Name: Gluten Free Meyer Lemon Bars
Prep time: 15 min
Cook time: 33 min
Total time: 48 min
Ingredients: 6 Tablespoons butter; 1/4 c. sugar; 1/2 c. oat grahams (crushed); 1/2 c. gluten free flour; 2 eggs; 3/4 c. sugar; 1 Tablespoons Meyer lemon zest; 3 Tablespoons Meyer lemon juice; 1 Tablespoons vanilla extract; 2 Tablespoons gluten free flour; 1/2 teaspoon baking powder

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Meyer Lemon Bars made with an oat graham and gluten free flour crust then topped off with a delicious sweet and tart Meyer lemon filling make for the best lemon bars!

Welcome to #LemonWeek 2022 hosted by Lynn from Fresh April Flours and Rebecca from Devour Dinner. This week is sponsored by Rodelle and La Tourangelle. I may have received product samples from these sponsors to help in the creation of my recipes. All opinions are my own. Come join me and my fellow Lemon Week bloggers as we bring you recipes from appetizers to drinks to entrées and desserts!

Lemon bars are one of my favorite desserts. There’s just something about the sweet and tart combination of flavors on top of a crumbly crust that makes me swoon.

Growing up my Aunt Valerie would always make lemon bars and they would be the hit of the party. While I’m not big into eating sweets that I don’t make I’d always eat at least two of these tasty bars.

In the past I’ve made Meyer Lemon Bars and a gluten free lemon bar so I figured why not put them together to make a gluten free lemon bar? I had some beautiful Meyer lemons just beginning to be used in a dessert so I got to work.

Ingredients:

butter
sugar
oat grahams
gluten free flour
eggs
Meyer lemons
Rodelle vanilla extract
baking powder
powdered sugar

To Make the Crust: Cream together the butter and sugar. Add in the crushed oat grahams and gluten free flour and mix until a crumbly dough has formed. Press it into the bottom of an 8 x 8 baking dish.

To Make the Filling: Beat the eggs in a large bowl until fluffy and pale yellow. Add in the sugar and mix well. Stir in the Meyer lemon zest, Meyer lemon juice, and vanilla extract. Stir in flour and baking powder. Pour on top of baked crust.

To Bake the Bars: Bake at 350 degrees for 15 minutes. Remove from oven, cool, and sprinkle with powdered sugar.

So I’m not a huge fan of gluten free crusts. I have found a good combination of gluten free flours that I like to bake with and that result in decent cookies and cakes but I haven’t really found a good combination for making a crust.

On a whim I decided that instead of just using gluten free flour in my crust I would crush some of my favorite oat grahams and add those to the gluten free flour to form my base. The good news is that this totally worked!

The texture of the crust was great and it yielded a really nice flavor. In fact, my husband couldn’t tell that these bars were gluten free and he can always tell when I make a gluten free dessert!

What is the difference between regular lemons and Meyer lemons?

Meyer lemons have a darker yellow exterior and a darker yellow interior. The exterior skin of a Meyer lemon is smooth while a regular lemon is textured. Meyer lemons are smaller than a regular lemons. Meyer Lemons are also sweeter than regular lemons and will definitely add sweetness to recipes.

Can I use regular lemons in this recipe?

Of course you can. Your lemon bars will be slightly more tart than if you used Meyer lemons but they will be just as delicious.

Can I substitute something for the oat grahams?

While I think the oat grahams totally make this crust delicious you can certainly substitute a different ingredient if you can’t find them. Any gluten free graham cracker will work in place of the oat grahams in this recipe. You can also substitute 1:1 gluten free flour for the oat grahams in the crust.

How do I zest a lemon?

Citrus zest is the colored outside portion of the peel. Because of the natural oils in it the peel and zest hold a lot of the citrus flavor in them.

When zesting a lemon make sure to only zest the yellow colored peel and not the white part underneath the skin because the white part is very bitter. There is an actual zester you can buy at the store to zest citrus fruit. To use it hold the handle in one hand and place the other edge on a hard surface then quickly move the lemon back and forth over the holes in the zester to produce the zest.

If you don’t have a zester you can use a vegetable peeler in a pinch. Carefully peel long strips of peel from the lemon. Then take a sharp chef’s knife and chop into tiny pieces. This isn’t ideal but it will work. You can also use a box grater. Turn it to the side with the super tiny holes and run the lemon back and forth over it. You may need to scrape the zest from the inside of the box grater.

Making the filling for these bars is easy. You will need either a hand mixer or a stand mixer to beat the eggs and give them the light and fluffy texture. Once the eggs are properly beaten add in the sugar, lemon juice, and lemon zest.

The lemon filling is poured over top of the hot crust and then is baked until set. The final step is sprinkling with powdered sugar. You can do this by hand or put the sugar in a fine mesh sieve and tap the side to get an even dusting.

More Meyer Lemon Recipes:

These bars are amazing! The crust is sweet and buttery with the tart and sweet lemon filling on top. The powdered sugar adds just a hint of additional sweetness to the bars.

The texture is perfect too. It’s a crumbly, crisp crust with the gooey lemon on top. This dessert is great served after a heavy meal or at a summer picnic.

If you’ve tried my Gluten Free Lemon Bars or any other recipe on Hezzi-D’s Books and Cooks please take a minute to rate the recipe and leave a comment letting me know how you liked it. I love hearing from you! You can FOLLOW ME on: