key lime bars

Since I fell in love with key lime tarts in Washington D.C. I found a recipe for Key Lime Bars. I've mentioned my favorite magazine before; Cook's Illustrated. It is a fun magazine to read since it talks about why and how a recipe works; usually a page about the development of each recipe. I love reading it and then trying the recipes. I ran into a friend at the grocery store while buying the ingredients for the key lime bars and promised to post the recipe since she claims to love key lime pie as much as I do.

Key Lime Bars

Cook's Illustrated; 'American Classics'

Crust

5 ounces animal crackers

3 Tablespoons packed light or dark brown sugar

pinch table salt

4 Tablespoons unsalted butter, melted and cooled slightly

Preheat oven to 325

grease a 9x9 inch pan or line it with foil.

Crush animal ers in food processor add the brown sugar and salt. Add the butter gradually until the crumbs are evenly coated with the butter. put in pan and press down with a flat surface. Bake for 20 minutes.

While crust is cooling make filling:

Filling

2 ounces cream cheese, room temperature

1 tablespoon grated lime zest, minced

pinch table salt

1 (14 ounce) can sweetened condensed milk

1 large egg yolk

1/2 cup regular lime or Key lime juice (do not use bottled juice but the juice from regular limes is great)

I added a bit of green food coloring so you had an idea that they were lime bars; otherwise there is very little color.

Add the zest to the yolk. Beat the cream cheese in a medium bowl until smooth and lighter. Add salt and milk; whip until the cream cheese is no longer seen as bits and lumps. Add the yolk, stir together then add lime juice until mixed together. Pour onto crust. Bake 325 for 20 minutes. Cool on rack until room temperature. Chill for 2 hours. Use the foil to lift the bars out and cut into squares. Enjoy.

I made these for the football pre-game dinner tonight so I made a triple batch. I ran out of limes before I had 1 1/2 cups so I juiced 2 lemons and 3 oranges....

It's great; not as tart as it was the first time I made it, but that makes them better.

I think these are a lot of bother but easier than making drop cookies. The last time I had kid-help; to squeeze the limes and grate the zest; which made it easier.

Look at those bites of wonderfulness....the only thing that might improve them is a layer of chocolate on top of the crust... doesn't chocolate and lime go together?

Now go out and look at Cook's Illustrated magazine. I love their books and their other magazine; Cook's Country, the only other magazine I look at...... for recipes... I look at quilting magazines a lot too. Hey there's a lot of magazines I don't look at; car and truck? beading? scrap booking? crossword? hundreds out there that don't interest me at all.

edit- more about these key lime bars here.