Need a crowd-pleasing lemon dessert recipe? Try my Gluten Free Lemon Bars! These bars have a gooey, thick filling and are a delightful treat. Three citrus elements make this dessert stand out from traditional lemon bars!
This recipe uses organic lemon juice and zest to create a flavorful bar with just the right tang. What’s the third lemon ingredient in our baked lemon bars, you may ask?
Essential oils, of course! They are the cherry on top of a fantastic recipe. You’re going to want to try this, one of my favorite lemon dessert recipes, as soon as possible!
Table of Contents:
- Benefits of Lemon Essential Oil
- Healthy Lemon Dessert Ingredients 101
- Make Mama Z’s Gluten Free Lemon Bars
Benefits of Lemon Essential Oil
Lemons are fantastic for your health and seem to pop up everywhere. Slices of lemon adorn sparkling water, keep fruit looking fresh, and are a key ingredient in our famous Lemon Abundance Tea Bread.
For our gluten-free lemon bars, we use fresh organic lemon juice, grated lemon zest, and essential oil to make this one of the best lemon desserts ever. While lemon flavor adds a delightful citrus note to recipes, lemon also benefits your body in many ways, primarily due to d-limonene! Here are some of the top benefits that will make you a lemon lover.
Lemon Essential Oil May Improve Your Mental Health
If you were to take a survey, most people would say they’ve felt a little anxiety over the past year. It’s essential to take advantage of the tools God gave us (like food!) to give our bodies a chance to fight against negative emotions.
I notice that citrus oils are instant mood boosters in my own home. Components in lemon can also help improve your sleep. (1)
Next time you’re restless, make a hot cup of organic herbal tea with a squeeze of fresh lemon. Proper sleep habits can improve your quality of life!
Lemon Essential Oil Has Antifungal Properties
Lemon essential oil has a fresh, bright scent that instantly deodorizes a space. We love using it in our Odor-Eating Powder because it eradicates the worst odors!
This essential oil is antifungal and can help prevent athlete’s foot, yeast infections, and ringworm. (2) It’s a powerful defense against harmful pathogens. This is one essential oil you need in your medicine caddy!
Lemon Essential Oil Can Boost Your Immunity
Did you know lemons are a powerful source of antioxidants that can boost your immune system? It’s true! We even include lemon in our Immune Boost Blend.
The lemon essential oil contains vitamin C, a known remedy to combat cold and flu symptoms. Some people believe that lemons are a powerful agent against sicknesses because they contribute to overall immunity. (3)
Healthy Lemon Dessert Ingredients 101
You’ll notice these lemon bars contain a few alternative ingredients. Here is a quick run-down of the elements we used and why.
Gluten-Free All-Purpose Flour: Regular flour can lead to inflammation, raised blood sugar, and weight gain. For these reasons and more, we recommend using gluten-free flour. We promise you’ll never notice the difference with our flour blend except when it comes to health!
Organic Coconut Flour: Coconut flour is another low-glycemic flour that adds a gorgeous texture to baked goods. You’ll notice I add a little to most of my baked goods. Coconut flour tends to soak up liquid, so you only want to use a little at a time! It works beautifully in the flour blend for this crust recipe.
Organic Coconut Sugar: This alternative sweetener makes healthy baked goods taste amazing. Coconut sugar is lower-glycemic than white sugar and is a beautiful alternative for special occasions. I love using coconut sugar because it gives baked goods a lot of bulk and is a good option instead of white granulated sugar or powdered sugar.
Pink Himalayan Salt or Sea Salt: Regular table salt is stripped of most nutrients, so we use sea salt to give our bodies the full benefits of sodium. Our favorite kind comes from Colima. They have a unique harvesting process that leaves more nutrients behind! You can also use pink Himalayan salt.
Grass-Fed Organic Sea-Salted Butter: Breaking news! Butter is excellent for your body…in moderation, of course. When choosing butter, try to find a grass-fed variety. The animals that produce this butter are fed better than other dairy cows, and your body will appreciate the lack of hormones!
Coconut Oil, Extra-Virgin and Unrefined: To decrease the butter content in this recipe, we use half butter and half coconut oil. Coconut oil is full of medium-chain triglycerides that give your body an instant energy boost. It adds so much smoothness to our lemon bars’ golden crust!
Pasture-Raised Organic Eggs: Eggs are an excellent source of protein and omega-3s. This filling is custard-like, and eggs are the perfect base! If you can, purchase cage-free or farm-fresh eggs. I prefer using whole eggs rather than egg yolks alone.
Grade A Dark Amber Maple Syrup or Organic Raw Local Honey: These options are our favorite sweeteners. Adding a syrup-type sweetener creates a gooey filling more than granulated sugar alone.
Pro Tip: Try using two or three different sweeteners. I find that it gives body and a more full-bodied flavor. If you don’t have access to all these sweeteners, use more of one than of the others.
Lemon Essential Oil: Mood-booster, sleep enhancer, immune system strengthened…lemon does it all! Bonus: This oil is a must for any homeowner as it helps get glue and other sticky substances off surfaces.
Safety Note: Ingesting essential oils is safe when done correctly. This recipe contains many ingredients, like coconut oil, that act as dispersants. These dispersants help distribute the essential oil evenly, so your mouth isn’t irritated. You never want to ingest an EO neat!
Natural Confectioners’ Sugar: This is my healthy alternative to white powdered sugar. It consists of my Christmas Cookie Blend and non-GM starch. It thickens icings beautifully and is a garnishing sugar for dusting over lemon bars.
Make Mama Z’s Gluten Free Lemon Bars
This recipe feeds a crowd! You get 32 lemon squares, and it only takes 10 to 15 minutes to prepare the lemon bar recipe. This is a favorite dessert that looks beautiful and tastes delicious.
Triple Lemon Bars With Orange Variation
Servings
Ingredients
Crust
- 1½ cups gluten-free all-purpose flour
- ½ cup organic coconut flour
- ½ cup organic coconut sugar
- ¼ teaspoon pink Himalayan salt OR sea salt, ground
- ½ cup cold grass-fed organic unsalted butter, diced OR ½ cup coconut oil, extra-virgin AND unrefined AND ¼ teaspoon pink Himalayan salt or sea salt, ground
- ½ cup coconut oil, extra-virgin AND unrefined
Filling
- 4 large pasture-raised organic eggs
- 6 tablespoons gluten-free all-purpose flour
- ½ cup organic coconut sugar
- 1 teaspoon non-aluminum baking powder
- 1 pinch pink Himalayan salt OR sea salt, ground
- 1 cup Grade A Dark Amber maple syrup, organic OR raw organic local honey
- ½ cup purified OR distilled water OR organic unsweetened almond OR coconut milk beverage
- ½ cup freshly squeezed organic lemon juice
- 3 drops lemon essential oil
- 1 tablespoon Natural Confectioners’ Sugar (optional)
- Finely grated organic lemon zest for garnish (optional)
Supplies
- Powdered sugar shaker OR stainless steel sieve (for sifting Natural Confectioners’ Sugar)
Instructions
For the crust:
- Preheat the oven to 350°F. In a large bowl, mix both flours, coconut sugar, and sea salt. Using a knife, cut the butter and coconut oil into the dry ingredients to form a dough with a fine-crumb consistency. Press the mixture in an even layer in the bottom of a 9 x 13 x 2-inch pan. Bake for 20 minutes, until pale golden.
For the filling:
- In a medium bowl, beat the eggs. In a separate medium bowl, stir together the flour, coconut sugar, baking powder, and sea salt.
- Add the flour mixture to the eggs and stir until smooth. Gradually stir in the maple syrup, distilled water, lemon juice, and lemon essential oil. Pour the mixture over the baked crust and return to the oven. Bake for about 30 minutes, or until set.
- Cool completely (15-30 minutes) before sifting the Natural Confectioners’ Sugar over the top, if desired. Garnish with lemon zest, if desired.
- Cut into 32 pieces. Place in an airtight container and store in fridge or freezer (for longer).
Natural Confectioners' Sugar (Vegan)
Servings
Ingredients
- 2 rounded cups Christmas Cookie Blend
- 2 cups organic arrowroot powder OR organic non-GMO cornstarch
Supplies
- Blender OR food processor
Instructions
- Place the Christmas Cookie Blend and cornstarch in a gallon-size Ziploc bag. Shake to mix.
- Blend in a high-powered blender or food processor until well-mixed. I prefer milling this recipe in the dry goods container of a Vitamix. You may have to divide your mixture in half depending on the size of your blender. Then, I open the blender, stir and repeat the process. The final color of your product will differ based on the brand of sweetener you use. Store in quart and pint-sized glass jars at room temperature. Use as directed in desserts and dips.
Step One: Prepare the Crust
These lemon bars have a delicious, buttery shortbread crust. Preheat the oven to 350°F. In a large bowl, mix both kinds of flour, coconut sugar, and sea salt. Using a knife, cut the butter and coconut oil into the dry ingredients to form a dough with a fine-crumb texture.
Press the mixture into an even layer in the bottom of a 9 x 13 x 2-inch pan to make the crust firm. Bake in the preheated oven for 20 minutes or until light golden.
Step Two: Combine the Lemon Filling Ingredients
While the crust is baking, you can make your lemony filling. Beat the eggs until light and fluffy in a medium bowl. In a separate bowl, stir together the flour, coconut sugar, baking powder, and sea salt.
Step Three: Add Essential Oils
Add the flour mixture to the eggs and stir until smooth. Slowly stir in the maple syrup, distilled water, lemon juice, and essential oil. Pour the soft lemon filling mixture over the baked crust and return it to the oven for about 30 minutes, or until the lemon layer is set.
Pro Tip: Keep freshly squeezed lemon or lime juice in the fridge to speed up recipe prep. I prefer fresh lemon juice over bottled lemon juice.
Step Four: Garnish the Lemon Bars
Let the gluten-free lemon bars cool completely. This should take about 15-30 minutes. Then, you can decorate! I like to sift some Natural Confectioners’ Sugar over the top. You can also garnish the finished lemon bars with fresh lemon zest.
Cut the lemon squares into 32 pieces. Place leftover lemon bars in an airtight container and store them in the fridge. You can store gluten free lemon bars in the freezer for up to 3 months. Enjoy!
Mama Z’s Triple Orange Bars Variation
Are you an orange fanatic? We are too! We call orange essential oil our “liquid antidepressant” because it brings us joy.
To turn this gluten-free lemon bar recipe into orange bars with ease. Follow the recipe card for the lemon squares above, but swap freshly squeezed orange juice for lemon juice, orange essential oil for lemon EO, and orange zest for the lemon zest.
Now you’ve transformed your lemony flavor profile into a delicious, summery orange dessert. Enjoy!
