Lemon Squares - Low Carb, Keto, THM S, Gluten-Free, Sugar-Free (2024)

Published: Jun 18, 2021 by Taryn

This easy Sugar Free Lemon Bars Recipe comes together in minutes. When you are craving a fresh and vibrant dessert my keto low carb lemon squares will be the perfect fix. This simple bar recipe is also gluten-free, grain-free, and Trim Healthy Mama friendly.

I love when readers send me recipes to test. Last month, I received this dough recipe from John in my email and I was intrigued by the use of milk powder. I gave it a try subbing in the heavy cream powder I had in my cupboard. It was a great dough! Very easy to work with and easier to make than a fathead type dough. It reminded me of the cream cheese dough I use in my pecan tassies.

Add in my current craving for light and refreshing spring flavors and this recipe for low carb keto lemon bars was born. I served these to friends a couple of days after making them and everyone loved them.

Are Lemon Bars Keto?

Traditional lemon squares are not keto friendly. They are full of carbs from the sugar and white flour used in them. That's why I wanted to develop a recipe for low carb sugar free lemon bars!

Ingredients in Almond Flour Crust:

• Almond Flour - Blanched almond flour has a mild flavor that works well in low carb baked goods. It has a tender crumb that is perfect in cakes, crusts, breads, muffins, cookies, rolls, pies, and biscuits.
• Heavy Cream Powder - you can sub in whole milk powder if necessary but this recipe was developed with heavy cream powder. I do offer other crust options in the next sections of this post.
• Coconut Flour - Coconut flour helps to balance the natural oiliness of almond flour since it is drier and absorbs more liquid than other keto diet friendly flours. A little goes a long way.
• Sugar-Free Sweetener - I like to use my homemade blend blend of xylitol, erythritol, and stevia in my recipes. By using a combination of sugar alcohols with stevia you can use half the amount required of 1:1 sweeteners and regular sugar.
• Cream Cheese - This makes the crust soft and tender while giving a boost of flavor!
• Eggs - Eggs are the binder to hold the crust together.

Crust for Gluten Free Sugar Free Lemon Bars

This cream cheese based crust mixes up in no time. Just add the ingredients for the crust to your stand mixer and turn it on. If you don't have a stand mixer you can mix this by hand or with an electric mixer.

This dough is unique in its use of heavy cream powder or whole milk powder. This makes the crust softer and enhances the flavor in the gluten free lemon bars.

If you'd prefer a crust without heavy cream powder try my Low Carb Pie Crust or the shortbread crust in my Pecan Tassies recipe.

How to Make Keto Lemon Bars

The filling for my lemon squares recipe is made easily either by hand or in your stand mixer. You just want to mix the ingredients until they are smooth. As long as you are using softened cream cheese and melted butter the filling comes together quickly.

Ingredients in Sugar Free Lemon Filling

Only 6 simple ingredients to make the perfect lemon custard filling for low carb lemon bars.

• Sugar-Free Sweetener - my sweetener is twice as sweet as sugar so you need less than other brands.
• Butter - regular salted butter is fine. The salt balances the sweetness of the other ingredients and highlights the tang of the lemon.
• Heavy Cream - aka heavy whipping cream. Using cream makes these so creamy.
• Eggs - whole large eggs are necessary for this recipe.
• Cream Cheese - I just use the store brand most of the time. Make sure to use full-fat cream cheese in this recipe.
• Lemon Juice - freshly squeezed is best for the most vibrant lemon flavor. If you must use bottled lemon juice also add some lemon extract.

Expert Tip - for a bolder lemon flavor add a teaspoon or two of lemon extract or lemon zest. You can even add some zest to the crust!

Can I use bottled lemon juice for lemon squares?

I don't recommend using bottled lemon juice for a dessert when lemon is the star flavor. The flavor just isn't as vibrant as squeezing fresh lemons. If you have to use bottled lemon juice make sure to choose one that tastes good. The rest of the ingredients are costly enough you don't want to have boring bland keto lemon bars from using a lesser quality bottled juice.

How to store Sugar Free Lemon Bars

I recommend storing this in the refrigerator since they have a lot of dairy ingredients in them. They will last a week in an air tight container in the fridge.

Can I Freeze Sugar Free Lemon Bars?

Yes! You can freeze lemon bars. Just freeze with a bit of space between them on a waxed paper or parchment-lined cookie sheet for an hour or two. Once they are thoroughly chilled wrap individually with plastic wrap.

Keto Dessert Bar Recipes

I love cookies but a lot of the time it's easier to just press a batter into an 8x8 baking dish. I default to bars and brownies over scooping individual cookies quite often when making low carb recipes. Here are some of my favorite easy keto recipes for bars.

Keto Chocolate Cake Bars with Cheesecake Swirl

Peppermint Cookies and Cream Bars

Tagalong Peanut Butter Cookie Bars

White Chocolate Peanut Butter Blondies

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Originally Published April 10, 2019. Revised and Republished June 18, 2021.