Healthy Lemon Squares– free of gluten and grain

These healthy lemon squares are as easy to make as conventional ones! Gluten free, grain free, and sweetened with honey, you don’t even need nuts or dairy to make them. This is a delicious, healthy lemon dessert you can even have on the GAPS diet!

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Are lemon squares a spring treat?

Even though citrus is a winter-ripening fruit, I seem to associate lemons more with spring and summer. Lemonade, naturally, is pretty perfect for hot, summer days. Lemon desserts seem to fit a springtime menu. Maybe it is the springy, yellow color? Or maybe it is the bright, cheerful flavor.

Whatever the reason lemon desserts crop up at Easter, Mother’s Day, bridal showers, and other spring celebrations, there is hardly a bad time for them!

The only drawback is that the sugar content is usually sky high. Well, lemons are sour. Dessert is sweet. You really need to sweeten lemon treats considerably.

Here, we will have our healthy lemon squares and limit our sugar, too! Using honey as the sweetener is a little better for us. We need much less (most lemon square recipes have a cup or more of sugar!), in part because we will rely more on lemon zest than on the more-sour lemon juice.

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Are these lemon squares really healthy?

Well, they are dessert. An indulgence, not a nutritional workhorse. Maybe don’t eat them often, and resist the urge to eat the whole pan by yourself?

Typically, lemon squares are not at all good for us. The lemons are good, and so are the eggs and butter. But the rest? Flour and tons of refined sugar. Not good.

In this recipe, I have reduced the lemon juice. Recipes vary from half a cup to a full cup of lemon juice. Delicious as lemon juice is, it really needs sugar to be palatable. In order to keep the vibrant lemon-y flavor, yet drastically reduce the sugar, I have reduced the sour lemon juice and added lots of lemon zest.

If anything, lemon zest has even more flavor than juice! It isn’t very sour, and it even has its own health benefits, as do citrus peels in general. For this recipe, I buy organic lemons! We are, after all, eating the peel. We don’t need to compensate for as much sourness from lemon juice, since we are using less lemon juice, but you will want some sweetness!

Are these lemon squares GAPS friendly?

For GAPS, honey is a sweetener of choice. I use 1/4 cup, but you can bump it up to 1/3 cup if you want. Taste and see if it is sweet enough. If you aren’t on the GAPS diet, sugar will work fine. I would start with 1/3 cup and increase as needed. Honey is sweeter than sugar.

A drawback of reducing the sugar is that these more healthy lemon squares are short. The sugar affects the structure of the filling; leaving most of it out results in a thinner layer of lemon filling. That is a sacrifice I am willing to put up with.

Another detail that makes these (relatively) healthy lemon squares GAPS-friendly is that there is no gluten or grain flour. I try to limit my almond flour use, so I opted for coconut flour here. (If you want an almond flour GAPS lemon bar recipe, check this one!)

To be really correct for the GAPS diet, you should grind coconut into flour just before using. It is less processed that way. I used organic coconut flour from a store. You can make your own call on the coconut flour.

How to Make Healthy Lemon Squares

Start with making the crust. Soften half a cup of good butter (or coconut oil). Mix in a tablespoon of honey, half a cup of coconut flour, and vanilla. Alternatively, use lemon extract or some extra lemon zest to flavor the crust, or leave it out. You can add an egg to the crust mixture, or leave it out. It works either way.

Pat the dough into a buttered 8″ square pan. I find it a bit sticky; get your hands wet with cool water and it will pat in just fine! Bake 10-15 minutes at 350° F, until the crust edges are just browning a bit. While the crust bakes, you can prepare your lemon filing.

For the filling:

To zest citrus, I like to use the fine side of a box grater. You can use a zesting tool, or just a peeler and knife. Just be sure to get it quite fine. 2 lemons generally yield about 2 T of zest, but you don’t need to measure. Then save those bald lemons, because we will use their juice!

In a bowl, combine 4 eggs, honey, lemon juice and zest, and the baking soda and coconut flour. Beat for about 3 minutes with a mixer, or whisk very vigorously with a whisk until frothy.

Pour over the baked crust and bake the whole thing an additional 25-30 minutes.

When the filling is set and starting to brown, remove and cool completely before cutting and serving. Store any leftovers in the refrigerator. I have never had these in the house longer than 24 hours, but they might last a couple of days in the refrigerator.

Frequently Asked Questions

Do I need to chill the dough?

No, you don’t. If you made it ahead, you could chill it, but be sure to bring the pan to room temperature before putting it in a hot oven if it is glass or ceramic and could shatter from a sudden temperature change.

Do the butter and eggs have to be at room temperature?

It works better if they are! The butter will be difficult to mix if it isn’t soft. To soften it faster, slice it up; smaller bits soften faster. You could also set the sliced butter in a bowl inside a larger pan of warm water to speed it up.

The eggs will work even if they are cold, but they will whip up better if they are not cold. To warm them quickly, set them in a bowl of hot tap water for a few minutes.

Why is there a teaspoon of coconut flour in the filling? What difference could such a tiny amount make?!

Believe it or not, that small teaspoon of coconut flour makes a difference. Remember, coconut flour is thirsty– it absorbs much more liquid than most other flours do. That little amount helps keep the filling from being too moist. Honey adds moisture, and it can be a bit much.

If you leave the teaspoon of coconut flour out of the filling, it will still work. It might be a little too soft, but you will still be able to eat it. Just be sure to cool it well, maybe even in the refrigerator.

What variations could I make to this recipe?

I haven’t tried these variations, because I just love these as they are! I keep meaning to try something different, like:

• sub orange zest for all or some of the lemon zest. Both fruits together sound great!
• opt for Meyer lemons. A hybrid of lemon and orange, Meyer lemons are a bit sweeter than regular ones. You may be able to use less honey for that reason. The flavor is different yet good.
• would lime work? It seems as if it should, but I don’t know… Sometimes I find lime zest a little bitter. Maybe try just a bit?
• line your pan with parchment and press the crust into the parchment. The edges of the squares will be much prettier that way.
• if you aren’t on the GAPS diet, you could sprinkle the tops with powdered sugar. That is a typical way to make them pretty, and really does make them look a little nicer!
• serve with berries! We tend to scarf these up pretty fast, but they would be extra special served with berries. For a special occasion dessert, maybe serve with berries and a little dollop of whipped cream?

Do you love lemon? Try cultured lemonade for a fizzy, probiotic treat perfect for summer!