Lemon Poppy Seed Bars

These lemon poppy seed bars are a treasure. My buttery shortbread crust and crumble (same dough!) just melts in your mouth. Then you get that super-bright and zingy flavor of homemade lemon curd, and the little crunch from the poppy seeds. Best of all, this is the kind of recipe that behaves beautifully ~ it’s easy to make, easy to share, and very hard to mess up.

My signiture lemon curd filling

Making these bars reminded me just how good homemade lemon curd can be ~ and how easy. My go-to recipe comes together quickly in the microwave, and the flavor is so much brighter than anything from a jar: tart, creamy, smooth, and sharp in the best way.

I’ve made many fruit curd variations over the years, and they would all work wonderfully as a filling in these poppy seed bars.

• cranberry orange curd
• strawberry curd
• rhubarb curd
• honey meyer lemon curd
• apricot curd

you asked

Can I double this recipe for a 9×13 pan?
This recipe is made in a 9×9 pan, so I would use a 1 1/2 batch for a 9×13, or expect thicker bars and a longer bake time with a full double.

Can I make lemon poppy seed bars gluten free?
Yes. Use a good 1:1 gluten free baking flour in the shortbread dough. The lemon curd filling is naturally gluten free, so the crust/crumble is the only part you need to adapt.

Can I leave out the poppy seeds?
Yes. The bars will still be delicious without them. The poppy seeds add a little crunch and classic lemon poppy seed flavor, but they aren’t structural.

Can I freeze these lemon bars?
Yes. Slice the cooled bars, then freeze the slices in a single layer before stacking with parchment and double wrapping. Thaw in the refrigerator.

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Lemon Poppy Seed Bars

5 from 1 vote

These lemon poppy seed bars are easy shortbread lemon bars with homemade lemon curd and the classic crunch of poppy seeds. Bright, buttery, tart, and sweet ~ a fresh twist on classic lemon bars.

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Prep Time:20 minutes minutes

Cook Time:40 minutes minutes

Total Time:1 hour hour

Servings: 16

Equipment

• 9×9 baking pan

Ingredients

 

US CustomaryMetric

• 1 cup lemon curd, get my recipe here
• 1 cup butter, room temperature
• 1/3 cup sugar
• 1/3 cup powdered sugar
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 1/2 tsp almond extract
• 2 cups flour
• 2 Tbsp poppy seeds

Instructions

• Preheat your oven to 350 and butter a 9×9 square baking pan. Line with parchment paper if you like, this will help remove them after baking for neat slicing.
• In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, combine the butter, sugar, powdered sugar, salt, and almond extract.
• Cream the mixture on low/medium speed until light and fluffy, 1-2 minutes.
• Add the flour and the poppy seeds, and mix slowly just until everything is combined and the dough comes together. It will still look crumbly, but should stick together when you press it with your fingers.
• Scoop out about 1/3 of the dough and set it aside. Press the rest of the dough into an even layer across the bottom of your prepared baking pan.
• Spoon the lemon curd (you will use the whole batch, a little over a cup) over the layer of dough, and gently spread it out evenly over the whole surface.
• Crumble the reserved dough evenly over the top of the lemon curd.
• Bake for about 35-40 minutes until set and the dough is just starting to turn golden brown on the edges.
• Remove from the oven and allow to cool completely before slicing and serving.

NOTES ~ Click here to add your own private notes.

Course: Dessert

Cuisine: American

Author: Sue Moran

Keyword: bars, dessert, lemon, poppy seed, shortbread

Nutrition

Serving: 1 bar · Calories: 238 kcal · Carbohydrates: 27 g · Protein: 2 g · Fat: 13 g · Saturated Fat: 8 g · Polyunsaturated Fat: 1 g · Monounsaturated Fat: 3 g · Trans Fat: 0.5 g · Cholesterol: 31 mg · Sodium: 207 mg · Potassium: 29 mg · Fiber: 1 g · Sugar: 15 g · Vitamin A: 355 IU · Vitamin C: 0.01 mg · Calcium: 22 mg · Iron: 1 mg

Nutritional information is provided as a courtesy and is an estimate only. This information comes from online calculators. Although The View from Great Island attempts to provide accurate nutritional information, these figures are only estimates.

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