Every time I feel like I may have tried pretty much everything in the grocery store, I run across another ingredient I can’t believe I’ve never tasted.
For this week’s recipe, that magical ingredient was lemon curd.
I knew lemon curd existed, but I can’t remember ever buying or trying it before.
If you’re like me and a little unsure what makes something a “curd” (outside of the cheese kind), you might find a post by Dr. Neil Buttery on his website, “British Food: A History,” interesting.
He does a deep dive on fruit curds. He notes that they are a little like preserves and a little like a custard.
“Looking in the recipe books, the earliest mention of the term lemon curd I have found goes back to 1844 in The Lady’s Own Cookery Book by the splendidly named Lady Charlotte Campbell Bury,” he writes.
He goes on to say that some older recipes also call it “lemon cheese,” so who knows?
Regardless of what lemon curd actually is, I recently needed a light summer dessert for an event, and I realized I had a recipe saved that would be perfect for being out in the heat.
This recipe came from the blog “Baked by Rachel.” You can find the original post at https://www.bakedbyrachel.com/lemon-curd-blondie-bars/. I didn’t change anything, outside of adding some powdered sugar to the end.
Lemon Curd Bars
Ingredients
- 3/4 cup butter softened
- 1 cup sugar
- 1/4 cup brown sugar
- 2 eggs
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 1/4 teaspoon baking powder
- zest of one large lemon
- 1/4 cup lemon curd
- 1 1/4 cup flour
- powdered sugar for decorating
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.
- Prepare an eight-by-eight-inch baking dish by lining it with parchment paper, leaving some hanging over the sides to help you remove the bars later.
- In a large mixing bowl, beat the butter and sugars until the mixture is fluffy.
- Add in the eggs, beating between each one, then beat in the salt, baking powder, zest and lemon curd.
- Finally, beat in the flour until everything is just combined, and spread the batter evenly into the prepared baking dish.
- Bake for 30 minutes or until the edges are browned.
- Let the bars cool completely in the pan, and then use the parchment to remove and slice them. If you want to make them look a little fancier, lightly sprinkle the tops of the bars with some powdered sugar. Store the bars in an airtight container.
These were a little cake-y and perfect for a non-meltable dessert on a hot day.
The brightness of the lemon from both the zest and the curd were the stars in these bars, and I went home with exactly zero of them at the end of the night.
I’m pretty sure that would still be true if I would have made a double batch. They were very popular.
And now I have a jar of lemon curd in my fridge that I will get to experiment with. I will say, from newly acquired experience, just eating a big spoonful by itself is pretty darn delicious.
Those Brits clearly knew what they were doing.
This piece first appeared in print July 23, 2026.
Spice Up Your Life is a weekly newspaper column written by Lindsey Young in south central Kansas. If you are interested in sponsoring this column, please contact us through the “Contact Lindsey” link at the top of the page.
