Put a spin on a classic treat by making these lemon bars with graham cracker crust. A simple dessert packed with tangy lemon flavors in every square.

I blame my oldest child for my loving addiction to lemon-flavored recipes because my love of lemon started with pregnancy cravings and hasn't left yet (10+ years later). Of course, she loves lemon just as much as me, so we're both victims here. Haha.
These lemon squares with graham cracker crust are such an incredible treat, and we haven't been able to stop eating them. Seriously, I made them twice in a week, and we ate almost all of them by ourselves. If you love lemons like we do, then you're going to love these tasty bars too!
Make sure to check out my 2 Ingredient Lemon Cake Bars, The BEST Lemon Poppy Seed Muffins, Lemon Mug Cake, and Raspberry Lemon Bundt Cake too. There are plenty of lemons to go around.
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🍯 Why This Recipe Works
- Simple ingredients. We don't need much to make this recipe. In fact, we use about 6 or 7 ingredients from start to finish, and they're as simple as eggs, flour, lemons, and sugar.
- Quick to assemble. Because we aren't making a shortbread crust, we can have the graham cracker crust prepared in just moments, thanks to your food processor. Even mixing by hand is quick. And in the time it takes for the crust to bake, the filling can be almost finished too.
- There's plenty to share! Each batch makes about 24 squares, giving you plenty to share with friends and family. But of course, this recipe tastes so good you may not WANT to share. In that case, make double the amount.
🥘 Ingredients
Ingredient Notes:
Graham crackers- You'll need some graham crackers for the base of this recipe. Use a sleeve of graham crackers that you crush yourself, or buy them as crumbs from your grocery store's baking aisle.
Lemon zest- Adding lemon zest into the crust is optional but highly recommended because it adds such a wonderful freshness to every piece.
Lemon juice- Add in freshly squeezed lemon juice or lemon juice concentrate.
Powdered sugar- This is a delicious garnish to be added at serving time. Powdered sugar really makes these squares look as irresistible as they taste.
For specific ingredients and measurements, please see the recipe card below.
🧾 Substitutions
Lemon juice. You can swap out the lemon juice with lemon juice concentrate if desired. This means you can just pour juice from a container rather than squeeze it out of several lemons yourself.
📖 Variations
Gluten free. Use gluten free flour and graham crackers for a delicious recipe that's GF friendly!
🔪 Instructions
Step 1: Preheat the oven to 325 degrees F.
Step 2: Cut a piece of parchment paper into a sling and place it into a 9x13 baking dish. You want it to come up over the two long sides as this will help you to remove the bars later.
Step 3: Add your graham crackers to a food processor.
Step 4: Process until fine crumbs.
Step 5: Add in the lemon zest, melted butter, and sugar.
Step 6: Process again until combined.
Step 7: Pour the graham cracker mixture into the prepared baking dish.
Step 8: Press out into a crust. Bake in the oven at 325F for 5 minutes.
Step 9: In a medium-sized pot on the stove, over medium heat, add the flour, lemon juice, and sugar.
Step 10: Cook and stir until the sugar has dissolved and the mixture looks smooth.
Step 11: Crack your eggs and place them into a large mixing bowl.
Step 12: Whisk until the eggs are broken.
Step 13: Temper the eggs by adding the hot lemon juice mixture to the eggs, a little at a time. Whisk well after each addition.
Step 14: Continue until all of the lemon mixture has joined the eggs in the bowl.
Step 15: Pour the contents of the bowl into the pot.
Step 16: Continue to cook while frequently whisking until the mixture begins to thicken. Remove from heat.
Step 17: Place your baked graham cracker crust in front of you. If you turned the oven off, preheat it back to 325 degrees F.
Step 18: Pour the lemon filling on top.
Step 19: Carefully spread it out into a nice even layer. You don't want to disturb the crust.
Step 20: Bake in the oven at 325F for 25 minutes.
Step 21: Remove from oven and let cool for 1-2 hours at room temperature before placing in the fridge for another 1-2 hours (or longer).
Step 22: Slice into serving-sized squares. Dust with powdered sugar and enjoy.
🍴 Recipe Tips
If you don't have a food processor on hand, you can place the graham crackers into a gallon sized plastic baggie and seal it shut. Hit the bag or roll over it several times with a rolling pin until the cookies turn into crumbs.
The filling of these bars can be a bit sticky. If you'd like clean lines when you cut your bars, keep a clean towel or paper towel handy. Wipe off the blade after each slice.
👩🏻🍳 Storage
How to store lemon bars
You can keep these lemon bars well-covered and stored in the fridge for up to 1 week. For best results, I recommend eating within 3 or 4 days as the crust can soften.
How to freeze lemon bars
You can freeze these lemon bars for up to 3 months in an airtight container (without powdered sugar on top). To do this, place the bars (cut or uncut) onto a baking sheet and freeze until solid (about one hour).
Wrap the bars in foil or plastic wrap and place them into an airtight container for up to 3 months. Let them thaw in the fridge for several hours before serving. Make sure to add powdered sugar on top just before serving.
💭 FAQs
In the recipe, yes. While shortbread lemon bar recipes usually have you bake the crust and then add a raw filling before baking together, this recipe is different in that the graham cracker crust will not bake properly unless the filling is cooked first. (If uncooked, the crust will rise to the top of the pan and create a mess.)
If your lemon bars look frothy when baked this is simply because the eggs released some air while baking. This is normal, and while not every batch does this, some do.
If you overcook the lemon filling, you may notice a grainy texture or consistency. This is because the lemon curd was overcooked. Make sure to just cook the filling until it has thickened and then to bake until the filling is set in the middle.
❤️ More Delicious Bar Recipes
If you tried these lemon bars with graham cracker crust, please leave a ⭐️ star rating and share your feedback in the 📝 comments section below. I would truly appreciate it!
📖 Recipe
Lemon Bars with Graham Cracker Crust
Equipment
Ingredients
Graham Crust
- 1 ½ cup Graham cracker crumbs (exactly one sleeve) ($1.26)
- ½ teaspoon Lemon zest ($0.02)
- 6 Tablespoons Butter, melted ($0.56)
- 2 Tablespoons Granulated sugar ($0.02)
Lemon Filling
- ⅓ cup All purpose flour ($0.03)
- 6 large Eggs ($0.48)
- 1 cup Lemon juice ($3.84)
- 2 cups Granulated sugar ($0.44)
- Powdered sugar *for dusting
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 325 degrees F.
- Cut a piece of parchment paper into a sling and place it into a 9x13 baking dish. You want it to come up over the two long sides as this will help you to remove the bars later.
- Add your graham crackers to a food processor. Process until fine crumbs.
- Add in the lemon zest, melted butter, and sugar. Process again until combined.
- Pour the graham cracker mixture into the prepared baking dish.
- Press out into a crust. Bake in the oven at 325F for 5 minutes.
- In a medium-sized pot on the stove, over medium heat, add the flour, lemon juice, and sugar.
- Cook and stir until the sugar has dissolved and the mixture looks smooth.
- Crack your eggs and place them into a large mixing bowl. Whisk until the eggs are broken.
- Temper the eggs by adding the hot lemon juice mixture to the eggs, a little at a time. Whisk well after each addition.
- Continue until all of the lemon mixture has joined the eggs in the bowl.
- Pour the contents of the bowl into the pot.
- Continue to cook while frequently whisking until the mixture begins to thicken. Remove from heat.
- Place your baked graham cracker crust in front of you. If you turned the oven off, preheat it back to 325 degrees F.
- Pour the lemon filling on top. Carefully spread out into a nice even layer. You don't want to disturb the crust.
- Bake in the oven at 325F for 25 minutes.
- Remove from oven and let cool for 1-2 hours at room temperature before placing in the fridge for another 1-2 hours (or longer).
- Slice into serving-sized squares. Dust with powdered sugar and enjoy.
Notes
- Lemon juice: You can use lemon juice concentrate.
- Gluten-free: Use gluten-free flour and graham crackers for a gluten-free version.
- No food processor? Crush graham crackers in a sealed plastic bag with a rolling pin.
- To get clean cuts, wipe the knife with a clean towel after each slice.
- Fridge: Store covered lemon bars for up to 1 week; best when consumed within 3-4 days.
- Freezer: Freeze in an airtight container for up to 3 months. Thaw in the fridge and add powdered sugar before serving.
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