Easiest Orange Dessert Recipe
If you like lemon bars and citrusy desserts in general, these fast, easy, one-bowl, no-mixer orange bars are just the thing for you. They’re dense and chewy, and if you’re looking for traditional lemon bars or fluffy lemon cake, this recipe isn’t that. It came to be because I adapted a very popular recipe for Lemon Lemonies and created Orangies, so to speak. So many readers have asked me on the Lemon Lemonies recipe if it can be made with an orange twist and I decided to give that a whirl. I used orange extract and orange juice in the white chocolate-based batter so the bars are the orange half. The glaze is made with lemon juice, which is obviously more tart and a nice balance to the sweeter orange base.
What’s in Orange Bars?
To make the orange brownies / bars, you’ll need:
White chocolate chips Unsalted butter Eggs Granulated sugar Orange juice Orange extract All-purpose flour Salt Confectioners’ sugar Lemon juice and zest
How to Make Orange Bars
Melt the butter and white chocolate together in the microwave, stopping now and then to stir the mixture together. Then, stir in the eggs, OJ, orange extract, and sugar. The flour and salt are added last. Turn the batter into a foil-lined 8×8-inch baking dish and bake until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out mostly clean, or with a few moist crumbs, but no batter. While the bars are cooling, whisk together the simple lemon glaze and then spoon it over the bars (it’s okay if they’re still warm!). The orange bars will then need 2 hours to set properly before you can slice them.
Can I Double This Recipe?
Most likely, yes. You’ll need to bake it in a 9×13-inch pan, and the bake time should be roughly the same.
Tips for the Best Orange Bars
For the best flavor, I HIGHLY recommend using freshly squeezed orange juice from actual oranges. You just can’t compare the flavor of freshly squeezed juice to the bottled stuff! I felt that using orange juice in the glaze could cause these orange bars to read too sweet, but if that’s not a problem for you and you really want bold orange flavor, make the glaze with OJ instead of lemon juice. You must let the bars cool for 2 to 3 hours before slicing them. I know the wait is hard, but the bars have a much better texture after they’ve cooled down.
More Citrus Dessert Recipes:
Olive Oil Orange Cake — A super soft and moist cake that’s made with olive oil!! Orange zest, orange juice, and Gran Marnier add tons of AMAZING orange flavor to this easy, no-mixer cake that’s unique, refined, and INCREDIBLE!! Tried this recipe? Leave a review! Consider leaving a 5 star rating if you’ve made and loved one of my recipes!
Lemon Lemonies — Like brownies, but made with lemon and white chocolate! Dense, chewy, not cakey and packed with big, bold lemon flavor!
The Best Lemon Bars – Truly the best traditional lemon bars I’ve ever had!
Orange Poke Cake with Honey-Orange Glaze – Bold orange flavor in this easy, 100% scratch, no mixer poke cake! Orange juice, orange extract, and orange zest make this cake the best way ever to get your Vitamin C!!
Lemon Cupcakes with Lemon Cream Cheese Frosting – Soft, fluffy, moist, very lemony cupcakes from scratch! Easy one-bowl, no-mixer recipe for cupcakes that taste like they’re from a bakery!
Lemon Buttermilk Cake with Lemon Glaze – An easy little cake with big lemon flavor! Soft, fluffy, and foolproof if you like puckering up!
Orange Crush Poke Cake – Bold Orange Crush flavor in this easy cake that’s super moist and light! The kid in all of us will love this orange tie-dyed cake!
Orange Creamsicle Cookies — There’s loads of white chocolate in every bite, and they remind me of an Orange Creamsicle!
