Created for a variety of diets, these keto lemon bars are gluten-free, grain-free, nut-free, sugar-free, vegetarian, paleo, and primal. Plus, there’s even an option to make these bars dairy-free!
I am sharing this post in partnership with Lakanto. As always, all opinions are my own. I appreciate you supporting both me and the brands that allow me to create quality content for you!
These keto lemon bars are the perfect treat to add to your daily food line up. After your first bite, you’re going to want them all the time!
The best lemon bars EVER
I’ve always been a fan of fruity desserts and treats, and this lemon bar recipe is no different. These tasty treats are bursting with lemony flavor!
The easiest lemon dessert recipe
Preparing these nut free keto lemon bars is as simple as whisking together the crust ingredients then prepping the lemon filling and baking it all up! After that, they simply need to sit in the oven for 1 hour before chilling in the refrigerator for 2 hours.
In no time, you will have mouth-watering treats suitable for everyone. Even kids will love these!
Each pan yields 16 lemon bars, so you’ll have plenty if you decide to bring this as a dish-to-pass to an upcoming party!
Net carbs in keto lemon bars
This delicious lemon treat only contains 4.1 grams of net carbs per serving. It seems too good to be true, doesn’t it?!
Yummy and delicious thanks to monk fruit sweetener
These lemon bars are super sweet and tasty, but they’re low in carbs. You’d think that being so yummy, the carb count would be higher, right? Well, to keep the carb content as low as possible, I use Lakanto Monk Fruit Sweetener. They have two types of granulated monk fruit sweetener, Classic and Golden, and this recipe uses the Classic version.
I use it in all of my dessert recipes, especially my fat bomb recipes, because of how easy and tasty it is!
If you’d like to try out monk fruit sweetener for yourself, use code “REALBALANCED” for 20% off your Lakanto order!
Nut free keto lemon bars
Most keto baked goods call for almond flour, but these lemon bars are free from almond flour! They also do not require the use of coconut flour! Instead, in this recipe, we use ground sunflower seed meal!
I’ve come to reaaaalllly love this ingredient as I have serious allergies to peanuts and tree nuts, but I can safely eat sunflower seeds!
If you’ve never tried ground sunflower seed meal, you can purchase it directly from Amazon!
How to keep your lemon bars from cracking
Much like when cooking a keto cheesecake, we want to do our best to avoid the tops of these lemon bars from cracking. If they do, it’s not a big deal at all as it won’t affect the taste whatsoever, but they will look nicer if the top of the lemon bars stays intact!
One of the major steps to prevent cracking involves the cooling process:
- After baking, allow the pan to sit in the oven with the oven door cracked for 1 hour. By doing this, the dish is able to slowly cool, which keeps the top layer of the lemon bars from cracking.
When you move a hot dish straight from the oven to the refrigerator, the extreme temperature changes make it much more likely to crack!
Why a water bath is important for keto lemon bars
Water baths are a great way to ensure that your dish will evenly cook. Simply place your baking pan into a baking sheet deep enough to allow for 1″ of water, and place it in the oven. The water adds moisture to the air, allowing the dish to cook more successfully than if you skipped the bath altogether.
Easy substitution ideas
- Melted butter: If you’re interested in creating a dairy-free version of these delish lemon bars, you’re in luck! To do so, simply swap out the melted butter for melted coconut oil! Your dish will be yummy and totally dairy-free.
- Monk fruit sweetener: For this recipe, I use the Classic version of Lakanto’s monk fruit sweetener. Feel free to swap in their Golden version at a 1:1 ratio! Similarly, you can also opt to use erythritol, Swerve, or Truvia, also at a 1:1 ratio. I would not suggest using stevia here, as you will need MUCH less of it, which may change the texture and bake time of the lemon bars.
Storing your delicious gluten-free lemon bars
When it comes time to storing your keto lemon bars, have no fear! When you follow these guidelines, your bars will maintain their flavor, texture, and deliciousness.
Refrigerator: Store your lemon bars in the refrigerator inside an airtight container with a paper towel set gently on top. The paper towel absorbs moisture, keeping your lemon treats from getting soggy. Enjoy within 3 days.
My favorite kitchen tools:
Make these deliciously tart Keto Lemon Bars today!
Preheat oven to 325 degrees and line 9×9″ baking pan with parchment paper, allowing the paper to overhang all edges of the baking sheet. Then in a mixing bowl, whisk together sunflower seed meal, shredded coconut, monk fruit sweetener, and salt.
Add melted butter, egg, vanilla extract and whisk again until fully combined.
Transfer mixture to prepared pan and, using fingers, press into even layer. Transfer pan to oven and bake until edges of crust are golden brown, about 20 minutes.
Meanwhile, to a food processor, add monk fruit sweetener and pulse until powdered.
Transfer powdered monk fruit sweetener to mixing bowl and add sunflower seed meal, eggs, lemon, juice, and lemon zest and, using an electric mixer on lowest speed mix together until well-combined.
Remove pan with crust from the oven.
Pour filling atop crust. Place pan in center of large baking sheet. Pour enough water into baking sheet to fill ~1 inch of water. Place baking sheet with pan in oven and bake until filling has set, about 35 minutes.
Turn oven off and, using a wooden spoon, crack the oven door open just slightly. Allow pan to sit in the cooling oven for 1 hour. Remove baking sheet with water bath and pan from oven. Take the pan off the water bath.
Transfer pan to the refrigerator to chill uncovered for 2 hours before cutting and serving.
Compliant with a wide variety of diets!
- Keto and Low-Carb: These lemon bars contain 4.1 grams of net carbs per serving, making them perfect for keto and low-carb diets.
- Nut-Free: Like all RB recipes, nuts are not used in this dessert.
- Primal: This recipe follows primal diet rules.
- Paleo: Keto lemon bars are totally paleo-friendly.
- Gluten-Free: Gluten-containing products are not used within this recipe.
- Grain-Free: This recipe does not call for any grain products.
- Dairy-Free: Easily make this recipe dairy-free by replacing butter with coconut oil.
- Vegetarian: These low-carb lemon bars are vegetarian-friendly.
- Sugar-Free: Through using monk fruit sweetener, this recipe is totally sugar-free.
Craving some more low carb fruit desserts?
You will love these keto fruit desserts:
- Chocolate Strawberry Panna Cotta
- Low-Carb Blueberry Cheesecake Bars
- Keto Banana Pudding
- Low-Carb Glazed Orange Scones
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Keto Lemon Bars
- Prep Time: 20 minutes
- Cook Time: 55 minutes
- Total Time: 4 hours, 15 minutes
- Yield: 16 lemon bars 1x
- Category: Dessert
- Method: Bake
- Cuisine: American
Description
These keto lemon bars are the perfect treat to add to your daily food line up. After your first bite, you’re going to want them all the time!
Ingredients
Crust:
- 2 cups (220g) ground sunflower seed meal
- 1 cup (80g) shredded coconut
- ¼ cup (48g) classic monk fruit sweetener
- ⅛ tsp salt
- ¼ cup (2 oz) melted butter (or melted coconut oil for dairy-free)
- 1 egg
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
Lemon Filling:
- ½ cup (96g) classic monk fruit sweetener
- ¼ cup (27g) ground sunflower seed meal
- 5 eggs
- ¾ cup (180mL) lemon juice
- 1 tbsp lemon zest
Instructions
- Crust: Preheat oven to 325 degrees and line 9×9″ baking pan with parchment paper, allowing paper to overhang all edges of baking sheet.
- In a mixing bowl, whisk together sunflower seed meal, shredded coconut, monk fruit sweetener, and salt. Add melted butter, egg, vanilla extract and whisk again until fully combined.
- Transfer mixture to prepared pan and, using fingers, press into even layer. Transfer pan to oven and bake until edges of crust are golden brown, about 20 minutes.
- Lemon Filling: Meanwhile, to a food processor, add monk fruit sweetener and pulse until powdered. Transfer powdered monk fruit sweetener to mixing bowl and add sunflower seed meal, eggs, lemon, juice, and lemon zest and, using an electric mixer on lowest speed mix together until well-combined.
- Remove pan with crust from oven and pour filling atop crust. Place pan in center of large baking sheet. Pour enough water into baking sheet to fill ~1 inch of water. Place baking sheet with pan in oven and bake until filling has set, about 35 minutes.
- Final Steps: Turn oven off and, using a wooden spoon, crack oven door open just slightly. Allow pan to sit in cooling oven for 1 hour. Remove baking sheet with water bath and pan from oven. Remove pan from water bath. Transfer pan to refrigerator to chill uncovered for 2 hours before cutting and serving.
Recipe Notes:
Ground Sunflower Seed Meal Substitute: Readers have tested and confirmed that almond flour can be substituted in for ground sunflower seed meal at a 1:1 ratio. Note that, due to allergies, I have not and cannot test this substitution.
Water Bath: Using a water bath will help to ensure that, while baking, the lemon bars will evenly cook. A water bath also helps to ensure that the tops of the lemon bars don’t crack.
Drastic Temperature Change Will Likely Lead to Lemon Bars Cracking: To avoid this, after baking, allow the pan to sit in the oven with the oven door cracked for 1 hour after baking. This is to allow the cake to slowly cool, rather than moving straight from a hot oven to a cold refrigerator, which will lead to the surface of the lemon bars cracking.
Storage: Store lemon bars in the refrigerator in an airtight container with paper towel gently set on top. The paper towel will lessen any condensation build-up in the container, which could potentially lead to the lemon bars getting soggy.
Keywords: keto lemon bars, low carb lemon bars, best lemon bars, lemon bars recipe, gluten free lemon bars, lemon dessert recipes
This is a sponsored post written by Sara Nelson on behalf of Lakanto.
Louise Brandt says
My husband is also allergic to nuts. I’m grateful I finally found your site!
I want to grind my own sunflower seed flour. Should I grind RAW or TOASTED UNSALTED sunflower seeds or would either work?
Sara Nelson says
Hi, Louise! So happy to have you here! I haven’t tried this, but I think either raw or toasted/unsalted would work just fine! Let me know how it goes!
Louise Brandt says
Do you provide a link to the sunflower seed meal or flour you prefer? Does it vary as much as coconut flour? Which I’ve read is highly variable by brand.
Is there a difference between sunflower seed MEAL and FLOUR?
Sara Nelson says
The exact product is linked right in the recipe card. There is sometimes a difference between sunflower seed meal and sunflower seed flour (typically if the seeds are blanched or not), but often the terms are used interchangeably.
Sarah says
Can these be frozen. They look delicious but with 2 people in my household, 16 servings, and lasting 3 days I see either overeating carbs or wasted food. Both of which are criminal in my book.
Sara Nelson says
I bet they can be! Be sure to allow them to fully chill before wrapping them individually in plastic wrap then tucking them in a container or freezer bag and freezing. Unthaw in the refrigerator overnight. Enjoy!
Jeffrie Schultz says
Would these work with almond or coconut flour. Just hate to add another flour to the cabinet.
Sara Nelson says
Based on my understanding, almond flour can be subbed in for ground sunflower seed meal at a 1:1 ratio. I bet this would work here, but cannot say for sure (and cannot test it for you) due to my allergies. If you try it out, let me know how it goes!
Ryan says
These are so good; I may or may not have three of them in my lunch today…
★★★★★