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These refreshing vegan lemon bars are the perfect easy summer dessert! The recipe features a gluten-free crust made from oat and almond flour and a simple no-bake filling! Chill, cut, and enjoy! Vegan Glutenfree Soyfree Recipe

freshly cut vegan lemon bars topped with lemon slices

Calling all lovers of lemon desserts! These lemon bars are the summer dessert you have been waiting for! Vegan Lemon Bars!!. They have a crunchy base and a rich and creamy lemon filling that you will love!

I love that this lemon bar recipe takes only minutes to assemble. The crust needs to bake in the oven for 12 minutes but the filling is no-bake. So from there, you can just let the fridge or freezer do its thing until the cashew filling hardens.

I don’t even need to whip out my food processor to make the crust, which is a really simple mix of oat flour  (use gluten-free if needed), almond flour, flax meal, and maple syrup.  It tastes like a traditional cookie crust. Try it -you’ll love it!

vegan lemon bars with glutenfree crust on a wooden chopping board

For the filling, I use nutribullet and blend it for half a minute then let it sit for 5 mins the. Blend again. I repeat this 3-4 times and it works out well for soaked cashews. If your blender doesn’t make a smooth cashew blend,  use a high-speed blender as we need to blend cashews until very smooth.  4-6 hours of soaking is ideal for making cashew-based desserts. If you are pressed for time, soak the cashews for 15  minutes in hot water.

The rich and creamy blend of coconut cream with lots of lemon juice and zest makes the filling taste like lemon curd! So delish – no judgment if you grab a spoon and enjoy some straight from the blender.

vegan lemon bars on a wooden chopping board topped with lemon slices

MORE Desserts FROM THE BLOG

Creamy Vegan Lemon Bars (Gluten-free)

4.94 from 16 votes
By: Vegan Richa
Prep: 15 minutes
Cook: 12 minutes
Chill time: 2 hours
Total: 2 hours 27 minutes
Servings: 8
Course: Dessert
Cuisine: American
These refreshing Creamy Vegan Lemon Bars are the perfect easy summer dessert! The recipe features a simple Gluten-free crust made from oat and almond flour and a simple no-bake filling! Chill, cut and enjoy! GF soyfree Oilfree
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Ingredients 
 

Crust:

  • 3/4 cup oat flour, plus 2 tablespoons
  • 1/2 cup almond flour
  • 2 tablespoons cane sugar , or any granulated sugar
  • 1/4 teaspoon salt
  • 1/4 cup maple syrup
  • 1 teaspoon flax seed meal , mixed with 1 tablespoon non-dairy milk

For the filling:

  • 1 cup raw cashews , soaked in hot water for at least an hour
  • 1 cup coconut cream
  • 1 teaspoon cornstarch, , optional
  • 1 tbsp lemon zest , zest of a lemon
  • 1/8 teaspoon salt
  • 1/4 cup sugar
  • 1/2 cup lemon juice

Instructions 

  • In a bowl, add all the dry ingredients for the crust and mix well.
  • Then add in the maple syrup and flaxseed milk mix. Press and mix to a make a dough. Press this dough into a parchment-lined 9x5 inch loaf pan and even it out. You can also use an 8x8 inch brownie pan.
  • Bake in a 350 Fahrenheit (180c) oven for 12-14 minutes or until the center is starting to firm up.
  • Meanwhile, make the filling. Blend the drained cashews, coconut cream, corn starch, lemon zest, salt, sugar, and lemon juice until very smooth. You want to blend it at least 3 or 4 times for atleast 30 seconds for the cashews to break down into smooth cream. Taste and adjust sweetness.
  • Pour this mixture onto the baked crust. Even it out. Then place in the fridge to set. You can also put it in the freezer for an hour so that it's easier to slice.
  • Remove it from the freezer and slice it into slices, and serve!
  • You can store it in the refrigerator for 5 days. And freeze for upto 2 months. Thaw on the counter for 15-20 mins before serving

Video

Notes

  • Coconut cream substitute , use 1/2 cup cashews and 1/2 cup non dairy yogurt. So the recipe now has a total of 1.5 cups cashews 
  • To make without oats, use regular all purpose flour or a gf blend for Glutenfree 
  • You can buy whole cans of coconut cream or you just put a can of full-fat coconut milk in the fridge and spoon off the solid cream that gathers on top.
  • Make sure to use raw unsalted cashews and that you properly soak them. If you have a high-speed blender like a Vitamix, you won't require that much soaking time as the mixer is powerful enough to break them down.
  • You can top the bars with coconut whip, lemon slices, and more lemon zest if you’d like.
  • Cashew sub: you can use 1 cup coconut cream instead. The flavor of coconut will be strong 

Nutrition

Calories: 252kcal, Carbohydrates: 32g, Protein: 6g, Fat: 12g, Saturated Fat: 2g, Sodium: 114mg, Potassium: 190mg, Fiber: 2g, Sugar: 18g, Vitamin A: 1IU, Vitamin C: 7mg, Calcium: 53mg, Iron: 2mg

Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.

Did you make this recipe? Rate and comment below!

Ingredients:

  • crust:  a mix of oat flour and almond flour sweetened with cane sugar and maple syrup.
  • Homemade flax egg made from flax meal and non-dairy milk helps hold the crust together
  • filling: a vegan cheesecake like base made of cashews,  coconut cream, sugar, and cornstarch
  • flavor: we use both lemon zest and lemon juice to make these lemon bars taste really lemony

Tips:

  • You can buy whole cans of coconut cream or you just put a can of full-fat coconut milk in the fridge and spoon off the solid cream that gathers on top.
  • For individual vegan lemon bars make these in mini muffin pans.
  • Make sure to buy raw unsalted cashews and that you properly soak them. If you have a high-speed blender like a Vitamix, you won’t require that much soaking time as the mixer is powerful enough to break them down.
  • You can top the bars with coconut whip, lemon slices, and more lemon zest if you’d like.

ingredients for vegan lemon bars on a marble counter

How to make Vegan Lemon Bars:

dry ingredients for lemon bars in a small bowl

In a bowl, add all the dry ingredients for the crust and mix well.

lemon bars crust being mixed in a bowl

Then add in the maple syrup and flaxseed egg. Press and mix to form a dough.

vegan cookie crust made from oatmeal and almond flour being mixed in a bowl

Press this dough into a parchment-lined 9×5 inch loaf pan and even it out. You can also use an 8 x8 inch brownie pan.

vegan cookie crust pressed in a pyrex loaf pan

Bake in a 350 Fahrenheit (180c) oven for 12-14 minutes or until the center is starting to firm up.

vegan lemon filling in a blender

Meanwhile, make the filling. Blend the drained cashews, coconut cream, corn starch, lemon zest, salt, sugar, and lemon juice until very smooth. You want to blend it at least 3 or 4 times for the cashews to break down into a smooth cream. Taste and adjust sweetness.

vegan lemon cream filling being poured in a pyrex loaf pan to make lemon bars

Pour this mixture onto the baked crust. Even it out. Then place in the fridge to set. You can also put it in the freezer for at least an hour so that it’s easier to slice.

vegan lemon bars topped with fresh lemon slices

Once it’s somewhat frozen, remove the bars from the freezer and slice into square slices and serve!

Storing vegan cheesecakes

You can store it in the refrigerator for 5 days.

vegan lemon bars on a wooden chopping board

 

About Richa

Hi, I'm Richa! I create flavorful plant based recipes that are inspired by my Indian upbringing, including many gluten-free, soy-free, and oil-free options.

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4.94 from 16 votes (5 ratings without comment)

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68 Comments

  1. Dee Brown says:

    5 stars
    I don’t know which part was better! The crust was perfect and the smooth, fresh, lemon flavor had just enough sweetness… everything really came together. Richa’s deserts always disappear quick around here.

    1. Vegan Richa Support says:

      Awesome! Thank you for sharing.

  2. Yf says:

    5 stars
    Just made this and the lemon flavour really popped! For the lemon layer, I used about 150g of cashew butter instead, 40g white sugar, zest and juice (about 50g) from 1 lemon.

    Also great tip to put it in freezer so that it firms up for better cutting!

    Thank you for sharing!!

    1. Vegan Richa Support says:

      So glad you liked it!!

  3. Kathryne says:

    Hello! Can I substitute arrowroot starch for the cornstarch?
    Thanks!

    1. Vegan Richa Support says:

      Yes

  4. Irene says:

    This looks fabulous! However, I’m allergic to citrus. Do you have another creamy filling idea for this crust?