20+ Lemon Desserts to Make ASAP

Lemon Lush Recipe

This classic chilled dessert is perfect for a refreshing summer treat! With simple ingredients and easy preparation, this is a casual yet company-worthy dessert to turn to again and again.

Ginger Shortbread Cookies with Lemon-Cream Cheese Frosting Recipe

These bright and fresh cookies get their tangy zest from the lemon in the frosting as well as the candied ginger on top.

Meyer Lemon Cornmeal Upside-Down Cake Recipe

As the sliced lemons bake under the cake and absorb butter and brown sugar, they take on a marmalade-like quality. Meyer lemons really shine in this dessert with their sweet, almost orange-like flavor.

Lemon-Black Sesame Baked Doughnuts Recipe

If you need a break from rainbow-smattered sweets and unicorn-coated everything, these deliciously dark doughnuts are exactly what you're looking for. A bright lemony glaze balances the warm toasty flavors delivered by black sesame seeds for a balanced, not-too-sweet doughnut. Being an oven-baked doughnut, this recipe is perfect for the first-time doughnut maker or anyone who's not trying to spend their Saturday morning cleaning up a deep-fry station in their kitchen. We used black food dye to intensify the darkness of these doughnuts, but feel free to leave it out if you'd prefer. Beyond being an incredibly tasty way to boycott rainbow foods, these black sesame doughnuts are the perfect treat to whip out for Halloween. 

Lemon Meringue Tart Recipe

Of all the sweets Dolester Miles makes, this lemon dessert is her favorite. The marriage of a classic French tart and a Southern icebox pie, it showcases sweet and tangy lemon curd atop a cookie-like crust, all piled high with Swiss meringue.

Lemon and Vanilla Angel Food Cake Recipe

This delicate, cloudlike cake from Kristen Murray, pastry chef and owner of Maurice restaurant in Portland, is an adaptation of one from her great-aunt Crys, using rice flour for regular flour so the cake is gluten-free, with a little crunch. For best results, beat egg whites to very soft peaks so they (and the cake) can expand further in the oven.

Extreme Lemon and Chocolate Roulade Recipe

Lemon and chocolate are a lovely and lively pair in this roulade. If you prefer milder lemon flavor, you can omit the rind from the filling. Or, if you are a bold lemon lover (like me), don't strain the rind out of the filling--enjoy the tartness and texture it provides.

Tangy Lemon Cheesecake Bars Recipe

Classic lemon squares can contain 36g sugar per piece. We put a puckery cheesecake spin on ours--cutting sugar to just 6g per bar--which allows the bright citrus to shine.

Gingersnap-Meyer Lemon Meringue Tart Recipe

With a gingersnap crust and lemon curd filling, every bit of this tart is bursting with flavor! If Meyer lemons are unavailable, substitute equal amounts of regular lemon juice and orange juice. Garnish with Meyer lemon slices. 

Dreamy Lemon Cheesecake Recipe

Sweet, tangy, refreshing, and perfectly creamy! If you're going to have a slice of cheesecake on a breezy summer day, this is exactly the dreamy slice to reach for. 

Glazed Lemon-Ginger Scones Recipe

Aimee Olexy's lemony, cream-based scones are light, moist and laced with pieces of chewy candied ginger.

Quick and Easy Lemon Curd Recipe

We changed the mixing method of our favorite lemon curd, then cooked it in the microwave. The results? Buttery rich and smooth as silk, every time.

Candied Meyer Lemons Recipe

Yigit Pura of Tout Sweet Pâtisserie in San Francisco uses these citrus slices as a garnish, both the way they are here (on the softer side, halfway between candied and poached) and one step further (dried overnight on a rack, then turned in sugar for a sparkly look). Sometimes he adds cut-up lemongrass to the syrup.

Meyer Lemon Panna Cotta Recipe

Meyer lemon--a lemon/orange ­hybrid--is sweeter than conventional lemon. If you don't have access to Meyer lemons, you can use a regular lemon and enjoy a dessert that's a bit more tart.

Meyer Lemon Curd Tart Recipe

With a dreamy lemon filling a fluffy meringue topping, you really can't go wrong with this luscious lemon dessert. Pro tip: use the broiler to get that perfect golden hue on top. 

Lemon Curd Pound Cake Recipe

Wait to prepare the Lemon Curd Glaze until the cake comes out of the oven so it will still be warm when spread over the cake.

Lemon Curd with Berries Recipe

In this custard, citrus juice stands in for milk as the base liquid, thickened by egg yolks. Butter gives the curd a glorious sheen. Garnish with mint leaves for a spot of green color.

Lemon-Blueberry Snack Cake Recipe

This cake is a winner. One reviewer says, "The cake is very moist and the lemon flavor really comes through."

Limoncello Freeze Recipe

Mush together purchased ice cream, lemon curd (found near the jellies and jams), and limoncello, and you get a delicious lemony version of a Creamsicle—fruit-tangy and creamy-milky at the same time. Meringue cookies add welcome crunch.

Lemon Cake Mix Cookies Recipe

Nobody will know you used boxed cake mix and Cool Whip for these irresistible, buttery cookies. These were a hit in our test kitchen, especially with their soft texture and crisp bottoms.

Nathan's Lemon Cake Recipe

This is a namesake because Nathan Coulon's mom baked it for his birthday every year. We've adapted this lemon cake recipe to trim the fat and calories, and it's still a moist, lemony treat.

Ginger-Lemon Sandwich Cookies  Recipe

Lemon, molasses, and ginger are an unexpected, but unbeatable combination in these simple sandwich cookies. The cookie itself is delicious on its own, but then the tart lemon curd brings out the best in the molasses and warm spices. The higher quality lemon curd you use, the better the sandwiches will be, but you can also make your own. This batch is easy to make and only look fancy, making them a perfect addition to a cookie swap.