Easy Tart Lemon Bar

I grew up eating my grandma’s tangy lemon curd with crispy baked tarts. They.were.my.fav. This recipe totally takes me back to my childhood. The tart lemon with the sweet crispy base is the perfect combination. Here is how to make them:

SERVING (8x8 brownie dish), approx. 16 pieces or serves 6-8

PREP 22 mins / BAKE 28 mins / TOTAL TIME 50 mins

Ingredients

Base

~ 1 cup oat flour

~ ¾ cup almond flour

~ ¼ cup coconut sugar

~ ½ cup cold vegan butter (I used Earth Balance)

~ pinch of salt

Filling

~ 2/3 cup lemon juice (freshly squeezed ideal; about 4 lemons)

~ zest from 2 lemons

~ 1-3 Tbsp xylitol

~ 400ml can full fat coconut milk

~ ¼ cup cornstarch

~ Optional: ¼ tsp ground turmeric

Steps 

1.     Preheat oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit (I often cook on convection mode). Grease an 8x8 baking dish and set aside. Mix the dry base ingredients in a bowl, then add vegan butter until combined. Place into greased dish and bake for 20 minutes or until browned.

2.     While the base is in the oven, place coconut milk and xylitol in a saucepan and bring to a simmer on medium heat. Stir frequently to ensure the xylitol doesn’t burn on the bottom of the saucepan.

3.     Combine lemon juice, lemon zest, turmeric and corn starch together in a separate bowl. Ensure there are no cornstarch clumps. Once coconut mixture has come to a simmer, add lemon mixture and whisk until thickened. This should happen within a few minutes. Turn the stove off.

4.     Remove the base from the oven and cool on the counter for 10 minutes. I found this helped to ensure a crispy delicious base! So don’t skip this step.

5.     Once cooled for 10 minutes, add filling onto the base and bake for 8 minutes.

6.     Cool for 30 minutes at room temperature and serve immediately. The bars are best eaten day of or day after it is baked. If you need to refrigerate it, best to place in a container but crack the lid open. The bars can keep refrigerated for up to a week, however the crispiness of the base will be lost (but certainly not the taste!).

7.     Optional step; blitz some xylitol in the blender to make icing sugar for presentation! With a high powered blender it takes seconds.

Happy Baking Friends!

♡ Kell