I couldn’t let too many days of the new year go by without sharing a sweet treat now could I? To me- the winter months are always about citrus- bright, slightly tart and fruity desserts that somehow seem lighter than the rich, chocolatey alternative. Also, am I the only one who finds the brightness of citrus a ray of sunshine during the otherwise dreary weeks of winter?
January always feels like the hardest month of the year to get through and this year may be the worst as the end of the month will bring my baby that I feel I’ve been waiting for forever. I’m doing my best to keep busy, nesting away, getting in naps when I can and stocking up on freezer meals and blog posts, but a burst of delicious tart citrus never fails to keep me perky and reminded of the sunnier days to come!
These bars have an almost brownie-like texture- crisp on the edges with soft and chewy middles. They are lemon-y to the max and are topped with a gooey lemon glaze that sends them over the top. They are delicious freshly glazed, but I also froze a bunch of them and then thawed them in the container at room temperature. You’d never have known they were frozen as they tasted absolutely perfect and the texture was spot on. Convenient and delicious- can’t beat that right?
PS- Don’t forget to enter to win a KitchenAid Stand mixer- the giveaway I shared yesterday is still going on until the end of the week!
- ¾ cup flour
- ¾ cup sugar
- ¼ teaspoon salt
- 1 stick butter, soft
- 1 egg and 1 yolk
- juice and zest from ½ lemon
- ¾ cup powdered sugar
- 1-2 tablespoons lemon juice
- additional lemon zest for sprinkling
- In a large bowl, cream together the butter and sugar until smooth and pale. Add the egg, yolk, juice and zest and mix until well combined.
- Sprinkle the flour and salt over the wet ingredients and mix on low until well combined - (do not over mix)
- Pour batter into a greased 8x8 baking pan and bake at 350 for 25 minutes, or until the edges are just golden and the center of the pan is set. Cool bars before glazing.
- Stir the powdered sugar together with the lemon juice (1 tablespoon to start, adding more if needed) until a smooth consistency is reached.
- Spread glaze over the bars and top with lemon zest.
Elisa @ Insalata di Sillabe says
January 6, 2014 at 6:05 amI’m a huge lemon lover so you can bet I’m already in love with this recipe! I have to admit chocolate based desserts have tired me a little, and the best alternative in my opinion is something lemon-y, fresh and simply delicious!
And what’s better than lemon blondies?!
Thanks for this amazing recipe :)
xo, Elisa
Rebecca says
January 6, 2014 at 6:32 amThey look super delicious! I would really like to eat one of them now ;)
Take care, rebecca
Rachel @ Baked by Rachel says
January 6, 2014 at 7:52 amThese look seriously amazing! I want them for breakfast lol ;)
Taylor @ FoodFaithFitness says
January 6, 2014 at 8:09 amI LOVE lemon, and these look perfect and quite simple! I just want to pour that glaze all over my face. Weird? Potentially. Necessary? Yes.
Rossi @ A Baking Girl says
January 6, 2014 at 8:42 amI love all things lemon, so these look divine. I’m thinking they could be really with Meyer lemons, as those always make me feel a little bit extra fancy :)
Jordan Lynn // Life Between Lattes says
January 6, 2014 at 9:54 amLemon bars are one of my favorite desserts, but I never eat/ make them. Soft and chewy lemon blondes are like too good to be true. They look soooo ridiculously tasty.
Katrina @ Warm Vanilla Sugar says
January 6, 2014 at 10:06 amLemon bars are the best! Love these!
Jennifer | Bake or Break says
January 6, 2014 at 10:46 amI love the texture of these. I don’t bake a lot with lemons, but this time of year always makes me want to stock up on lemons and limes!
Monica says
January 6, 2014 at 11:14 amYum! I agree, a little burst of citrus really brightens up the winter day. Stay warm!
Tricia says
January 6, 2014 at 11:16 ambeautiful. i would love to eat these right now but i’m trying a break for at least two weeks from desserts and baked goods. i overdosed!!! over the holidays i made some citrus marmalade from all the fruit on my parents farm. i need to give you a jar….if you like marmalade? it is a taste not everyone enjoys but i really like it!!! xoxo
Stephanie @ Girl Versus Dough says
January 6, 2014 at 12:10 pmPinned before I even looked at the recipe because holy moly, these look and sound so good!
Annie @ Annie's City Kitchen says
January 6, 2014 at 12:34 pmSeeing as it’s literally -15 degrees in Chicago today, these bars would be much-appreciated in my kitchen! Either that or just a giant un-ending mug of tea.
Anna @ Bashful Bao says
January 6, 2014 at 2:42 pmI would love to give these a try with grapefruit–they look stunning (and warming)!!
Coco in the Kitchen says
January 6, 2014 at 3:49 pmLook at that gorgeous bright Tweety yellow colour!
I HAVE to taste these…you know, for scientific reasons. :)
stephanie says
January 6, 2014 at 5:26 pmThank you for reminding me of this recipe and letting us know they freeze well! Your blondies look so delicious!
Joanne says
January 6, 2014 at 5:30 pmI have a meyer lemon on my counter that is destined for these!!
Stephie @ EYHO says
January 6, 2014 at 7:46 pmI CANNOT wait to try these!! They look so perfect. I wish I had a lemon right now because I would so be making these in this tundra weather.
Lily @ Life, Love, and Cupcakes says
January 7, 2014 at 8:41 amThese sound fabulous!! I love anything sweet in the winter, chocolate and citrus, so these sounds pretty perfect right now!
Heather @ Sugar Dish Me says
January 7, 2014 at 9:47 amYou are SO right about the citrus ray of sunshine! These are GORGEOUS. I think I’ll make them today!!!
Heather says
January 7, 2014 at 3:28 pmThese look so great! I agree — Lemons are exactly like little balls of sunshine! Perfect for brightening up these cold, dark months.
Jennie @themessybakerblog says
January 8, 2014 at 1:27 pmCitrus is definitely a welcome treat during the blustery, gray-sky month of January. These bars look so moist and delicate. I can’t believe the wee one will be here soon. Time sure does fly.
Nutmeg Nanny says
January 8, 2014 at 2:06 pmI am dying over these lemon blondies! Heavenly :)
Jenna says
January 9, 2014 at 5:26 pmI tried making these the other day, but they didn’t look or turn out like yours did. They were sadly not gooey, but very crumbly and wouldn’t hold together well. I followed the recipe exactly other than using bottled lemon juice in place of the fresh juice and zest. (I have no fresh lemons on hand.) What could I have done wrong? Still quite tasty, I will be sure to try these again!
Audra says
January 11, 2014 at 5:56 pmHey Jenna
I’m so sorry they didn’t turn out quite right for you. I wish I could pin-point what went wrong- the juice thing shouldn’t have been an issue. It’s possible there was another error but I’m not sure what. I’ve made them a few times with great success so I hope you try again! :)
RawInTheMiddle says
January 11, 2014 at 9:01 amI second (third, fourth) the sentiment of little rays of sunshine. Nom nom.
Lily says
January 12, 2014 at 2:00 pmJust took these out of the oven now, it will be hard to wait til they cool before glazing and eating them!
I wonder if it would be possible to do some kind of lemon-white chocolate glaze or ganache with these, but for now I’ll stick with the regular lemon glaze :)
Audra says
January 14, 2014 at 7:19 pmI’m sure the white chocolate idea would be delicious but I love the regular gooey glaze :)
Arzoo Agarwal says
April 12, 2014 at 9:38 amI tried making these and they turned out pretty tasty but they didnt rise up as much,what could have been the reason?
Audra says
April 12, 2014 at 9:51 amIs it possible your baking powder/soda were expired?
Audra says
April 17, 2014 at 12:04 pmI just realized in told you to check the powder/soda but there actually isn’t any in this recipe. Sorry about that sleep-deprived new mom snafu! I am my are why your bars didn’t rise as much- hard to know what went wrong since I wasn’t there. I do have to say though- they’re not meant to rise much. They are a dense-brownie-like texture. Did you use a bigger pan?
Arzoo Agarwal says
April 12, 2014 at 9:56 amNot expired but yes i guess its gotten a little old,will try next tim with a new one:)
Alisa says
April 17, 2014 at 12:07 amI don’t see baking powder or soda in the recipe but see it suggested as being a problem when it didn’t work. How much of which should be included? Thanks!
Audra says
April 17, 2014 at 12:02 pmThat’s a very good point- that’s what I get for trying to give advice when sleep deprived :) can I blame it on new mom brain?
No powder or soda in this recipe :) I will add to my earlier “advice” :)
Catherine says
April 20, 2014 at 3:37 pmI just made those and added some finely chopped candied ginger in the batter, baked then in a muffin pan and topped each blondie with a raspberry. They look and taste great, and only take a few minutes to make. I highly recommend this recipe!
Kayla says
May 20, 2014 at 9:13 amI was wondering about freezing these. I’m planning on making them for a bridal shower and it would be great if I could make them now and freeze them. Did you put the glaze on before freezing or after you thawed them? Thanks!
Audra says
May 20, 2014 at 7:56 pmI froze them glazed but you could glaze right before serving as well! :)
Sandra says
September 24, 2015 at 10:23 amThese were awesome! I was really wanting to find something lemony that was slightly less work than the basic lemon bar. It brought back some wonderful food memories as well. Definitely holding on to this recipe. Out of curiosity, has anyone tried doing a gluten free version of this with success?
Robin says
February 9, 2017 at 11:11 amCan I just use 2 eggs instead of one egg and one egg yolk ? Just easier to use 2 eggs. Thanks