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CPA: Certified Pastry Aficionado

Lavender Vanilla Lemon Bars

dessert· Easter· Summertime Favorites
March 18, 2019

Jump to Recipe Print Recipe

Lavender Vanilla Lemon Bars – Tart & gooey lemon bars flavored with a hint of lavender and vanilla bean

Stack of Lavender Vanilla Lemon Bars

St. Patrick’s Day is behind us so that means spring is right around the corner! The weather may not feel like spring yet but that won’t stop me from enjoy some yummy spring treats.

Lemon is technically in season during the winter but it is associated with spring and summer because of the beautifully bright flavor and yellow color. For this reason, it’s a great flavor to welcome in the season and also great for celebrating Easter next month.

I am usually opposed to lemon sweet treats but lately I’ve been giving them a second chance, especially when they are used in tart treats like this raspberry lemon sorbet or this refreshing peach lemonade. Not too long ago I had my first lemon bar and was shocked at how much I love them. They were super duper tart but also creamy like a thick custard. I loved them!

Because of my new-found love for lemon bars, I just had to share a recipe for them. But I wanted to make these a little special for you guys. And thus was born my Lavender Vanilla Lemon Bars!

Top view of a stack of Lavender Vanilla Lemon Bars covered in lavender sugar Two lemons on a pink cloth napkinLavender Vanilla Lemon Bars with bites taken out

Why lavender?

My friend Elizabeth practically begged me to make a dessert with lavender. “Lavender?” I said. I was a little skeptical of the floral flavor, especially since I already hated anything with rose or rose water in it. It tasted like I was eating a flower and I was not about that life.

However, I was already planning to make some killer lemon bars to share my new love for this tart treat and since I knew lemon and lavender went well together, I thought, “Hey, I’ll just make these into lavender lemon bars” and give this lavender thing a shot. The worst that could happen is that I didn’t love them but Elizabeth would still be happy so it would all work out.

Yellow Lemon Bars, With Lavender Vanilla Sugar On Top.

How are these lemon bars made?

To make these bars extra special, I made them with lavender and vanilla. I needed a little insurance for these bars to make me feel better about using the lavender. The vanilla bean was just the trick!

The lavender and vanilla is added to traditional lemon bars through the sugar. I made a lavender vanilla sugar by processing edible lavender with vanilla bean specks and granulated sugar. When I opened the food processor to reveal the processed sugar, the smell was heavenly and it overwhelmed my senses! I could already tell these lemon bars were going to be killer.

To make the lemon bars, we first make a shortbread crust and bake it until it’s golden brown. We use some of the lavender vanilla sugar in the crust to make sure you can get a little of the lavender vanilla flavor in every bite of the lemon bar.

After the crust is ready, we pour in the filling made from eggs, lemon juice, lemon zest, flour, and more lavender vanilla sugar and let the bars cook for another 25-30 minutes.

The final verdict

Guys…the flavor of these lemon bars BLEW ME AWAY. Because the lavender was blended right into the sugar, its flavor was more subtle and not overpowering in the slightest. Plus, its bright, fresh scent was the perfect pairing for the tart lemon. I guess you could say this girl’s mind is officially changed!

Tips & Tricks

As always, I have a few tips to help you get through this recipe without a hitch:

  1. To ensure a clean cut, please please make sure to chill these lemon bars for at least 8 hours, but preferably overnight. This will make sure the bars are super firm and won’t look messy as you cut them.
  2. Line your baking pan with aluminum foil to help you pull out the bars easily before you cut them. I HATE cutting bars in the baking pan so I always line with parchment paper or aluminum foil to help pull them out of the pan and cut them on my cutting board.
  3. This recipe calls for culinary or edible lavender. I haven’t been able to find it in stores so I bought mine on Amazon. Here’s a link to the kind I used.

And there you have it – the first treat for Spring! What other treats are you making this season? Let me know in the comments below!

Stack of yellow Lavender Vanilla Lemon Bars

Print Recipe

Lavender Vanilla Lemon Bars

Tart & gooey lemon bars flavored with a hint of lavender and vanilla bean
Prep Time30 mins
Cook Time1 hr
Resting Time8 hrs
Total Time1 hr 30 mins
Servings: 20 bars

Ingredients

For the lavender vanilla sugar:
  • 3 1/4 cups granulated sugar
  • 1 tablespoon culinary lavender
  • 1 vanilla bean
For the shortbread crust:
  • 8 ounces butter unsalted, melted
  • 1/2 cup lavender vanilla sugar from recipe above
  • 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
  • 1/2 teaspoon salt
  • 2 cups all purpose flour
For the lemon bar filling:
  • 8 large eggs
  • 1 1/4 cup fresh lemon juice from about 5 lemons
  • 2 3/4 cups lavender vanilla sugar from recipe above
  • zest of 1 lemon
  • 1 cup all purpose flour

Instructions

For the lavender vanilla sugar:
  • Add granulated sugar and lavender to a food processor. Split vanilla bean down the center, lengthwise, and scrape out the bean specks. Place them in the food processor with the sugar and the lavender for 30 seconds. Set aside. 
For the shortbread crust:
  • Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Line 13x9 pan with aluminum foil. Spray foil with nonstick spray. Set aside. 
  • In a medium bowl, whisk melted butter, lavender vanilla sugar, vanilla extract, and salt together. Add flour and stir with a wooden spoon or spatula until completely combined. 
  • Pour mixture into prepare baking pan and spread as far as you can with spatula. Using your hands, finish pushing mixture to the edges of the pan so that mixture evenly coats the bottom of the pan. 
  • Bake for 18-20 minutes or until top begins to brown. Don't let it get too brown or the crust will be too crispy. While the crust bakes, make the filling so that it's prepared when the crust is done. 
For the lemon bar filling:
  • Add eggs and lavender vanilla sugar to a large bowl. Whisk together until combined. Add lemon juice and lemon zest and whisk together. Sift the flour on top of the mixture and whisk together, trying to remove most lumps. It's okay if some lumps still remain. 
  • When crust is done, open oven and slide rack with crust out of the oven about halfyway. Very very gently, pour filling into the pan with the hot crust. Push rack back into oven and close oven to bake for 25-30 more minutes. The bars are done when the center barely jiggles when shaken. 
  • Remove pan from oven to cool to room temperature. For a perfectly clean cut, refrigerate bars overnight before cutting. 

Notes

Recipe adapted from Sugar Hero

Pin for later:

Lavender Vanilla Lemon Bars photo collage

More treats that you’ll love:

Lemon Poppyseed Pound Cake

Lemon Poppyseed Pound Cake on a cutting board in front of a lemon

Atlantic Beach Pie

Slice of Atlantic Beach Pie on a plate

Lemon Blueberry Ricotta Pancakes

Lemon Blueberry Ricotta Pancakes topped with blueberry syrup and whole blueberries

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30 Comments

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Comments

  1. Rachel says

    May 1, 2020 at 1:27 am

    I had never made lemon bars before but I love to eat them. My family is also obsessed with lavender (my husband makes an amazing lavender lemonade). So I finally decided to give the recipe a try when neighbors dropped off a bag of lemons for me and I also realized I had a half pound bag of lavender in my pantry too. The lemon bars came out incredible! My husband and daughter can’t get enough of them. The first neighbor I shared with said they were so good and “restaurant quality” and the second neighbor had her eyes rolling into the back of her head and spent a full minute raving about them. Thanks for the wonderful recipe!

    Reply
  2. Celeste Pianezzola says

    April 28, 2020 at 2:46 pm

    Your recipe doesn’t seem to produce results that even remotely resemble the picture. The flower petal confetti topping drew me in but mine did not turn out this way. I asked a professional baker I know and she said that it’s likely you used a mix of rose petals and a touch of lavender dusted on the top because that color is far more pink than purple. Did you dust these with more things after baking?

    Reply
    • Sharon says

      April 28, 2020 at 2:51 pm

      Nope I didn’t dust the bars with more after they baked – what you see is the result straight from the pan. Maybe you used different lavender petals than me? Here is the link to the lavender I purchased on Amazon. I also did not use anything other than this lavender.

      Reply
  3. Suzanne says

    March 19, 2020 at 3:58 pm

    This looks delicious! Thank you for sharing!

    Reply
  4. Luxury says

    April 3, 2019 at 5:31 am

    Wow. This is just completely different and new for me. Surely deserves a try..

    Reply
  5. Deseree says

    March 25, 2019 at 3:34 pm

    These are a great dessert for spring and summer. I love that you have added lavender. I have never baked with it before and now I can’t wait to give these a try!

    Reply
  6. Daniela says

    March 24, 2019 at 11:31 pm

    Yum! These sound so elegant with lavender and perfect for springtime! Love the brightness of the citrus too! Thanks so much for sharing :).

    Reply
  7. Nicoletta De Angelis Nardelli says

    March 24, 2019 at 3:06 am

    Lemon desserts have my preference! Loving the addition of lavender, here, sounds intriguing. They also look beautiful and perfect to welcome Spring.

    Reply
  8. Pearl Rodrigues says

    March 23, 2019 at 4:32 pm

    Loving the texture of these lemon bars. I’d never imagined lemon bars flavored with a hint of lavender, sounds very interesting and definitely trying it out

    Reply
  9. Jacquelyn Hastert says

    March 22, 2019 at 10:55 am

    These are the perfect springtime dessert! Lemon goes with everything right now and I am so excited!

    Reply
  10. Cathleen @ A Taste of Madness says

    March 22, 2019 at 12:53 am

    It took me SO LONG to find lavender that I could cook with, but I finally found it at a whole foods. I love how it makes desserts taste. Your bars sound fantastic!

    Reply
  11. Danielle Wolter says

    March 20, 2019 at 10:18 pm

    lemon sweets are my absolute favorite, but I am swooning at the addition of the lavender. here. such a great idea!

    Reply
  12. Anne Lawton says

    March 20, 2019 at 8:52 pm

    I just love lemony desserts and when they lavender is added, that’s even better!

    Reply
  13. Karly says

    March 20, 2019 at 11:48 am

    What a great twist on lemon bars! Can’t wait to try!

    Reply
  14. Pam Greer says

    March 20, 2019 at 7:22 am

    I love cooking with lavender and these lavender vanilla lemon bars are perfect. Sweet and tart with that perfect bit of floral from the lavender!

    Reply
  15. Katherine | Love In My Oven says

    March 19, 2019 at 10:41 pm

    I’ve never baked with lavender but I can just imagine how delicious it is, paired with the lemon! I just know I’d love these, it would almost be a terrible idea to make them…they wouldn’t last long at all!!

    Reply
  16. Amber S Battishill says

    March 19, 2019 at 8:44 pm

    Oh my goodness, these just have all the flavors of spring! I bet that this combo is absolutely delicious!

    Reply
  17. Heather says

    March 19, 2019 at 8:02 pm

    What a fun twist on lemon bars! I used to be not a big fan of lemon either but lately I can’t get enough. So this would be fun to try..oh and I have lavender in my cupboard just begging to be used!

    Reply
  18. Brittany says

    March 19, 2019 at 10:33 am

    I have loved lavender lately! Lavender coffee is my new favorite thing. I bet this would pair so well with it! I’ll have to give this a try!

    Reply
  19. Tisha says

    March 19, 2019 at 2:34 am

    This is so unique and creative! The flavor combo sounds perfect together!

    Reply
  20. Luci says

    March 19, 2019 at 12:33 am

    Lavender and lemon is a different combo and haven’t heard before. But I bet it is tasty.

    Reply
  21. Justine says

    March 18, 2019 at 11:43 pm

    My hubby loves lemon bars! And I think lavender vanilla is such a nice flavor combo for baked goods. These look delicious!

    Reply
  22. Elaine says

    March 18, 2019 at 10:14 pm

    It’s been a while since I cooked with lavender so this is perfect timing. I am very interested to try these lemon bars – they look delicious and I can use lavender again – win-win. Thank you!

    Reply
  23. Giangi says

    March 18, 2019 at 9:30 pm

    The vanilla and lavender with the lemon sounds absolutely divine! Love the idea!

    Reply
  24. Caitlyn Erhardt says

    March 18, 2019 at 9:13 pm

    These look so yummy! I grow lavender and will def love this recipe during the summer. Thank you!

    Reply
  25. Kylie | Midwest Foodie says

    March 18, 2019 at 8:04 pm

    What a unique flavor combination!! I’ve never thought to combine them but lavender and lemon sounds divine! Pinning for later – my husband will love this recipe!!

    Reply
  26. Heather says

    March 18, 2019 at 12:56 pm

    I’m not sure I’ve ever tried a lavender dessert before. I bet it’s amazing!

    Reply
  27. Paula @ I'm Busy Being Awesome says

    March 18, 2019 at 12:53 pm

    Such an interesting combination of flavors, so yummy

    Reply
  28. Mimi says

    March 18, 2019 at 12:52 pm

    Anything with lemon has my name on it! Love it

    Reply
  29. Blogtastic Food says

    March 18, 2019 at 7:47 am

    Big fan of lemon desserts here Sharon!! And I love how you added the lavender!! (:

    Reply

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Hi, my name is Sharon. I’m an accountant by day, risk-taking baker and food enthusiast by night. Come join me as I share my favorite recipes and test out new ones along the way!

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