These lemon crumble bars are the perfect tart and sweet dessert. They’re also completely AIP, paleo, gluten, dairy, and egg free!
I was craving a lemon dessert, so naturally I started experimenting in the kitchen. And now I’m absolutely obsessed with these lemon bars! The moment I tasted them, I was hooked.
So if you like lemon, you will LOVE these bars!
Ingredients needed
For the tart and crumble:
- Cassava flour
- Unsweetened shredded coconut
- Coconut flour
- Arrowroot starch
- Grass-fed gelatin
- Salt
- Coconut oil, melted
- Honey
- Vanilla extract
For the lemon filling:
- Fresh lemon juice
- Lemon zest
- Full fat coconut milk
- Honey
- Arrowroot starch
- Turmeric, just a pinch for color, you won’t taste it!
How to make AIP Lemon Crumble Bars
First preheat the oven to 350F.
Second, you’re going to grease an 8×8 pan with a bit of coconut oil. You can also line it with parchment paper for easy clean up. I find the lemon filling can stick a bit to the parchment paper (not a huge deal as it easily comes off) but I prefer to just grease the pan. Both methods will work though!
Now, you’re going to start by making the tart! In a large bowl whisk together the cassava flour, unsweetened shredded coconut, coconut flour, arrowroot starch, grass-fed gelatin, and salt. Then mix in the melted coconut oil, honey, and vanilla extract. Mix it in enough that its combined and you should be left with a crumbly mixture!
Remove 1/2 cup of the tart mixture and set it aside. This will be used later for the crumble top.
Take the remaining tart mixture and press it into the bottom of the greased (or parchment lined) pan. Making sure it is as even as possible. Set aside.
On to the lemon filling! Add the lemon filling ingredients (fresh lemon juice, lemon zest, coconut milk, honey, arrowroot starch, and turmeric to a small saucepan. Whisk until all ingredients are combined, and the arrowroot starch is dissolved. Heat over medium heat, stirring frequently. Cook until the filling is nice and thick – should take about 5 minutes.
Next pour the lemon filling over the tart crust, making sure it is spread evenly.
Time to top it off! Evenly crumble the reserved 1/2 cup of tart mixture over the lemon filling.
Bake in the centre of the preheated oven for 25 minutes or until top turns lightly golden brown.
Enjoy!
*Tastes great served with a dollop of coconut yogurt or coconut cream!
Yield: 9 servings
Lemon Crumble Bars (AIP/Paleo/Gluten Free)
These lemon crumble bars are the perfect tart and sweet dessert. They’re also completely AIP, paleo, gluten and dairy free!
Ingredients
Tart
- 3/4 cup cassava flour
- 1/3 cup shredded coconut, unsweetened
- 1/4 cup coconut flour
- 1/4 cup arrowroot starch
- 1 tbsp gelatin
- 1/4 tsp salt
- 1/2 cup coconut oil, melted
- 1/4 cup honey
- 1/2 tsp vanilla
Filling
- 1/3 cup fresh lemon juice
- 2/3 cup full fat coconut milk
- 1/2 cup honey
- 1 tbsp lemon zest
- 1/3 cup arrowroot starch
- Pinch turmeric for color
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350F.
- Grease an 8×8 pan (I use a bit of coconut oil).
- For the tart: In a large bowl whisk together the cassava flour, unsweetened shredded coconut, coconut flour, arrowroot starch, grass-fed gelatin, and salt. Then mix in the melted coconut oil, honey, and vanilla extract. Mix until combined and mixture is crumbly.
- Remove 1/2 cup of the tart mixture and set it aside. This will be used later for the crumble top.
- Take the remaining tart mixture and press it into the bottom of the greased pan. Making sure it is as even as possible. Set aside.
- For the filling: Add the filling ingredients to a small saucepan. Whisk until all ingredients are combined, and the arrowroot starch is dissolved. Heat over medium heat, stirring frequently. Cook until the filling is nice and thick – should take about 5 minutes.
- Pour the lemon filling over the tart crust, making sure it is spread evenly.
- Evenly crumble the reserved 1/2 cup of tart mixture over the lemon filling.
- Bake in the centre of the preheated oven for 25 minutes or until top turns lightly golden brown.
- Enjoy!
Hi, Rebecca – the lemon bars look delicious, but I would like to know if you can recommend a substitute for the cassava flour? I am sensitive to it and cannot eat it.
Thank you. Laura
Hi Laura!
I haven’t tried it, but I think green banana flour would be your best bet. If you give it a try, please let me know how it turns out 🙂
Oh yum I am wanting to try this but don’t have arrowroot flour on hand, I do have tapioca, would that work? Thank you!
Texture may be slightly different, but I imagine it would work! 🙂
Thank you! I’ll try to get arrowroot flour.
I just made this and it’s wonderful! I used tapioca starch instead of arrowroot and it seemed to do fine. Of course, it’s the first time I’ve made it so it could be different and I wouldn’t know. LOL! I assume it needs to cool to slice better. Does it need to go in the refrigerator? Thanks for sharing!
Woohoo! So happy it was a success! It doesn’t need to be in the refrigerator, but I store mine in the fridge and sometimes freezer. I like them cold but I also enjoy them warmed up in the microwave. 🙂
I loved your lemon crumble bars, especially the filling! I think I will substitute tigernut flour for the coconut flour next time around, for a slightly moister crumb, but this was very good as is. Thank you.
Thank you Wendy!:) Good idea, would love to hear how it turns out with the tigernut flour!
YUM!
These are SO GOOD! I’ve made them 3 times and all three times someone asked me for the recipe. I think they taste even better the next day! Thank you for this awesome recipe! 🙂
Woohoo! SO glad they are a hit!
Hi there! I’m new to AIP and paleo eating; trying to figure out how to navigate my autoimmune issues. My question is why do I need to use both cassava and coconut flour? Wouldn’t one or the other work?
I’ve found a mix of aip flours in baking creates the best texture. Cassava flour alone may be too gooey and coconut flour would be too dry. Hope this helps!
For anyone making these for the first time, I found it better after they were refrigerated. It was so hard not to eat them right away (even after they cooled). The next day after they were in fridge, I couldn’t put them down. So very good. Thank you so much.
OH yes I love them cold as well! So glad you enjoyed them 🙂