon juice and zest are the star of the show. Flour – acts as a binder to give the filling some structure. Salt Powdered sugar – optional, for sifting on top of the bars after they’ve cooled.
These bars don’t require any special kitchen tools, just a 9×9″ square metal baking tin and parchment paper.
Use fresh lemon juice. This is an occasion when fresh lemon juice is better than bottled. Wash the lemons before zesting them. Most citrus fruit has a wax on the skin that can inhibit their flavor. Washing helps to remove the wax but if you really want to get it off, soak the lemons in water with a bit of apple cider vinegar then rinse them and wipe them dry with a towel. Organic lemons also tend to have less wax than conventional so this could be a time to opt for organic. Don’t skimp on sugar. It can be tempting to reduce the amount of sugar but it plays an important role of adding moisture and keeping the bars from cracking. Don’t over-mix the filling. To keep a light, airy filling, avoid over-mixing. Allow them to cool completely. The lemon filling needs time to set before these bars are ready to be sliced. At room temperature, they’ll take about an hour to cool completely. We know it will be so hard to wait, but it’s so worth it!
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