Vegan Lemon Bars (Gluten-Free!) – Detoxinista

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“I made these lemon bars for a big social gathering the place everybody else was not vegan and left with an empty plate—individuals went again for seconds! I’ve made many different vegan lemon bars and your recipe is the proper mix of candy and tart.” – Amy

Vegan lemon bars may be difficult to get proper, significantly when you choose to keep away from refined sugar like I do. If you happen to add an excessive amount of lemon juice, you’ll have to steadiness it with extra sweetener, and maple syrup (my sweetener of selection) can begin to overpower the flavour when you’re not cautious.

That’s why I examined these bars relentlessly a number of summers in the past, till I discovered the proper ratio. They’ve a creamy, lemon-y topping sitting on a crispy, shortbread crust.

It’s the proper dessert for a scorching summer season day, however be sure you serve it chilled so it doesn’t soften!

Vegan Lemon Bar Substances

Right here’s what you’ll want:

• Cashews. These nuts are common in vegan cooking for good cause; they’ve a creamy texture and impartial taste. Don’t use roasted or salted nuts for the very best taste. (If you happen to don’t have a strong blender, swap these for half the quantity of uncooked cashew butter.)
• Lemons. You’ll want the zest and lemon juice for this recipe, so don’t depend on bottled juice from the shop. The peel has a considerably extra intense lemon taste, however watch out to not zest the internal white half, which may be bitter.
• Maple syrup. That is my go-to pure sweetener, which is vegan-friendly. If you happen to choose to make use of agave nectar, it ought to work equally.
• Coconut oil. This helps the bars agency up within the fridge, however if you wish to keep away from any coconut taste, use refined or expeller-pressed coconut oil, which has zero coconut taste. Vegan butter would additionally work right here!
• Almond flour. Blanched almond flour creates a buttery, shortbread-like crust that’s naturally gluten-free. I don’t suggest substituting one other flour, as a result of the ratio of components would wish to alter. (See the FAQ part under for an alternate.)

Learn how to Make Vegan Lemon Bars

Step 1:

Preheat the oven to 350ºF and calmly grease an 8-inch sq. baking dish. Press a chunk of parchment paper into the underside of the pan for simple removing later. 

In a medium mixing bowl, mix the almond flour, coconut oil, maple syrup, and salt. Stir nicely till the dough sticks collectively when pressed between your fingers.

Switch the crust combination to the ready pan and press it evenly into the underside. It gained’t really feel like there’s sufficient crust at first, however it ought to unfold out thinly over all the backside of the pan. (I examined this recipe with a 1/4 cup extra almond flour and felt the crust overpowered the lemon layer within the completed bars.)

Step 2:

Bake the almond flour shortbread crust for quarter-hour or till the perimeters are golden. Let it cool utterly when you put together the vegan lemon curd.

To arrange the filling, add the cashews to a high-speed blender and mix till they’re finely floor, about 30 to 60 seconds. Use a spatula to scrape the cashews away from the edges and corners of your blender pitcher. 

Step 3:

Add the recent lemon juice, zest, coconut oil, and maple syrup to the blender, then safe the lid and mix once more. The filling ought to be clean and creamy.

Style it and make any changes you see match. (Have in mind the flavour can be barely milder when chilled.)

Pour the lemon filling over the cooled crust and clean the highest with a spatula. Place the pan on a flat floor in your freezer to freeze till agency, about 4 hours.

Step 4:

When the lemon filling feels very agency to the contact within the heart of the pan, you possibly can slice the bars into 16 items and serve chilled.

Mud them with powdered sugar on high, when you’d like a traditional lemon bar look.

Extra Recipes to Strive

If you happen to strive these Vegan Lemon Bars, please go away a remark and a star score under to let me understand how you want them.