A lemon bar that truly tastes like lemon

Hello, BA Bake Club! You were on a roll (sorry!) last month making Shilpa’s Strawberry Shortcake Roll. Now it’s time to make another equally sunny recipe: my Whole Lemon Bars.

Putting the lemon in lemon bars

Whenever I eat lemon bars, I yearn for the custard to be so zesty that it eats away at my enamel like a Warhead candy. So flavorful that it overwhelms my senses the same way a Lemonhead does. But when lemon juice and zest are the only tools home bakers have at their disposal, reaching that apex becomes impossible. The solve? Blitzing up two whole lemons—pith, juice, skin, and all—directly into the custard.

By blending the entire fruit, then straining out the pulpy bits, you harness the lemon’s most bracing qualities: the bitterness of the pith, the essential oils of the skin, and of course, the acidity of the juice. To this super-powered potion, you simply add egg yolks, sweetened condensed milk, salt, and vanilla—keeping the ingredient list trim so the citrus shines. The result is a custard that’s ultra tart and bright. It’s everything I love about a classic lemon bar with the volume turned up to a reckless decibel level.

And an easier shortbread crust to boot

And while many lemon bar recipes require busting out your mixer to make the shortbread, this one comes together by hand using nothing more than a bowl and whisk. Also: a combination of both powdered and granulated sugar results in a shortbread that’s exceptionally tender yet still snappy. Have I convinced you to make it yet? Yes?

As always, if you give it a try, let us know how it goes on the recipe page, in the Epicurious app, or hit us up in our Substack chat.