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lemon crumble bars sitting on white plate
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5 from 2 votes

Lemon Crumble Bars

These Lemon Crumble Bars are seriously amazing! Bright, zippy, fresh and tart with a sweet lemony filling and an irresistible sweet crumble topping make for a simple and delicious bar!
Prep Time10 minutes
Cook Time45 minutes
Total Time55 minutes
Course: Bars, Dessert
Cuisine: American, Dessert

Ingredients

FOR THE CRUST & CRUMBLE:

  • 1 cup granulated white sugar
  • 1 tsp baking powder
  • 1/4 tsp salt
  • 3 cups all-purpose flour
  • 1 cup (2 sticks) unsalted butter, cubed
  • 1 large egg, lightly beaten
  • 1 tsp vanilla extract

FOR THE LEMON FILLING:

  • 14 oz (1 small can) sweetened condensed milk
  • 1/2 cup freshly squeezed lemon juice from about 2-3 med/large lemons
  • 4 Tbsp lemon zest from about 2-3 med/large lemons
  • 2 large egg yolks

Instructions

  • Preheat oven to 375° degrees F. Line a 13x9 light metal rectangular baking pan with foil or parchment, extending the sides of the foil over the edges of the pan. Spray the foil with cooking spray; set aside.
  • For the crumble: In a large bowl, whisk together the granulated sugar, baking powder, salt, and all-purpose flour until combined. Add in the cubed butter, lightly beaten egg and vanilla and use a pastry blender or two forks to cut the cubed butter into the flour mixture until flour mixture resembles small pebbles. Dough will be crumbly, and you may want to use your hands to work it.
  • Press half of the dough into the prepared pan and use your hands to compress it into a nice, even layer. Set aside.
  • For the filling: In a medium bowl, whisk together the condensed milk, lemon juice, lemon zest and egg yolks until combined. Pour evenly over the crust in the pan and spread out in an even layer. Sprinkle the remaining crumble topping over the lemon filling layer.
  • Bake for 38-45 minutes or until the topping is light golden brown and center appears set. Cool completely at room temperature, then refrigerate for at least an hour or two to set before cutting into bars. Afterwards, it can be stored in the fridge OR at room temperature.

Notes

Since this recipe requires both lemon zest and lemon juice, I recommend zesting the lemons before juicing them. I like using large lemons (I used about 3 large lemons to get about 4-5 Tbsp zest/1/2 cup juice) for this recipe.