Recipe Overview
Why you’ll love it: Lemon lovers, prepare to meet your new favorite treat! These lemon brownies have the chewy, fudgy texture of a brownie, with the bright flavor of lemon. A tart and sweet glaze is the perfect finishing touch! Lemon brownies are as easy to stir up as regular brownies.
How long it takes: 15 minutes of prep, plus 45 minutes of baking
Equipment you’ll need: 9 x 9-inch metal baking pan, electric mixer
Servings: 16 servings
Is it really a brownie if it’s not brown? I’ll leave you to ponder that question while I enjoy another lemon brownie.
Semantics aside, these lemon brownies are little squares of sheer delight. Like blondies, they’re brownies without the chocolate—but unlike blondies which are flavored with vanilla, lemon brownies have a bright citrusy flavor due to lemon juice and zest.
If you have a soft spot for lemony desserts like lemon tart, lemon sugar cookies and lemon pudding, you’re going to love these lemon brownies too!
Reasons To Love Lemon Brownies
- As easy as traditional brownies. If you can make brownies, you can make lemon brownies! In fact, I’d say they’re even a little bit easier since you don’t have to melt any chocolate to make the recipe.
- Classic brownie texture. While chocolate is definitely a big selling point, I’d say that one of the qualities that makes traditional brownies irresistible is their rich, fudgy texture. These lemon brownies also have that great texture, thanks to a relatively low ratio of flour to the rest of the ingredients.
- Bright and lemony. I love lemon desserts because even when they’re decadent, you rarely feel like you’ve over-indulged. (Maybe that’s dangerous though!) The citrus flavor cuts through some of the richness, making for a perfect treat when you just want a little something to satisfy your sweet tooth.
Ingredients List
Be sure to refer to the recipe card below for ingredient measurements and complete instructions.
- Unsalted Butter: Using unsalted butter gives you more control over the flavor of the recipe. You’ll want to take it out of the refrigerator ahead of time to soften it.
- Granulated Sugar: When baking with lemon, sugar is key to balance the tartness!
- Eggs: Let the eggs come to room temperature with the butter.
- Lemon: You’ll need lemon juice and lemon zest for the bars and for the glaze. I usually use 2 lemons but it depends on the size of the lemons and how juicy they are. Hint: Zest the lemons first, and then juice them—it’s much easier that way!
- All-Purpose Flour: You’ll need 2 cups of flour. Be sure to lightly spoon the flour into the measuring cup so you don’t get too much flour.
- Salt: You’ll need just a bit to balance the flavors.
- Powdered Sugar: The glaze is very simple, just lemon juice, zest, and powdered sugar but it adds a huge flavor boost. Powdered sugar is also known as confectioner’s sugar.
Cooking Tip
Don’t forget to soften the butter! When it’s soft, it holds more air when beaten, improving the overall texture of these lemon brownies. Softened butter is also much easier to mix with the other ingredients.
How To Make Lemon Brownies
Get started. Preheat your oven to 325°F and coat a metal baking pan (see note) with nonstick spray. Line the pan with the parchment paper, leaving an overhang on the sides. Coat the parchment paper lightly with nonstick spray.
Tip: Binder clips hold the parchment paper in place while adding batter. Be sure to remove before baking.
Cream butter and sugar. In a large mixing bowl, use an electric mixer to cream together the softened butter and granulated sugar until the mixture is light and fluffy.
Add eggs, zest, and juice. Mix in the eggs one at a time, using your mixer until they are completely incorporated. By hand, stir in the lemon zest and lemon juice. The lemon juice tends to separate from the butter and the mixture will appear slightly curdled. That’s okay but be sure to stir it well.
Add dry ingredients. On top of the wet ingredients, add the flour and salt. Gently mix the salt and flour together before stirring the mixture into the wet ingredients. Mix the batter just until the flour is incorporated. It will be quite thick.
Bake. Spread the batter evenly into the prepared baking dish. Bake for about 45 minutes, or until the edges of the lemon brownies are lightly golden and a toothpick inserted into the center comes out with a few moist crumbs. Don’t overbake the brownies unless you like dry brownies.
Add glaze. Cool the brownies for 10 to 15 minutes on a wire rack. Carefully lift the brownies out of the pan using the parchment paper. Spread the lemon glaze evenly over the top of the brownies. Once the lemon brownies have cooled completely and the glaze is set, cut them into evenly sized squares.
Note: The glaze can be spread on the brownies once they are completely cool but we found that it works slightly better to add it when the brownies are still warm.
Tips For Success
Spray + Parchment: I know it seems redundant, but spraying the pan lightly with nonstick spray before lining it with parchment paper helps keep the paper from shifting because it sticks to the oil. Another light coating of nonstick spray keeps the brownies from sticking.
Zest without a zester: If you don’t have a lemon zester or microplane, a box grater (a cheese grater) will work. Use the smallest holes. Another option is to use a vegetable peeler or serrated knife to remove a thin layer of lemon peel. Scrape off any white pith, then mince the peel as finely as possible.
Pan selection: We tested this recipe multiple times – with a glass baking dish and a metal baking dish, with and without parchment paper. The metal baking dish with parchment paper performed the best. Metal conducts heat better than glass; parchment paper keeps the brownies from sticking. Use the parchment paper wings to lift the brownies out of the pan so you can easily cut them into neat squares.
Make It Your Own
- Change up the glaze: You can skip the glaze altogether or substitute a cream cheese glaze or lemon cream cheese frosting.
- Add white chocolate chips: I don’t recommend loading these lemon brownies full of mix-ins but white chocolate chips are a nice complement to the tart lemon flavor.
- Use a Meyer lemon: For a slightly different take on this recipe, use Meyer lemon juice and zest. Meyer lemons are a little bit sweeter and much more aromatic than standard lemons. If they’re available, Meyer lemons are fantastic!
- Make them gluten-free: Use your favorite 1-to-1 gluten-free all-purpose flour to make gluten-free lemon brownies.
Once the lemon brownies have cooled completely and the glaze is set, store them in a single layer in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 4 days, or in the refrigerator for up to a week. We found that we actually preferred the brownies refrigerated. You can also freeze them for up to 3 months. Thaw them at room temperature before serving.
More Brownie Recipes
Lemon Brownies
Ingredients
For the Brownies:
- 1 cup unsalted butter, softened (2 sticks)
- 1 ½ cups granulated sugar
- 2 large eggs
- 2 teaspoons lemon zest (from 1 large lemon)
- ¼ cup fresh squeezed lemon juice (from 1 large lemon)
- 2 cups all-purpose flour
- ½ teaspoon salt
For the Glaze:
- 1 cup powdered sugar, more if needed
- 4 teaspoons fresh lemon juice, more if needed (from 1 lemon)
- 1 teaspoon lemon zest (from 1 lemon)
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 325°F. Spray a 9 x 9-inch metal baking pan lightly with nonstick spray. Line the pan with parchment paper, leaving wings on the side; spray again with nonstick spray.
- In a large mixing bowl, use an electric mixer to cream together the softened butter and granulated sugar until light and fluffy, 2 to 3 minutes.1 cup unsalted butter, softened, 1 ½ cups granulated sugar
- Add the eggs one at a time, beating well after each egg, until mixture is smooth and fluffy. By hand, stir in 2 teaspoons lemon zest and ¼ cup lemon juice (don’t use mixer). Stir well by hand until the batter is smooth and the juice is mostly incorporated.2 large eggs, 2 teaspoons lemon zest, ¼ cup fresh squeezed lemon juice
- On top of the wet ingredients, add the flour and salt. Mix the dry ingredients into the butter mixture until just combined, but don’t overmix.The batter will be very thick.2 cups all-purpose flour, ½ teaspoon salt
- Scrape the batter into the prepared baking dish and spread it out as evenly as possible.
- Bake in the preheated oven for 40 to 45 minutes or until the edges are lightly golden, and a toothpick inserted into the center comes out with a few moist crumbs (but not wet batter).
- To make glaze: In a small bowl, combine powdered sugar, 4 teaspoons lemon juice, and 1 teaspoon lemon zest. Mix until smooth. Adjust the consistency by adding more lemon juice or powdered sugar as needed. Set aside until needed.1 cup powdered sugar, more if needed, 4 teaspoons fresh lemon juice, more if needed, 1 teaspoon lemon zest
- Let brownies cool in the pan for 10 minutes; then lift the brownies out of the pan using the parchment paper handles and set them on the wire rack (you can leave the parchment paper on). Spread the lemon glaze evenly over the top of the warm brownies.
- When the brownies have completely cooled and the glaze is set, cut into evenly sized squares.
Notes
- Lemons: You’ll need 2-3 lemons for this recipe. Make sure to zest them before you cut and juice them.
- If you don’t have a metal baking pan, a glass baking dish will work. We tested the recipe both ways and found that the brownies baked a little more evenly in a metal pan.
- Storage: After the brownies are completely cool, store in an airtight container in a single layer, or with parchment paper or waxed paper between layers, at room temperature for up to 4 days, or in the refrigerator for up to a week (we found that we actually preferred the brownies refrigerated). You can also freeze lemon brownies for up to 3 months. Thaw them at room temperature before serving.
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
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