Lemon bars…oh how I love thee! Well pretty much any type of lemon sweets except lemon hard candy, they have never been a favorite. My son has the same sentiments towards lemon bars, I think they are his favorite dessert actually. These easy little bars are not like lemon pie bars but more like a cheesecake-y type bar. They are closely related to chess bars, kind of a gooey cake bar if you’ve ever had those, in fact I adapted this recipe from those yummy bars. All I’m going to say is you really need this recipe in your life, because it’s super easy and really good, I think it could even be a new favorite. Oh, and my son he liked these a lot and counted how many bars we all had because he didn’t want to get cheated out of his fair share :).
Cake mix lemon cream cheese bars
1 box yellow cake mix
1/2 cup melted butter
3 eggs divided
8 oz. cream cheese at room temperature
1 cup granulated sugar
1/4 cup fresh lemon juice
zest from one lemon
powdered sugar
Directions:
Step 1: Mix the cake mix with butter and 1 egg, mix well. Spread evenly into a greased 9 X 13 inch pan.
Step 2: Mix together the softened cream cheese, sugar, 2 eggs, lemon juice and zest until creamy.
Step 3: Pour over the crust evenly and bake at 300 degrees Fahrenheit for 40-45 min. When cooled dust with powdered sugar, and cut into squares.
I adore lemon bars-how fun to have a cake bottom. I think there isn’t a lemon dessert I’d turn down..especially in the summer:)
Thanks Lora, I can’t ever pass up a lemon dessert either 🙂
I love lemon bars, these look fabulous with the tangy cream cheese!
Thanks Laura 🙂
I could eat lemon bars everyday, all day! If I made this recipe, I’d stash away a few for myself and tell everyone that it was only an 8×8-inch pan. 😉
Gorgeous photos, Suzanne!
I too could eat them daily 🙂
I like this version of lemon bars-they look so good in your photos! Welcome home Suzanne 😉
thank you Patty, it’s good to be home 🙂
I am fascinated by cookies that are made out of a cake mix! I love anything lemon and would probably, no lie eat at least a quarter of the pan of these in one sitting. Not sure if I should make them for my waistline, but then again, you only live once. Hope your week is going well!
Can you believe I have never made lemon bars before? I really need to get on it, they always look so wonderful!
Suzanne, I had to laugh about your son because he sounds just like my son. I always serve dessert to everyone before I make my plate and then cut myself an ridiculously large piece just to get a rise out of him. He always looks around the talbe to see if anyone got a bigger piece than he did. When his eyes see my serving he always lets out the hilarious noise, even though I’ve done it a thousand times 🙂 Your lemon bars sound fantastic, will have to try!
These look freaking fantastic!!! I love lemon, and in bar form? yum!!
Genius dessert which is calling my name 😀
Cheers
Choc Chip Uru
Welcome home! And did someone say lemon bars? I’d have a hard time resisting these–I want to try this cream cheese version next time. 🙂
Perfect-looking lemon cream cheese bars! It takes talent to make such a perfect bar – all cut up in perfect squares! Oh, snap! I am craving for a bite now…!
What a fun recipe idea, I love the idea of using cake mix for the crust! I seriously love love lemon bars, and tend to eat too many of them LOL! YUM, Hugs, Terra
My family adores the version of this without lemon….but I think they’d love these just as much! Beautiful bars!
I bet they would since they already like the other version, give them a try next time Liz.
Now I don’t know which to bake tomorrow? Which one did you like best – lemon Pudding cake or these Lemon Cream Cheese Bars? They both sound incredibly delicious. Reminds me of Gooey Butter Cake.
I made this recipe and I must say it was very good and very simple to make for a novice baker like me. But it was a bit too sweet and maybe the crust was a bit too buttery as well. I’m thinking next time using 1/2 of the serving of sugar and butter. Either way we ate the whole thing. Yummy stuff!
I’m glad you liked it. Everyone has different tastes for sugar and butter so I say make what you feel taste great to you, thanks for stopping back by and letting me know how you liked it.