Description
These Healthy Lemon Bars are a delicious gluten-free, paleo-friendly treat with a perfectly tangy lemon filling and a soft, tender coconut flour crust. Made with wholesome ingredients like maple syrup, ghee, and fresh lemon juice, these bars offer a healthier alternative to traditional lemon bars while maintaining classic flavors and texture.
Ingredients
Scale
Crust:
- 1/4 cup maple syrup
- 1/3 cup ghee, melted and cooled
- 1 large egg
- 2/3 cup Bob’s Red Mill Coconut Flour
- 1/4 cup Bob’s Red Mill Tapioca Flour
- 1/2 teaspoon lemon zest (zest of about 1/2 lemon)
- 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
Filling:
- 1/2 cup fresh lemon juice (about 4-5 lemons depending on size)
- 1 1/2 tablespoons lemon zest (zest of about 2 lemons)
- 1/3 cup maple syrup
- 4 large eggs
- 2 tablespoons tapioca flour
Instructions
- Preheat Oven: Preheat your oven to 350°F (175°C) to prepare for baking the crust.
- Mix Wet Ingredients for Crust: In a large mixing bowl, combine the maple syrup, vanilla extract, melted and cooled ghee, and one large egg. Make sure the ghee is cooled so it doesn’t cook the egg.
- Combine Dry Ingredients for Crust: In another bowl, whisk together the coconut flour, tapioca flour, and lemon zest. Slowly stream in the wet ingredients while mixing with a fork. Though the mixture seems wet at first, keep mixing as the coconut flour absorbs the liquid and forms a dough.
- Form the Dough: Mix until the dough comes together fully and resembles a soft, pliable dough.
- Press Dough into Pan: Press the dough evenly into an 8×8 inch baking pan, either sprayed with cooking spray or lined with parchment paper for easy removal.
- Prick the Dough: Use a fork to gently prick the dough a few times, but do not pierce all the way through. This helps any steam escape while baking.
- Bake the Crust: Bake the crust at 350°F for 8-10 minutes. It should look just set with a slight golden edge. If the dough puffs, gently prick it again to deflate.
- Prepare the Filling: While the crust bakes, whisk together the 4 eggs, lemon zest, maple syrup, fresh lemon juice, and tapioca flour until perfectly smooth and fully combined.
- Add Filling to Crust: As soon as the crust comes out of the oven, pour the lemon filling evenly over the hot crust without letting the crust cool.
- Bake the Bars: Reduce oven temperature to 325°F and bake the lemon bars for 14-16 minutes, watching closely to remove them as soon as the filling is just set and not wobbly.
- Cool and Chill: Remove the bars from the oven and allow them to cool completely at room temperature, then transfer to the refrigerator to chill for at least 90 minutes.
- Serve: Once chilled and firm, cut the bars into squares and serve alone or topped with whipped topping or powdered sugar for a traditional touch (not paleo).
Notes
- This recipe does not lend itself well to substitutions. For best results, use the specified ingredients to maintain the gluten-free, paleo-friendly qualities.
- You can use either glass or metal baking dishes. Metal pans conduct heat better and will bake the bars faster but may cause slight cracking if baked beyond the set stage. This cracking does not affect flavor.
- Fresh lemon juice is essential for the best flavor. Avoid using bottled lemon juice.
- Swapping the lemon for lime works nicely if you prefer key lime pie bars.
- Do not substitute flours other than the specified coconut and tapioca flours; almond flour or others will not yield the same texture or structure.
- Eggs are a crucial binding and flavor element; no good substitutes exist for this recipe unless using a specific vegan lemon bar recipe.
- Ghee adds a buttery cookie flavor missing from coconut oil; avoid substituting coconut oil due to flavor and texture issues. Grass-fed or regular butter can be used if not following paleo.
- Coconut sugar is not recommended as it does not melt like liquid sweeteners and results in poor texture and flavor.
- Maple syrup may potentially be substituted with honey, though this has not been tested.
- Doubling the recipe should work in a 9×13 inch pan, though this is untested.
Nutrition
- Serving Size: 1 bar (1/9th of recipe)
- Calories: 150
- Sugar: 12g
- Sodium: 30mg
- Fat: 8g
- Saturated Fat: 4.5g
- Unsaturated Fat: 2.5g
- Trans Fat: 0g
- Carbohydrates: 18g
- Fiber: 3g
- Protein: 3g
- Cholesterol: 70mg
