HealthyHappyLife.com

  • recipes
  • cookbooks
  • about
  • subscribe
  • mom life
  • travel
  • blogging
  • videos
  • free gift!
  • shop
menu icon
go to homepage
  • recipes
  • cookbooks
  • about
  • subscribe
  • mom life
  • travel
  • blogging
  • videos
  • free gift!
  • shop
search icon
Homepage link
  • recipes
  • cookbooks
  • about
  • subscribe
  • mom life
  • travel
  • blogging
  • videos
  • free gift!
  • shop
×
  • Plant-Based Recipes for Hot Summer Days
  • Simple Vegan Cacio e Pepe Pasta - One-Pot Meal
  • Summer Dress Try-On: My Favorite Twirl-Tested, Celebration-Worthy Picks
  • Face: What Our Skincare Routines Say About Modern Motherhood
  • Still Obsessed: My Rothy’s Code + Review (2025)
  • My Pandemic Baby Is Graduating Preschool
  • 5 Comfy-Cute, One Piece Swimsuits - Long Torso Edit
  • Spring Fling: Best Garden & Outdoor Finds for Your Home & Kids
  • Plant-Based Protein Sources: The Ultimate Guide // Back to Basics Series
  • Overthinking Won't Save You — But This Might
  • Creative Mom Working From Home: Glitter, Chaos, & On-Brand Post-its
  • The Ultimate Copenhagen with Kids Guide: Where to Stay, Eat & Play
Home » Recipes » dessert

Vegan Lemon Bars

by Kathy Patalsky · updated: Oct 19, 2023 · published: Jun 14, 2021 · About 5 minutes to read this article. 1 Comment

Vegan Lemon Bars

These Vegan Lemon Bars are super zesty and sweet with a tender custard-like texture, layered with buttery shortbread crust. The basic ingredients include butter, eggs and fresh lemon juice -- all vegan versions of those ingredients of course!

This recipe looks so fancy and delightful when served at a summer party, yet they are super easy to make. These from-scratch lemon bars have so much brightness and character. They are sure to liven up any and every dessert table or platter!..

Vegan Lemon Bars

Lovers of Lemon

Lemon bars were always one of my favorite desserts when I was a kid. I would find them at bakeries or party platters or big buffets. They were also a bake sale and potluck favorite!

I have made them a few times over the years, but this week I wanted to really make some super classic, super tangy and bright bars. The kind that really bite you in the best way possible when you taste them.

Vegan Lemon Bar yellow

These bars are not shrinking violets when it comes to lemony flavor.

I used fresh lemon juice and zest in these vegan lemon bars and you can really taste a big difference between if you were to use a pre-squeezed, store-bought lemon juice. Squeeze your own lemons! Not only will these bars taste better, you will get all perky and cheery-eyed from those lemony smells humming through your kitchen.

Vegan Lemon Bars from oven

Vegan Lemon Bar Ingredients

For the butter, I simply used vegan butter, aka Earth Balance is my favorite.

For the eggs I used JUST Egg product. I sub about ½ cup per egg.

Those are the only two ingredients you have to veganize. The flour, sugar, lemon juice etc is all good to go.

lemon Bars

Classic Lemon Bar Recipe

This is a very classic recipe. I have been making a variation of these for years using silken tofu. But this time I went all in on "vegan subs" and used JUST Egg product as the egg substitute. The result was a bit more flavort and even better texture than I remember from my vegan lemon bars of the past.

I referenced Sally's Baking Addiction classic lemon bar recipe when crafting these. She has a really lovely and simple crust recipe which I veganized. Sally has such an awesome dessert blog. It is one of my favorites to browse when I am looking for something new to make in the dessert arena. I sometimes fall into a chocolate chi cookie and peanut butter cookie baking rut!

lemon squares

Another fun spin on bars... pink flamingo bars!

pink bars

Shortbread Crust

I love a realy tender and buttery crust to contrast the sharp lemon flavor of these vegan lemon bars. My crust actually went a bit thicker than I would normally do, but it still worked well. Just be aware that if you want a thinner crust, you can use a slightly larger pan than me. Your lemon layer will be slightly less thick too.

Baking Time for Vegan Lemon Bars

For these vegan lemon bars, I found I had to bake a bit longer than anticipated. I actually did around 35 minutes just to really make sure my bars were cooked through. Some recipes say 25 minutes is enough, but for the vegan version with 1 ½ cups of vegan egg, go for at least 30 minutes at 325 degrees.

And check in on your bars around the 25 minute mark. You should start to see them glossing over and browning a bit on the sides.

Vegan Lemon Bars

Summer Dessert Recipe

These bars are such a lovely summer dessert recipe! They pair so well with a warm day. Sometimes chocolate desserts can feel heavy when the temperatures start to rise. But vegan lemon bars are perfect for a summer wedding, birthday party, baby shower or graduation event.

If you want a lime twist, substitute key lime juice for the lemon juice!

You could even add some coconut whip on top to serve.

Vegan Lemon Bars

Bright, zesty and sweet, these lovely vegan lemon bars are the perfect dessert treat for warm weather or cheerful celebrations. Buttery shortbread crust.
4.41 from 15 votes
click the stars to rate
Print Pin
Prep: 15 minutes mins
Cook: 55 minutes mins
Cool Time: 2 hours hrs
Total: 3 hours hrs 10 minutes mins
Servings: 9 bars

Ingredients

Crust

  • ½ cup vegan butter, melted
  • ¼ cup sugar
  • 1 ½ cups flour
  • 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
  • ¼ teaspoon salt

Lemon Filling

  • 1 ½ cups vegan egg (JUST Egg used)
  • 1 cup cane sugar
  • ¾ cup fresh lemon juice
  • ¼ teaspoon fresh lemon zest
  • 2 teaspoon corn starch
  • ⅛ teaspoon salt
  • ⅔ cup flour

Topping

  • 2 tablespoon powdered sugar

Instructions

  • Line an 8x8 or 9x9 square baking dish with parchment paper. Preheat oven to 325.
  • For crust: Mix together the melted vegan butter, sugar, flour, vanilla and salt. Pour into the baking dish. Using floured fingeres press the crust evenly into the dish.,
  • Bake the crust at 325 for 15-20 minutes. You want the edges lightly browned. The crust will be tender coming out, that's ok.
  • In a large mixing bowl, which together the lemon, vegan butter, vegan eggs, sugar, starch, salt and flour. Pour the lemon mixture over top the baked crust.
  • Bake lemon bars for 25-35 minutes at 325 degrees. I baked mine for about 35 minutes just to be sure, but 30 minutes is really the sweet spot for baking these.
  • Pull from oven and allow to cool for at least an hour - ideally two hours or overnight.
  • Just before serving, sprinkle powdered sugar over top and then slice into squares.

Equipment

  • square casserole dish
  • mixing bowl
  • parchment paper
recipe author: Kathy Patalsky

nutrition estimate | per serving

Calories: 332kcal | Carbohydrates: 54g | Protein: 7g | Fat: 10g | Saturated Fat: 2g | Trans Fat: 1g | Sodium: 181mg | Potassium: 58mg | Fiber: 1g | Sugar: 29g | Vitamin A: 481IU | Vitamin C: 8mg | Calcium: 58mg | Iron: 2mg
Dessert
American
dessert, lemon
Did you make this?Snap a pic + tag me! @KathyPatalsky
Vegan Lemon Bars pin

More Desserts

  • Vegan Cinnamon Toast for Kids
  • The Color Monster Cake
  • Vegan Pumpkin Cheesecake
  • Mini Chocolate Candy Cookies

About Kathy Patalsky

Hey there! I'm Kathy, lover of kitty cats, weekend baking, 90's movies, travel, beach fog and foamy lattes. Since 2007, I have been sharing my vegan recipes and photos. My goal is to make your cooking life a little easier, delicious - and plant-loaded - while sharing some LIFE and conversation along the way.

Comments

    4.41 from 15 votes (15 ratings without comment)

    Leave a Reply Cancel reply

    Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

    Recipe Rating




  1. Michele says

    June 18, 2021 at 8:07 pm

    Hi, Kathy -
    You mention butter in the filling instructions, but it’s not listed in the ingredients. Can you please clarify?
    Thanks!

    Reply

Hi, I'm Kathy! I'm so glad you are here! I've been sharing my vegan life and recipes here on the blog since 2007...

More about me →

my cookbooks
my books

Latest Posts

  • Back to Basics: The Ultimate Guide to Vegan Egg Replacers
  • kathy patalsky hbd 44 joy
    I Bought Myself a Cameo for My Birthday - And No, I Haven't Watched it Yet
  • Easy English Muffin Pizzas for Kids (Vegan & Kid-Approved!)
  • 44. birthday post.

Trending

  • All Posts
  • appetizer
  • Mom Life
  • recipes
  • personal
  • dessert
  • holiday
  • Smoothies
  • snacks
  • kid recipes
  • kid crafts
  • salad
  • Sandwiches
  • entree
  • 101 Things I Love. Happiness Reflection.
  • 5-Minute Skillet Chickpeas
  • Vegan Dining at Disneyland - 2023 - Complete List!
  • 7 Tips for Fluffy Cinnamon Rolls
  • avocado toast with mushrooms
    Mushroom Avocado Toast
  • peanut butter chickpeas
    Easy Peanut Butter Curry Chickpeas

Footer

↑ back to top

About

  • about kathy
  • press
  • © 2024 polished dc, llc
  • Privacy Policy | Terms & Conditions

Newsletter

  • sign up..
  • subscriber gift: vegan cheat sheets!

Contact

  • work with me

Goodies

  • shop
  • cookbooks
  • finding vegan
  • videos

Rate This Recipe

Your vote:




Let us know what you thought of this recipe:

This worked exactly as written, thanks!
My family loved this!
Thank you for sharing this recipe

Or write in your own words:

A rating is required
A name is required
An email is required

Recipe Ratings without Comment

Something went wrong. Please try again.