Lemon Lemonies

Lemon Lemonies — Like lemon brownies, but made with lemon and white chocolate! Dense, chewy, not cakey and packed with big, bold lemon flavor!

Best Ever Lemon Brownie Recipe

If you like lemon, you’re going to love these bars. They’re packed with bold lemon flavor and are not for the faint of heart.

I’ve seen recipes on Pinterest for similar bars that are called lemon blondies, lemon brownies, or lemon lemonies. My fast, easy, no-mixer version is heavy on the lemon zing and lemonies seems the most fitting.

If you’re looking for traditional lemon bars or a fluffy lemon cake, the lemonies are not it. They’re the lemon equivalent of moist, fudgy brownies with zero traces of cakiness. They’re tooth-sinkingly dense with subtle buttery undertones like blondies have.

After pouring the glaze over the warm bars right as they emerge from the oven, it sets up, seeps into the brownies, and makes them even moister, softer, and more lemony. 

With each bite of a lemonie, I wanted another. It’s the type of food that the more you have, the more you want. The boldly tart-yet-sweet element really kept me going back to straighten the rows.

And the texture is exactly what I want in bars. Dense, rich, moist, chewy, and thick enough to be so satisfying.

Between my row straightening and my family’s love for lemon things, the lemonies disappeared fast.

Ingredients for Lemon Brownies

To make the addicting lemony lemon brownies, you’ll need:

• White chocolate chips
• Unsalted butter
• Eggs
• Granulated sugar
• Lemon juice
• All-purpose flour
• Salt
• Confectioners’ sugar
• Lemon zest

How to Make Lemon Brownies

These lemon blondies are incredibly easy to prepare. Instead of milk or dark chocolate, the lemon lemonies are made with melted white chocolate.

Here’s an overview of how the lemon brownie recipe is made:

1. Melt the white chocolate and butter together in the microwave.
2. Wait a minute or two before adding the eggs, then add the eggs, granulated sugar, and lemon juice, then whisk until combined.
3. Stir in the dry ingredients and then turn into an 8×8-inch baking dish.
4. These lemon brownies need to bake until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out mostly clean, or with a few moist crumbs, but no batter. 
5. Once the lemon brownies are finished baking, set them aside and whisk together the lemon glaze. Pour the glaze over the brownies.

Can I Use Another Citrus Juice Besides Lemon Juice? 

Yes! I’ve actually made these lemon brownies as Orange Orangies as well. You may be able to make a lime version too, but I haven’t tried it out yet. 

Can I Double This Recipe? 

You most likely can double this recipe and bake the lemon brownies in a 9×13-inch pan. You may need to bump up the baking time though. 

Tips for Making Lemon Brownies 

The lemon brownies themselves are not super lemony, thanks to melted white chocolate that’s stirred into the batter, but the glaze is pretty zippy. If you want to dial back the overall lemon intensity of the dessert, halve the recipe for the glaze, and drizzle it on like this, rather than flooding the entire surface.

But with lemon desserts, I generally prefer bold lemon flavor, and nothing is every too lemony for my daughter. She picks lemons slices out of ice water and eats them as if they were orange slices. Pucker much.

And it goes without saying that you should use freshly squeezed lemon juice for this spring dessert. The bottled stuff doesn’t hold a candle to juice straight from a lemon! 

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4.55 from 117 votes

Lemon Lemonies

By Averie Sunshine

Like lemon brownies, but made with lemon and white chocolate! Dense, chewy, not cakey and packed with big, bold lemon flavor!

Prep Time: 15 minutes minutes

Cook Time: 27 minutes minutes

Cooling Time: 3 hours hours

Total Time: 3 hours hours 42 minutes minutes

Servings: 9

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Ingredients  

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For the Bars

• ▢ ¾ cup white chocolate chips
• ▢ ½ cup unsalted butter, 1 stick, melted
• ▢ 2 large eggs
• ▢ ¾ cup granulated sugar
• ▢ ¼ cup lemon juice
• ▢ 1 ¾ cups all-purpose flour
• ▢ pinch salt, optional and to taste

For the Glaze

• ▢ 2 cups confectioners’ sugar
• ▢ ⅓ cup lemon juice, or as necessary for consistency
• ▢ 1 tablespoon lemon zest, or to taste

Cook ModePrevent your screen from going dark

Instructions 

• Preheat oven to 350F. Line an 8-by-8-inch baking pan with aluminum foil, spray with cooking spray; set aside.

For the Bars:

• In a large, microwave-safe bowl add the white chocolate, butter, and heat to melt, about 2 minutes on high power. Stop to check and stir after 1 minute, and then heat in 20-second bursts, stopping to stir after each burst, until mixture can be stirred smooth. White chocolate is very prone to scorching and seizing up, so watch it carefully and don’t overheat.
• Wait momentarily before adding the eggs so you don’t scramble them. Add the eggs, granulated sugar, lemon juice, and whisk until combined.
• Add the flour, optional salt, and stir until just combined; don’t overmix.
• Turn batter out into prepared pan, smoothing the top lightly with a spatula.
• Bake for about 27 to 28 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out mostly clean, or with a few moist crumbs, but no batter; set aside and make the glaze.

For the Glaze:

• In a medium bowl, add 2 cup confectioners’ sugar, 1/3 cup lemon juice, and whisk until smooth. As necessary, add additional lemon juice (or sugar) to reach desired glaze consistency. I used slightly over 1/3 cup lemon juice. Glaze should be fairly thin and easily pourable.
• Evenly pour glaze over bars, smoothing it lightly with a spatula if necessary, but glaze will likely just slide into place.
  Evenly sprinkle with lemon zest.
• Allow bars to cool in pan uncovered for at least 2 to 3 hours, (or overnight and cover with a sheet of foil) before slicing and serving so glaze can set up.

Notes

• Bars will keep airtight at room temperature for up to 1 week, or in the freezer for up to 6 months.

Nutrition

Serving: 1, Calories: 433kcal, Carbohydrates: 69g, Protein: 5g, Fat: 16g, Saturated Fat: 9g, Polyunsaturated Fat: 5g, Cholesterol: 71mg, Sodium: 49mg, Fiber: 1g, Sugar: 49g

Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.

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Originally published June 14, 2014 and reposted February 28, 2020 with updated text.