25 January, 2015
Lemon Bars (Raw, Vegan, Paleo)
Two flavors that I absolutely love are the combination of chocolate, peanut butter, and banana, and anything LEMON! I love lemon, I just can’t get enough. I could eat lemon curd with a spoon. Luckily, citrus is in season right now. I was able to visit a local farm recently and pick my own lemons right off the trees. As a result I had lots of grapefruit, oranges, and lemons on hand. I knew exactly what I wanted to make with the lemons: Lemon Bars.
It had been such a long time since I had a lemon bar. They are one of my favorite desserts. Sweet, tart, and creamy. The main reason I have not had them in a while is because they are normally loaded with sugar and white flour. Two things I try to avoid at all costs. So off I went trying to create something that would satisfy my love for lemon bars, but was made with 100% wholesome ingredients. As it turns out, I was able to make these healthy bars raw, vegan, paleo, and gluten free, too.
The crust I used in this recipe is how I like to make a lot of sweet crusts: with dates and nuts. If you are nut-free, then simply substitute seeds or even oats for the same effect. This is really one of the cleanest ways I know how to make a good tasting crust. I also like that the dates add sweetness to the filling, so you don’t have to add as much extra sweetener.
Without a doubt, lemons are something that you will always find in my kitchen. Lemons are alkalizing for the body. They are acidic to begin with, but they are alkaline-forming on body fluids. This helps to restore balance to the body’s pH. Lemon is a wonderful stimulant to the liver and aids in detoxification. Not to mention they are high in vitamin C. Lemon zest is often overlooked, but it adds so much flavor. Plus, zest can be 5-10 times more nutritious than the juice. Warm lemon juice in the morning is a great way to add more lemon to your diet, but now I have these healthy lemons bars, too.
Try them out for yourself and let me know what you think! What are some of your favorite lemon dishes or desserts?
Lemon Bars (Raw, Vegan, Paleo)
Ingredients
- Crust:
- 1/2 cup dates pitted
- 1/3 cup walnuts any nut will work, use pumpkin seeds or oats for a nut-free version
- Pinch of salt
- Filling:
- 1 1/2 cup unsweetened coconut flakes or 1/2 cup coconut butter
- 1 Tablespoon maple syrup or 2 pitted dates
- 2 Tablespoons lemon zest organic preferred- from about 2 lemons
- 1/2 cup fresh lemon juice from 2-3 lemons
- 2 Tablespoons coconut oil
- 1/2 teaspoon turmeric for color
Instructions
-
In a food processor, chop the dates, nuts, and salt until a dough-like consistency is formed.
-
In an 8x8 pan lined with parchment paper, press the crust into the bottom in an even layer. Wet your hands slightly, it is sticky.
-
In a food processor or blender add the coconut flakes and process until smooth and creamy.
-
Add the rest of the ingredients to the coconut butter and blend until smooth.
-
Adjust sweetener as needed, but remember the crust is sweet as well.
-
Pour the lemon mixture onto the crust and let set in the fridge for at least one hour.
-
Cut into bars.
-
Store in an airtight container in the fridge for up to one week.
Recipe Notes
Choose organic ingredients when possible.
55 Comments
I’m so happy to have found your blog!! This recipe sounds fantastic…as do all of your recipes. I’m enjoying checking them out.
Im glad you found it too. Thank you. I hope you find lots to enjoy.
These look so amazing! I am super obsessed with lemon as well (and have definitely eaten lemon curd with a spoon…) I wouldn’t have guessed that you could make a vegan lemon bar. I often cook for my vegan friends, so I’ll have to whip this up and surprise them!
Im glad im not the only one.
Those look amazing! I’ve been trying to eat mostly paleo, so these would be perfect when I’m craving a sweet treat!
These are perfect for you then.
These look so great! I love all the coconut! I’ve never had a lemon bar though!
Never? You must try them then.
These are absolutely beautiful!
http://www.spraypaintandmascara.com/
Thank you.
Pinning, but rather be enjoying 😀
Thank you. Id send some to everyone if I could.
Oh my gosh, I was looking for a whole food recipe for lemon bars just the other day and these look wonderful *saving*!
Im glad I could help.
I love ANY dessert with lemon! Must try these!
Me too!
I’ve got a giant bowl full of lemons on the counter. Looks like I’ve got a use for them now!
Im glad I could help give you an idea for those lemons.
These look like a delicious Paleo treat! Yum!
Thank you. I must say that they are delicious!
I love using dates in dessert recipes – they are such a fantastic natural sweetener! 🙂
Dates are my favorite. Nature gave us dates for a reason!
I have a date syrup that I use, which is just pureed dates, but it is quite viscous. Do you think 1/2 cup of that would be too much liquid for 1/3 cup of walnuts, or would the proportions still work?
Try sticking the mixture in the fridge to firm it up or cook the paste a little to make it thicker.
hi these look scrumptious will definately try…do you think it will be freezable?
Yes totally freezable.
If I can’t have nuts or coconut, what can I substitute for the coconut flakes/coconut butter? Thanks.
So no on cashew cream instead of coconut? You could try date paste maybe. The color would be off but it would be lemony and sweet.
These look yummy
Thanks!
Mmmmm, these lemon bars sounds great.
And seem easy enough to make.
Thanks for the recipe.
I hope you enjoy them!
So glad to finally find a wholesome lemon recipe! Can’t wait to try!!
I hope you love it!
Looks delicious! To save time could you use coconut cream instead of making coconut butter?
Coconut cream is not really the same thing and I am not sure that the bars would set up the same way. To save time though you can just buy coconut butter already made such as coconut manna.
I made these and I used coconut cream, spooned from a can of coconut milk and it as set up very nicely. It is very very tart, and I’m wondering if just using less lemon and peel would work as well as adding more sweetner, which I’d rather not do. They are beautiful, but TART!!
I am so glad that you shared that coconut cream worked. Very good to know. I love my lemon bars tart but I guess I should adjust the recipe a bit since I seem to be in the minority. I would say that next time you make these to just the lemon zest of 1/2-1 lemon. Thanks for sharing!
I just made these and they’re SO sour. and I didn’t even add the lemon zest lol
I do like my lemon bars sour plus I keep the sugar content down. You could always add a little more sweetener to help balance out the sourness.
Hi Sara,
Your Vetgan Lemon Bars recipe is fantastic.
I would love to feature this in our website, Greenthickies. I will not be posting the actual recipe but will use only one image from this post and a small quote and link back here.
Is that okay?
Thanks 🙂
Katherine,
Greenthickies
Hi Katherine, Yes you are welcome to do that! Thanks.
Amazing! Addictive! The perfect combo of tart & sweet! Super easy to make. These are such a rich, flavorful treat that just a small piece feels indulgent and so very satisfying for my sweet tooth.
I am so glad you loved these. Lemon bars are one of my favorites!
I’m not the biggest fan of coconut flavors–are there any other substitutes I could use instead of Coconut Oil?
Coconut oil really helps set the bars. I recommend getting the Nutiva brand of refined coconut oil…it doesn’t taste like coconut but it is refined in a healthful way. My husband hates coconut too and he can’t tell when I cook with this stuff. Hope that helps!
O.k first let me say thst this is a great and simple recipe but the use of coconut flake does not work. You can’t turn coconut flake into a cream. I think you mean coconut meat. That being said zi tried it your way and it didn’t work so I added a little coconut milk and avacado as well as coconut oil and more lemon zest and juice. Next time I will use coconut meat (I knew better but thought I would try it your way).
Yes you can turn coconut flakes into cream. That is how they make coconut butter. You have to process it for a while in a food processor to allow the oils to come out. Make sure you use a fresh bag of coconut it may not work as well with older coconut that has been opened for awhile. I haven’t tried the recipe with coconut meat so I am not sure how well it will work.
You mean coconut meat and NOT flake right? Coconut flake is dry.
No I do mean coconut flakes. It is try but once you start processing it in a food processor the oils will come out. You are essentially making coconut butter.
What is the nutritional values of the lemon slice?
I don’t have that information.
Very disappointed. First off, I didn’t like the crust so I added 1/3 c oats a s 1/3 c walnuts to the dates. Then, my coconut wouldn’t butter in my food processor so I had to search online to find out what I was doing wrong. I need to use a vita mixer. I had to add the whole bag of coconut chips from Trader Joes and 2 tsp coconut oil. Then, the filling produced maybe 1 1/2 c of filling. Definitely not enough filling and way less than the picture shows. So, I added four eggs, 1T honey and decided to bake them. My kitchen was a hot mess to clean up. Not sure what to think now. Do you use kitchen testers or have other people make your recipes before posting any chance? Very frustrated here.
I made these recipes myself before posting. I have had other comments that they turned out well so it is possible that products can vary. I just use a food processor to make the coconut butter or you can purchase already made versions as well.
I just made them today! I can not believe how amazingly delicious they are! Thank you for such a great recipe, and so easy to make. Going to be hard to not eat the whole pan 🙂