How are your New Years resolutions going? One of mine was definitely about prioritizing my health and eating better. Thus, although I wantmy favorite lemon bars to make , I thought it was time to try a lighter version. That’s where these keto lemon bars come in.

When I was searching for a lighter and healthier lemon bar recipe,I found several different keto lemon bars. I actually tried two different recipes. The first one (and first on google) was actually a total flop for me. It did not hold together whatsoever. The crust completely broke and crumbled and the filling was way too much for the crust to handle.

Since that one didn’t work at all, I kept searching and found a few others that I combined to come up with this one. What I found while looking was that most of the recipes had a lot of commonalities. They all use either almond flour or coconut flour, butter, lemons, eggs and a sugar substitute. The differences I did find were related to other add-ons, such as baking powder, vanilla, salt, gelatin, etc.

These keto lemon bars are actually super easy to make. The hardest part is gathering all the ingredients. Although you can find almond flour and sugar substitutes at your local grocery store, most people don’t regularly have these items on hand. This recipe was the first time I actually heard of powdered sugar substitute. In case you’re wondering about sugar substitutes, here are the Best Keto Sugar Substitutes

Overall, this was an experiment of a recipe that turned out well enough. These are NOT as good as your standard lemon bars, but they are also much healthier. If you’re dying for some lemony goodness, these will fill the void. They are very lemony and I liked the crust. However, I have to admit I couldn’t trick my mind into thinking these were as delicious as the real thing. If you’re on a strict keto diet, these will definitely bring you great lemon flavor and a baked-good-like feel, but if you’re on a regular diet, then you should make my original lemon bars instead 🙂

Keto Lemon Bars

Ingredients:

1 cup, plus 3 tablespoons Almond Flour
1/4 cup butter
2 eggs
1/3 plus cup plus 2 tablespoons erythritol
1/4 cup lemon juice
1/2 teaspoon baking powder
Powdered Sugar Substitute

Directions:

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Butter or use cooking spray to prepare an 8×8 baking dish.

Mix butter, 1 cup and 2 tablespoons almond flour, 2 tablespoons sugar substitute. Press evenly into a baking dish. Bake for 15 minutes. Then, let cool for 10 minutes.

In a bowl, zest 1 lemon, then juice 1-2 lemons. You will need 1/4 cup of lemon juice. Add 2 eggs, 1/3 cup sugar substitute, 1/2 teaspoon baking powder, and 1 tablespoon almond flour. Combine to make filling.

Pour the filling onto the crust & bake for 20-25 minutes, until cooked through and starting to brown. Serve with lemon slices and a sprinkle of powdered sugar or powdered sugar substitute (optional).

Note: These bars were still pretty moist even after letting them brown quite a bit. I left them in a container on the counter with the lid cracked, and they became firmer and drier with time, which I preferred for a drier texture.