Made with a balance of sweet, fresh blackberries, bright citrus and a buttery shortbread crumb, these Blackberry Lemon Bars make for the perfect Summer bite. Each morsel is packed with tangy, fruity goodness!
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Each year, when the warm weather rolls around, there is one activity I look forward to most: farmer’s market shopping. If you ask me, lazy Sundays are meant to be spent sipping fresh-squeezed orange juice while milling around lively, buzzing markets. There are stands dedicated to just about anything you can think of: pasta, honey, mushrooms, flowers and so much more!
I have, on more than one occasion, found myself spending countless hours filling up canvas bags with fresh produce and other assorted goodies. There’s just something about mingling with local vendors and taking in the fresh air that makes the products so much better!
The best farmer’s market find? Fresh berries! Seriously y’all, I can smell them from a mile away. I carry home strawberries, raspberries and blackberries by the bucket full. I just can’t get enough.
Today, I’m putting my recent market visit purchase to work. With fresh citrus and plump blackberries in hand, I whipped up a simple Summer treat: Blackberry Lemon Bars!
Grab a few handfuls of your own and let’s bake!
Picking the Best Blackberries
Blackberries are chock-full of nutrients, including antioxidants! Just one cup of blackberries is packed with 30 milligrams of Vitamin C, that’s half the recommended daily intake. Who am I to refuse a few extra health benefits with my dessert?
When shopping for blackberries, I look for dark purple, plump berries. There should be no bruised or discolored fruit in the container. If possible, take a taste; they should be juicy, bright and sweet with a slight tang.
Ingredients
More often than not, when guests step into my home they are met with a fresh baked good. Whether it’s a thick slice of pound cake or chewy chocolate chip cookie, I always make sure to have something tasty on hand!
Blackberry Lemon Bars are crazy simple and made in less than an hour! Each bite is creamy, zesty, buttery and packed with fruity flavor.
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Here’s what you’ll need:
- Unsalted Butter – added butter layers in additional richness and binds together the graham cracker base.
- All-Purpose Flour – flour creates a bit of structure for both the crust and the filling. That means no unnecessary jiggle in our middle!
- Blackberries – these little nuggets of earthy, zippy juice are not only delicious but they create a gorgeous magenta colored filling.
- Lemon & Lime Juice – both are zesty and bright; they work together to enhance the flavor of our berries and of course, add in that delightful citrus component.
- Granulated Sugar – to offset the acidity from the lemon and lime, it’s important to add in a bit of sugar. Also, if it ain’t sweet, it ain’t worth it (if you ask me).
- Eggs – eggs help to bind our filling and create a custard-like texture.
- Vanilla Extract – just a splash compliments the woodsy notes in our berries and adds a bit of warmth.
- Confectioner’s Sugar – what can I say? I appreciate pretty things and with an extra dash of powdered sugar, you’ll understand why.
How to make Blackberry Lemon Bars
Golden Beginnings: The Crust
- Kick things off by firing up your oven to 350 degrees. We’re about to get toasty!
- In your trusty stand mixer, rally your butter, sugar, and flour for a mix-a-thon. Once they’re besties, press the gang into the bottom of a parchment-lined 9×13 inch pan. Friendship goals, right?
- Bake your soon-to-be-crust for a sweet 15 to 20 minutes, or until it’s looking firm and golden. Take it out, and let’s move on to phase two: Filling Extravaganza!
2. Berrylicious Filling: The Main Event
- Grab your blackberries and lime juice and show them a whirlwind tour of your heavy-duty blender or food processor. We want a puree so smooth it’s practically silk.
- Next, pour your berry blend into a fine mesh sieve over a bowl, bidding farewell to any seeds. They weren’t invited to the party!
- Now, in a medium-sized bowl, it’s whisking time: unite your granulated sugar and flour. Then, bring in the eggs, lemon juice, ¼ cup of your fancy blackberry puree, and a dash of vanilla extract. Whisk it like you mean it, then pour this luscious mix over your pre-baked crust.
3. Baking Magic: The Transformation
- Back into the oven it goes for another 25-30 minutes. You’re waiting for the “no longer liquid or doing the jiggly dance” stage. Remember, those bars will firm up even more as they cool, so a bit of patience goes a long way!
4. The Final Touch: Sweet Snowfall
- Once they’ve cooled down to room temp, it’s time for the grand finale. Shower your bars with a snowy dusting of confectioner’s sugar. Cut them into your desired shape and size.
Leftovers and Storage
If you find yourself with a few bars to spare, be sure not to let them go to waste. Blackberry Lemon Bars should be stored in an airtight container and placed in the refrigerator. Personally, I prefer to use Rubbermaid’s Brilliance Food Storage containers; they’re tightly sealed, easy-to-clean and stackable for simple storage.
Once stored, these bars will keep for 4-5 days. To extend their shelf life, tightly wrap each individual bar in plastic wrap or aluminum foil and place in the freezer where they will keep for up to 3 months.
These are super easy to store. You can also store these Mango Lemon Bars and these Lemon Brownies too!
Favorite Blackberry Recipes
During the months of June and July, blackberries are at their seasonal peak. I take advantage each year by buying in bulk and freezing them for later use. The product of both the fresh fruit and their frozen counterparts has been countless delicious, blackberry-filled recipes!
Here are a few of my absolute favorites:
- Easy Southern Blackberry Cobbler
- Best Chocolate Cake with Blackberry Buttercream
- Blackberry Limeade Cupcakes
Blackberry Lemon Bars
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Ingredients
For the Crust
- 1 cup salted butter room temperature
- 1/2 cup granulated sugar
- 2 cups all-purpose flour
For the Filling
- 3/4 cup blackberries
- 1 tbsp fresh lime juice
- 1 1/2 cups granulated sugar
- 1/4 cup all-purpose flour
- 4 large eggs
- 1 cup fresh lemon juice
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
- Confectioner's Sugar for garnish
Instructions
For the Crust
- Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.
- In a stand mixer, mix together butter, sugar and flour. Press into the bottom of a parchment lined 9×13 inch pan.
- Bake for 15 to 20 minutes in the preheated oven, or until firm and golden then remove to prepare filling.
For the Filling
- Add blackberries and lime juice to a heavy duty blender or food processor and puree until completely smooth.
- Pour blended blackberry mixture into a fine mesh sieve fitted over a bowl. Discard seeds.
- In a medium sized bowl, whisk together granulated sugar and flour to combine dry ingredients. Next, whisk in the eggs, lemon juice, ¼ cup of the prepared blackberry puree, and vanilla extract. Pour over the baked crust.
- Bake for 25-30 minutes or until no longer liquidy or jiggly. The bars will firm up more as they cool.
- Once cooled to room temperature, dust with confectioner’s sugar, cut and serve.
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Made this today and it was too acidic for my liking. I would recommend adding more sugar or less lemon juice. Otherwise the taste is nice, just have to add A LOT of powder sugar on top.
I am sorry to hear that the lemon was too overpowering for you; you could try Meyer lemons next time, as they are sweeter.
I tried these and they were perfect! Super tart, I made mine with wild blackberries. Really easy and seemed foolproof.
These sound wonderful, and so close to my absolute favorite lemon bar recipe, just with more lemon juice and, of course the blackberry puree and lime added. I’m sure they’ll taste as wonderful as the recipe looks!
Just FYI, under “Here’s what you’ll need” and in the description under the title in the actual recipe, you forgot to change “graham” to “shortbread.”
Just made these today for a BBQ, and they came out great. Excited to take them!
wonderful, I like how they’re not super thick, and love anything with lemon, paired with blackberry even better, thank you!
This is such a treat. I can’t wait to make this for my family. Looks fantastic and I bet taste is amazing too. Yum!
I love how balanced these bars sound. You have combined the best of all worlds and made something that I am sure I will absolutely enjoy!
I was looking for a lemony dessert and one that would also showcase some of summer’s berries and this is perfect!!
I love this recipe! They came out perfectly and were so delicious!