31 Lemon Recipes to Brighten Up Dinners and Desserts

Almost every culture has a homey version of chicken soup to stave off the chill of cold weather, but the Greeks might just have one of the best: the egg and lemon soup known as avgolemono. Here’s how to make this classic comforting soup at home.

You only need 20 minutes to make this weeknight pasta — it’s a keeper.

An easy weeknight-friendly recipe for chicken breasts cooked in a creamy lemon garlic sauce.

With their buttery shortbread crust and tangy lemon topping, lemon bars are bright, balanced, and have a wonderfully creamy texture. They're the perfect dessert to bring to potlucks and bake sales.

Inspired by melting potatoes, thick slices of potatoes get tossed with a lemony herb butter and cooked in a hot oven, creating a crispy, snappy crust on the outside. This low-effort, high-reward potato side dish is one you’ll want to immediately add to your rotation.

Seared salmon fillets take on maximum flavor in this delicious lemon sauce with fresh dill.

This easy, no-bake dessert comes together in just 20 minutes. Each serving is filled with crunchy graham crackers, creamy lemon mousse, zingy lemon curd, and fluffy whipped cream.

This vibrant pasta dish is packed with bursting cherry tomatoes and tender asparagus, and tossed in a bright, lemony ricotta sauce.

There are so many different types of delicious chicken noodle soup out there, but there’s something especially delightful about a version that adds in bright and bold lemony flavors. This lemon chicken soup with orzo fits the bill.

If you love both lemon bars and bubbling fruit crisps, this is a sweet treat you’re sure to enjoy.

They’re melt-in-your-mouth creamy and packed with big savory, lemony flavor. Serve them with grilled lamb chops or hearty moussaka and a Greek salad.

This lemony one-pot pasta is the perfect weeknight dinner that cooks in under 30 minutes.

Lemon meringue pie, with its tender-crisp crust, tangy-rich filling, and light-as-air meringue, is the perfect baking project. You’ll be pleasantly surprised by how easy it is to make this classic pie — and we’ve made it even easier with our simple three-step process.

Crispy chicken thighs and tender potatoes join forces in this lemony, oregano-rich skillet dinner.

These lemony udon noodles are tossed with a zesty sauce for the ultimate savory dish. The tangy taste of Kewpie mayo makes the noodles creamy, without making them feel overly heavy and rich.

For the best dessert full of fresh lemon flavor, make this lemon cheesecake with a gingersnap cookie crust.

Lemony, umami-packed salmon is prepared in under 20 minutes, making a perfect weeknight dinner.

Inspired by Greek potatoes, this easy potato salad is packed with bright, tangy flavors.

This lemon and sumac roasted chicken recipe is an ode to crispy skin. The first step to getting perfectly crispy skin in every bite is to spatchcock the chicken.

This 10-minute sauce only calls for six ingredients. Serve it with seared salmon and steamed vegetables or toss it with pasta.

These lemon cookies have a bright, lemony flavor and a super-soft and cakey (in a good way) texture, thanks to the addition of sour cream. Fresh lemon zest and juice give these delicious cookies their bright, citrusy flavor.

There’s so much you can do with a can of tuna, and this lemony one-pot pasta is simple, comforting, and flavorful.

Both lemon zest and juice are used to add acidity to the marinade. Serve it with Greek lemon potatoes and Greek salad for a dinner the whole family will love.

These light and fluffy (thanks to whipped egg whites) lemon ricotta pancakes are simple enough for the pancake purist, yet feel special enough, with their wisp of lemony flavor, for those who crave a little something extra.

A quick recipe for pasta tossed in a no-cook ricotta sauce that's flavored with lots of lemon and fresh basil.

Lemon adds acidity, brightness, and freshness to this easy chicken skillet meal. The potatoes here are browned on both sides, then they finish cooking in the flavorful liquied, becoming tender, almost like lemony Greek potatoes.

Not only is this cake fast, fancy, and packed with sweet citrus tang, but this is also the easiest, most foolproof lemon Bundt cake you'll ever make.

All you need is one baking dish, 10 minutes to mix a marinade, and 20 minutes of bake time to make satisfying and flaky lemon pepper salmon.

This is the sweetest way to eat zucchini. To make sure this cake isn’t shy on the lemon flavor, use the zest from two lemons in the cake batter, then save the zested lemons so that you can juice them to make the glaze.

If you’re looking for a bright and zippy homemade dressing that goes with everything, look no further than a lemon vinaigrette. It’s a natural partner to a green salad, grain bowls, pasta salad, and even chicken and fish.

This quick salmon recipe is a complete meal, thanks to the addition of tender asparagus and pan-fried potato gnocchi.