Strawberry Lemon Bars

Strawberry Lemon Bars are the perfect blend of tart lemon flavor with sweet summer strawberries. These dense, but tender bars are a simple but flavorful treat that is sure to become one of your favorite ways to use up those summer strawberries.

Best of all, thanks to the sweet pink glaze on top, they’re also pretty enough to serve for any special occasion. Whip up a batch of these to share whenever you’re heading to a summer BBQ, hosting an afternoon tea party, or planning bright and citrusy lemonade party or lemonade stand.

What Makes Strawberry Lemon Bars So Great

• Deliciously light: Lemon and strawberry is a match made in summer heaven thanks to their bold flavors that don’t weigh you down.
• Reduce Waste: This is a great recipe to use up those less-than-perfect strawberries that are fine to eat, but the kids won’t touch.
• Make Ahead: Strawberry lemon bars can be made a couple days in advance and garnished just before serving, making them perfect for easy breezy summer entertaining.

How to Make Strawberry Lemon Bars (Step-by-Step Directions):

To make things even easier for you, I created a simple photo guide below. For all measurements and a more detailed guide, check out the recipe card at the bottom of this page.

If you make this recipe, please leave a ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ star rating in the recipe card and let me know how it turned out in the comments below. This provides helpful feedback for me and to other readers. And if you want more fun party ideas, subscribe to my newsletter and follow along on Instagram, Pinterest, and Facebook.

Make the Bars:

Preheat your oven to 350˚F. Prepare an 8×8 inch baking pan with criss-crossing sections of parchment paper. (See FAQ for more information)

In a medium bowl, whisk together flour, baking powder, and salt. Add the fresh chopped strawberries and mix together gently with a spatula. Set aside.

In a large mixing bowl, add butter and granulated sugar. Beat with a whisk until smooth and creamy. (About 3-5 minutes with an electric mixer.)

Add the egg and whisk until just combined. Once the egg is combined, whisk in the lemon juice. (The batter may not fully combine at this point, which is just fine.)

Add the dry ingredients to the wet ingredients, and fold together with a spatula. The dough will be stiff.

Spread the mixture evenly into your prepared baking pan. Bake at 350˚F for 25-30 minutes. Remove when the top and edges start to turn golden brown, but the inside is still moist when tested with a toothpick. Do not overbake.

Remove from the oven and allow to cool completely, about 30-60 minutes (see tips.)

Prepare the glaze

Once the bars have cooled, strain your strawberry jelly through a fine mesh sieve into a large mixing bowl. (See Tips)

Add the lemon juice and half of the powdered sugar. Use a whisk or a mixer to combine.

Add remaining powdered sugar and continue mixing until the glaze is smooth and there are no lumps.

If you find your glaze is too runny, you can add a bit more powdered sugar. If it is too stiff, you can add a bit more lemon juice.

Use a small spatula or offset spatula to spread the glaze on your cooled bars. Allow the glaze to harden completely before slicing. (about 2 hours)

Optional: Garnish with fresh diced strawberries and enjoy!

When to Serve Strawberry Lemon Bars:

These bars are perfect for any spring or summer occasion, including:

• BBQs,
• Lemonade stands
• Bake sales
• Graduation parties
• Pool parties,
• Mother’s Day
• Tea parties
• Potlucks,

Just remember, if you’re planning for these bars to sit out for a while (like a bake sale), omit the fresh chopped strawberries on top of the bars.

Substitutions and Adaptations:

• Strawberries – Change up the flavor with other fresh fruits like raspberries, blueberries, and peaches.
• Lemon juice – I used fresh lemon juice for this recipe, but you can use bottled if that’s all you have.

Essential Tips:

Don’t skip these tips – read them before baking to avoid any potential mistakes.

Tips for Baking the Bars:

• It’s best if your butter and eggs are room temperature before you get started.
• Do not overbake your bars. That will make them dry and tough. When testing with a toothpick, there shouldn’t be large clumps of batter, but if it’s completely clean your bars may be overdone.
• Baking strawberries brings out their natural sweetness, so this is a great recipe for using berries that are early in the season or are a little bit past their prime.
• Make sure your bars are completely cool before adding the icing, or it will be too runny.

Tips for the Glaze and Garnish

• If you have a chunky jam, you may need to puree it in a small mixer with the lemon juice before straining it into the bowl.
• If you need to cool down your bars quickly, let them sit at room temperature for 20 minutes and then refrigerate until cool.
• If you want a shiny glaze like my easy sugar cookie icing, you can add 1 teaspoon of light corn syrup to the mixture as you blend it together.
• To cut your bars: Make sure they are well chilled and use a sharp knife. It also helps to wipe the knife down between cuts.
• Don’t add the fresh strawberry garnish until you are ready to serve. The fresh berries are tasty and beautiful, but will release juices that don’t store well.

FAQs:

Is it best to use a glass, ceramic, or metal pan?

I like to use metal pans because they heat up quickly and create a nice crust on baked goods. However, citrus heavy baked goods can have a metallic taste if they’re baked directly in a metal pan. This is why it’s important to line the pan with parchment paper.

You can also bake these in glass or ceramic pans, but keep a close eye on the baking time.

Is it best to use fresh or frozen strawberries?

I used fresh strawberries for this recipe. If you use frozen strawberries, it may make your batter too wet and will affect the texture of your strawberry lemon bars.

How much juice is in a lemon? How many lemons will I need?

The amount of juice in a lemon varies widely, depending on its size and ripeness, but a good rule of thumb is that an average sized lemon will give you about 2 tablespoons of juice.

This means you will need between 2 and 3 lemons for this recipe if you’re using fresh juice.

Tips for getting the most juice out of each lemon:

• Make sure your lemons are room temperature before you get started.
• Before cutting a lemon open, roll it on the counter using the heel of your hand for a few seconds. This will break up the fibers inside the fruit to release more of the juice.
• We’ve found that this style of juicer squeezes out the most juice from lemons and limes with very little effort.

Add some cheery decor to go with your lemon bars

With this gorgeous set of lemon themed art prints, you can enjoy the bright, happy fun of lemons long after your bars are gone.

How to Store your Strawberry Lemon Bars

Keep your strawberry lemon bars in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to one week. Because they have fresh strawberries in them, they should not be kept at room temperature.

To Make these bars ahead for a party:

Prepare the bars up to two days in advance and keep in the refrigerator. Because the glaze may soften in the refrigerator, it’s best to add it to the bars on the morning of your party. Top with fresh berries just before serving.

If you liked my strawberry lemon bars, you’re going to love my Blueberry Lemonade Mimosas and Lemon Cake Mix Cookies.

Or you can check out all my desserts recipes here.

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