Last Updated April 29th, 2024 at 07:35 pm by Lisa
Welcome lemon fans! 🍋🍋🍋 There are over 15 lemon recipes here for you to try, for family dinners, savory dishes, appetizers, and sweet desserts. Plus creative tips and unique ideas to enjoy this tart yellow citrus fruit all year long. When our lemon trees are chock full of ripe fruit, there are so many wonderful ways to use them in home cooking.
You can bet I will be adding new recipes to this list for you as I work through the bags of fresh lemons so kindly gifted from friends and neighbors...
Types Of Lemons
Over 30 varieties of whole lemons (lemon varieties) are found all over the world. In the United States, the five most common types found in a grocery store are Lisbon lemons, Eureka lemons, Meyer lemons, and Bearss lemons, per USCitrus.com.
Most of the regular lemons you see in stores are Lisbon. Ponderosa lemons were originally called American Wonder Lemons and got the name as they can be quite large lemons.
From the time of year of late Fall through Winter, everyone seems to have extra lemons. Meyer lemons are my absolute favorites! They are smaller, much sweeter, and are very juicy lemons. They have thinner skin that has an orangish color tint, and zest beautifully.
Best Dessert Sweet Lemon Recipes
These great recipes work with regular lemons you find in any store, and in some recipes, Meyer lemons are called for specifically. The best way to get full lemony flavor is to use real lemons that are ripe, good quality ingredients, and never use processed lemon mixture bottled stuff!
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The Best Lemon Bars
Coconut Lemon Lime Bars - a tropical lemon bar 🏝🥥🍋
Growing up my Mom made an easy lemon bar recipe we all loved, and I bet you have your Mom's recipe too! Many years ago, Sunset magazine published a tropical version of traditional lemon bars, that inspired this recipe.
The toasted coconut shortbread cookie crust and lemon-lime tangy filling are simply out of this world. These tangy bars get a golden cookie crust and the tart lemon and lime juice flavors are well balanced with the sweet coconut.
Top Lemon Bar Baking Tips
- Bake them until they no longer jiggle in the baking pan. If they move too much, they still aren't baked enough.
- Your dish (glass, metal pan, or type of surface of your baking pans) and your oven temp will all affect the baking time, so be sure to check them at 20 minutes and give them a gentle shake.
- Use fresh fruit, and never use fake lemon flavor products or artificial food dye, you can always taste those products in your baking!
- The buttery shortbread crust for this recipe has coconut and will be a little darker than classic lemon bars.
- Let cool on the kitchen counter for an hour or two, then chill for several hours or overnight in the fridge covered in plastic wrap. Run a small knife or pastry cutter around the sides of the pan to loosen the bars.
- Slice into bars using a small sharp knife down into the bottom of the pan.
- Garnish the lemon squares with sprinkled powdered sugar through a small sieve, toasted coconut, or citrus zest for a beautiful finish!
Lemon Sorbet
Easy Raspberry Lemon Sorbet - clean and refreshing (no dairy) 🍋🍓
Made with raspberries, strawberries, lemon juice, pineapple, and bananas, and served in cups made from the peels with absolutely zero guilt. This hot summer day dessert is dairy-free, vegan, has no refined sugar, and has real fresh fruit!
In France, this dessert is known as Givre', French for "frosted". It describes sorbet served in frozen coconut shells or whole fruit peels such as lemons, oranges, or pineapples...
Apple Pie Filling
Learn how to make Apple Pie Filling 🥧🍏🍋(for one 9" pie) that can be made ahead, is freezer-friendly, and bakes the BEST apple pies and dessert recipes. Apples and lemons go so well together in this incredible filling.
Apple Pie Filling Ingredients
And, this pie filling recipe helps prevent soggy pie crusts, because it has a secret to thickening the filling for fruit pies. And no one wants a soggy apple pie! 🥧🍏
- 6 large Granny Smith apples peel, core, and cut into ½" pieces
- 3 tablespoons butter
- ¼ cup fresh lemon juice
- 1 tablespoon cornstarch
- ½ cup granulated sugar
- ½ cup brown sugar
- 1 teaspoon kosher salt
- 1 teaspoon cinnamon
- ¼ teaspoon ground nutmeg
Is there any dessert more American than homemade apple pie? Get the complete recipe and instructions...
Dutch Apple Pie
This is one of my most cherished original recipes I worked on for over 2 decades. And my secret ingredient is.....lemons! 🥧🍏🍋
An Apple Crumble Pie with homemade filling, "foolproof" crust and a crumble topping make this one scrumptious recipe. Some people also call this a Dutch and even French Apple Pie.
What makes this dessert so good, is that well, the crust is homemade. And I have a recipe that WORKS every time. Hey, you can certainly buy your crust, and make the filling and topping, but if you go for it and do all three (crust, filling, and topping), I promise this is worth the effort, or so I have been told...
Real Lemon Recipes ~ Savory Dinner Ideas
Lobster Ravioli
Lobster Ravioli + Lemon Butter Sauce is one of our reader's favorite things on Delicious Table! 🥟🦞🍋
What if I told you that these can be made without pasta dough and no boiling pots of water, would you believe it?
It has a Lemony Sauce and uses a baked ravioli technique you can make in just over an hour or prep ahead for a dinner party, the holidays, and romantic nights. A recipe that quickly became one of my friends and family's favorite recipes!
This is a recipe I developed to have everything ready when entertaining or having a special celebration dinner like a birthday or anniversary. The last thing you want to be doing is cooking in the kitchen!
Simply pull the sheet pan out, and bake them while the sauce reheats. The edges get a golden color with soft succulent lobster ravioli filling tucked inside.
Heart-shaped lobster ravioli, get the full recipe here. What a sweet way to say I love you...
Chicken Stock - Chicken Broth
Learn how to make your own homemade Chicken Stock, also known as bone broth. One of my secret ingredients is of course lemons! 🐔🍗🧅🥕🍋 I believe the lemon chicken combination brightens and lifts the flavor of stock very nicely!
This recipe has all the step-by-step top cooking tips I have learned over the years. I share how to freeze it, plus 15 delicious new recipe ideas. Save money and have some ready to elevate dinner, soups, and stews.
Stock can be made inexpensively, so save all those leftover bones! And use up different bits of vegetables you probably already have on hand. You don't have to buy whole chickens and waste them, more on that later. But the real reason to make your own bone broth is the flavor it adds to your cooking...
Meyer Lemon Olive Tapenade
This delightfully fresh Olive Tapenade is deliciously fresh 🫒🌿🍋 is anchovy-free, and is the perfect addition to cheese boards with crackers and golden crostini toasts. One of the best things about this recipe is that it can safely sit at room temperature on a hot day.
It has the zest of a sweet Meyer lemon and the juice, capers, fresh parsley, a mixture of green and Kalamata olives, good olive oil, cracked black pepper, and garlic powder!
Once you make your own tapenade, it will become a favorite way to entertain with appetizers...
Meyer Lemon Citrus Vinaigrette
Mix up some Citrus Vinaigrette a tangy-sweet dressing 🍋🥗 made in minutes that is absolutely delightful.
I can't tell you how many times people have asked for this recipe. Once you see how simple it is, you'll make your own again and again, and skip the expensive bottled dressings...
Lemon Dill Butter
Lemon Dill Butter is perfect for fish! 🍋🌿🧈and pairs so well with grilled salmon and vegetables with incredible flavor. Store in the freezer for months!
This butter works fabulously slathered on any fish, grilled chicken, bread, or vegetables like grilled corn, asparagus, roasted potatoes, and lobster. Flavored butter is one of the best cooking tips my Mom ever taught me, and there are endless ways to make it at home.
Slice off a coin, and watch it melt into a "sauce" at dinnertime, you will make it again and again...
Sheet Pan Chicken Dinner
Sheet Pan Chicken is a one-pan dinner 🍗🍋🌿🥖 with lemony croutons and small potatoes it takes 20 minutes to prep and this entire chicken sheet pan dinner bakes in 50 minutes.
Beautiful to serve for an easy family weeknight dinner or a fun meal prep idea.
The golden brown croutons go perfectly with the tender warm potatoes and juicy tender chicken, what a gorgeous presentation...
Gremolata
Gremolata Topping is a flavor-packed Italian condiment 🍋🌿🫑 from Italy for vegetables, pasta dishes, fish, meat, and salads. It is classically used on osso buco.
This gremolata recipe has buttery toasted pine nuts, tangy capers, sweet bell pepper, fresh basil, lemon zest, and parsley. Together they create a light, fresh, and clean taste. In all honesty, I couldn't stop eating it on the asparagus I made to go with it, and skipped the rest of the dinner I had made!
The main reason to make gremolata is you can make this from ingredients you typically might have on hand, and try different delightful combinations...
Lemon Recipes ~ Drinks & Sippers 🍋🍹
Blueberry Lemonade
Ice cold Blueberry Lemonade Recipe 🫐🍋🧊 captures Summer in every sip ad can be made in minutes with homemade blueberry syrup made from fresh blueberries, fresh lemon juice, and sweet honey.
Enjoy all the summer has to offer, spend some time putting together a small party or a picnic with sandwiches, and make some memories. Put lots of ice cubes in the bottom of the pitcher or serve in cute mason jars with handles, and garnishes of blueberries and fresh mint.
Fresh lemonade can be made into a cocktail drink too with a splash of vodka or wine. Or you can use this same recipe to make strawberry lemonade!
Limoncello Italian Liquer
Limoncello is a cool and refreshing sipper 🍋🧊 (also called Lemoncello) this icy cold lemon liqueur is popular in Italy. You can serve this drink as an after-dinner apéritif, drizzle on good ice cream for dessert, sprinkle on fresh fruit, or use it to make a cream sauce to go on lobster ravioli.
Limoncello imparts a strong flavor without the sourness or bitter taste of pure lemon juice. The lemon peel and or zest (with no white pith) infuses into grappa or vodka and the oil of the fruit is released into the limoncello. The peels are then strained out with a fine-mesh strainer.
Make this classic lemon drink and gift during the holiday season!
Lemon Recipes ~ Condiments & Salad Dressings
Parmesan Lemon Vinaigrette Dressing
Parmesan Vinaigrette 🧀🍋 is made in a mason jar, this homemade salad dressing recipe is made in minutes with real lemon and parmesan cheese.
"Make and shake" your own dressing right in a jar, then pop it in the fridge to enjoy all week...
Preserved Lemons
Preserved Lemons are so easy to make and add intense flavor to dishes. Try on roast chicken, grilled fish, potatoes, hummus, or mix into pasta and salads. 🍋🍃🧂
One of my favorite ways to use them is in my lemon vinaigrette dressing.
When you preserved lemon slices take on an extra punch of flavor that a squeeze of juice can't quite match.
The hardest part of this recipe is to wait at least three weeks before they are ready to use...
Lemon Recipes FAQ
Place them in a large bowl with cool water and pour a bit of white vinegar into the bowl.
Rub each lemon to remove any dirt underwater, and use a small vegetable brush gently on the surface if needed.
Dry with a clean kitchen towel, and now your lemons are ready to zest and use in recipes.
Lemon pie filling is typically the filling in a lemon meringue pie. You make it with egg yolks, sugar, fresh juice, and zest. It is thickened with cornstarch, so the filling holds its shape when you cut the pie.
Usually, the crust ingredients are either a typical pie crust or graham cracker crumbs baked crust (aka prebaked) in the oven before the filling is added.
These are some of the best lemon dessert recipes, drinks, and treats
of all time and a great way to use up lemons!
Baked Goods: Lemon cake and cupcakes topped with lemon buttercream, lemon tarts, bread, cream pies, lemon meringue pie recipe, and lemon crinkle cookies. Bake a creamy lemon cheesecake recipe and garnish with candied lemons. Or create a classic lemon sour cream pound cake.
Drinks & Frozen Desserts: Freeze a lemon ice cream cake, some lemony popsicles, or mix a pitcher of old-fashioned lemonade.
Lemon Toppings: Make lemon scones drizzled with a lemon glaze or lemon icing. Fill lemon curd onto danish or spread on pancakes.
I made this Lemon Cake (DT recipe coming soon ⬇️) for Easter but it would be great as a birthday cake, for baby showers, or for afternoon tea.
The buttercream is "lick the spoon" delicious. You can decorate this cake with edible flowers, cute buttercream decorations piped on, seasonal candy, or colorful sprinkles...
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More Fruit Recipes
Fruit Popsicles made with coconut water, strawberries, raspberries, and blueberries are refreshing low-sugar treats for hot summer days and are a "guilt-free" dessert.
Mango Slaw has green crunchy cabbage, crisp jicama, and a sweet tangy lime vinaigrette made with juicy sweet mangos. A perfect summer salad.
Peach Cheesecake Pie is a 30-minute no-bake easy recipe with a crisp graham cracker crust, sweet cream cheese filling, and juicy summer peaches!
Made in a matter of minutes, this 5 ingredient dessert idea is a refreshing recipe for family dinner, to take to a weekend potluck or cookout party...
This Green Smoothie recipe is full of fresh nutritious ingredients to hydrate and nourish you for breakfast or anytime.
Sweet, clean, and full of ripe pineapple, banana, fresh spinach, tangy ginger, chia seeds, and freshly squeezed grapefruit juice.
Very nice post. Good job
Thanks
Such an amazing collection of fabulous lemon recipes! Looking forward to that lemon cake recipe- LOVE your lobster ravioli recipe with lemon cream sauce!!