A typical lemon bar packs over 300 calories, thanks to the loads of sugar in it. If you are trying to drop unwanted pounds, there is really no need to forego this tangy and amazingly buttery treat. That’s because you can come up with your own healthy version of it in your very kitchen, even with minimal baking skills!
With a little time and effort and lots of love, you can whip up a tray of lemon bars — with each bar containing a little over 100 calories only! However, it’s still very much possible to lower the caloric content further if you skip adding powdered sugar on the top of the baked treats and you replace the sugar ingredient with stevia, an herb that is currently taking the world of sugar substitutes by storm because it contains zero calories and is up to 200 times sweeter than sugar!
Everyone knows that spending some time in the kitchen preparing your own meals is one of the key components to a very successful weight reduction. That’s because you get to substitute calorie-dense ingredients with healthier ones. Also, you get to skip adding stuff that your body does not need, like colorings and preservatives.
So just how healthy this figure-friendly lemon bar recipe is? Let us take a quick look at the breakdown of its nutritional content of every bar produced:
- Calories: 145 grams
- Fat: 5 grams
- Carbohydrates: 21.2 grams
- Fiber: 1.9 grams
- Protein: 5 grams
- Sodium: 104.6 grams
Evidently, there is practically nothing wrong with having a bar or two! Compared to what you can easily purchase at your favorite bakeshop or supermarket, the lemon bars you are about to learn to bake later is something that won’t sabotage your weight loss goals. Since they are low in calories and sodium, they also make for the perfect giveaways for your loved ones during special occasions, from wedding anniversaries, birthdays to Thanksgiving.
So are you ready to whip up mouth-watering lemon bars that won’t ruin your figure and overall health? Read on! Below you will find the super simple recipe that yields 9 delectable bars.
Ingredients:
For the crust:
- 1 cup of whole wheat flour
- 4 tablespoons of light butter
- 1 tablespoon of lemon zest
- 2 tablespoons of plain and fat-free yogurt
- 1/3 cup of stevia
- 1/2 teaspoon of vanilla extract
- 1/8 teaspoon of salt
For the filling:
- 4 medium-sized eggs
- 1 cup of lemon juice
- 1 cup of stevia
Procedure:
- Preheat your oven to 350 °F.
- In a large bowl, combine whole wheat flour, yogurt, butter, lemon zest, stevia, vanilla extract and salt. Using an electric mixer or beater, mix until you notice some crumbs are already forming.
- Press the crumbs into a baking sheet measuring 8×8 and is lined with parchment paper.
- Stash the baking sheet in the oven. Bake for 15 to 20 minutes or until the edges are already brown.
- In the meantime, combine the eggs, lemon juice and stevia in a bowl, then whisk until frothy.
- Remove the baking sheet from the oven and gently pour the filling over the crust.
- Bake for another 20 minutes or until the filling is already set but jiggles when you shake the baking sheet.
- Remove from the oven and allow it to cool to room temperature.
- Cut into 9 small bars and serve!
Really simple, isn’t it? Nothing can be more scrumptious than something that you made with your own two hands. Your remaining bars should be placed in an airtight container and placed in the refrigerator so you may enjoy it later on.
Don’t forget to share how delighted your taste buds were or how amazed your family and friends were upon learning that the yummy and healthy lemon bars they enjoyed were actually products of your own labor!
