Lemon Squares
All-purpose flour, powdered sugar and margarine come together in this vegetarian — 65 minutes, 7 steps, and the kind of result worth repeating. Below: the ingredients split into pantry staples and a quick shopping list, a built-in serving scaler, and the method in 7 steps.
You'll mainly reach for oven and pan. At medium difficulty across 7 steps, it's manageable with a little attention. As written, it's meat-free.
What you'll need
Shopping list (1)
Pantry staples (you likely have these)
🔁 Unit converter
How to make it
- Preheat the oven to 175 C / 350 F and line a 20 cm square baking pan with parchment, leaving an overhang for lifting.
- Rub together the 1 cup flour, the 1/4 cup powdered sugar and the softened margarine until the mixture resembles coarse crumbs, then press it firmly and evenly into the base of the pan.
- Bake the crust for 18 to 20 minutes until pale golden at the edges, then remove it but keep the oven on.
- Whisk the eggs with the white sugar until smooth, then beat in the lemon juice, the lemon peel, the 2 tablespoons flour and the baking powder to make a thin filling.
- Pour the filling over the hot crust and return the pan to the oven for 20 to 22 minutes, until the centre is set and no longer wobbles.
- Cool the squares completely in the pan on a wire rack so the filling firms up fully.
- Lift out using the parchment, dust the top generously with powdered sugar, then cut into 16 squares with a clean knife and serve.
You'll use: Oven · Pan · Whisk
Ingredient substitutions
- Eggs
- ¼ cup unsweetened applesauce (baking) · 1 tbsp ground flax + 3 tbsp water per egg
- Lemon
- lime · 1 tbsp white wine vinegar per lemon
Tips & common questions
How long does Lemon Squares take to make?
About 65 minutes from start to finish — an estimate based on the 7 steps and 10 ingredients. Times vary with your kitchen and how much prep you do ahead.
What can I use instead of eggs?
Try ¼ cup unsweetened applesauce (baking). See the substitutions section above for more swaps.
Can I scale this recipe up or down?
Yes — use the servings control above the ingredients and every quantity rescales automatically (fractions included). Cooking times stay roughly the same; very large batches may need a little longer.
Is Lemon Squares vegetarian?
Its ingredients contain no meat or fish, so it's suitable for vegetarians. Check any cheeses for animal rennet if that matters to you.
Related recipes
Lemon Squares is an original recipe developed in-house by Consomee. Photo: Lemon Bar.jpg by Kjp001, CC BY-SA 4.0 via Wikimedia Commons. We add the serving scaler, ingredient tools, timing and structure on top — how we source recipes.