I love key lime. And I also love simple food. That’s what these are. The gloriousness of a key lime pie in a simple bar.
I also love that the crust for these is made out of animal cracker crumbs. Which, yes, is very similar to a graham cracker crust, but I just love that it’s something different.
They are tart and just perfect in their key-limeness. And they’re the perfect way to serve a little key-lime pie to a lot of people.
It’s probably already obvious that we here at num’s the word like key lime. If it wasn’t obvious, here is some evidence: this Key Lime Pie, these Key Lime Pie Truffles, and even these Raspberry Key Lime Cheesecake Bites.
Key Lime Bars
Ingredients
- 5 ounces animal crackers (about 2 1/2 cups of crackers)
- 3 tablespoons packed light brown sugar
- pinch of salt
- 4 tablespoons butter, melted
- 2 ounces cream cheese, softened
- 1 tablespoon grated lime zest
- 1 can (14 oz) sweetened condensed milk
- pinch of salt
- 1 large egg yolk
- 1/2 cup fresh lime juice (from about 3-4 regular limes or 20 key limes)
- 3/4 cup shredded coconut, toasted (optional, for garnish)
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 325 degrees. Spray 8 inch square baking pan with cooking spray.
- For the crust, process the animal crackers, sugar and salt together in a blender or food processor until they are fine crumbs.
- Drizzle melted butter over the crumbs and pulse to combine.
- Pour mixture into prepared pan and press the crumbs into an even layer.
- Bake crust until golden, about 15-18 minutes.
- While crust bakes, stir the softened cream cheese, lime zest and salt together until combined.
- Whisk in the sweetened condensed milk until smooth, and then whisk in the egg yolk and lime juice until combined.
- Pour the filling evenly over the crust. Bake until the filling is set and the edges just slightly begin to pull away from the sides of the pan, about 15-17 minutes
- Let the bars cool completely in the pan set on a wire rack, about 2 hours. Then cover the pan with foil and refrigerate until chilled, about 2 hours.
- Sprinkle with toasted coconut, if desired.
Recipe adapted from Mel’s Kitchen Cafe
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