Strawberry Lime Bars

I had the hardest time finding a Cinco de Mayo dessert.  I don’t care for tres leches cake, I didn’t want to deal with fried ice cream, I didn’t want to make anything with tequila (like margarita cupcakes)… but I wanted something that would go with the rest of the menu.  Then I was browsing through Tasty Kitchen, the cooking site run by Ree of Pioneer Woman fame, and came across a recipe for Strawberry Lime Bars by Tasty Kitchen member TheNoshery, who blogs under the same name.  Strawberry and Lime reminded me of a strawberry margarita, but no tequila… perfect!  And I love dessert bars.  They’re easy, they’re pretty, and they’re almost-always yummy.  I was sold.

The bars were SUPER easy and a great spring dish, Cinco de Mayo or not – they would be awesome for any picnic or cookout you might have coming up!  I thought they were great but my sister felt that they were almost too tart, I think, so you may want to have some sweetened whipped cream on hand to mellow them out a bit.  The original recipe called for blanched almonds in the crust which I left out as I’m not a fan of almonds.  To accommodate, I increased the amount of graham cracker crumbs in the crust.  My adjustments are reflected below.

I apologize for the slightly-sloppy presentation!

Strawberry Lime Bars
Adapted from The Noshery, who adapted from Martha Stewart Everyday Food

Crust
4 Tablespoons unsalted butter, melted and cooled, plus more for pan
1 1/2 cup graham-cracker crumbs
1/4 cup sugar
1 Tablespoon grated lime zest

Filling
2 large egg yolks
1 can (14 ounces) sweetened condensed milk
1/2 cup fresh lime juice

Topping
1 cup fresh strawberries, sliced
1 Tablespoon sugar

Preheat oven to 350. Line an 8-inch square baking dish with foil, leaving a 2-inch overhang on two sides. Brush foil with melted butter.

Clean, trim and slice strawberries. Sprinkle with 1 Tablespoon of sugar, stir, cover and refrigerate until needed.

Combine graham cracker crumbs, sugar and zest. Add butter and mix thoroughly. Press the mixture into the bottom of the pan and continue up the sides to 1-inch height. Bake until lightly browned, 10-12 minutes. Set aside to cool at least 30 minutes.

In a large bowl whisk together egg yolks and condensed milk until smooth and thoroughly incorporated. Add lime juice, and whisk gently until combined. Pour the filling into the cooled graham crust and spread to the edges. Bake until set, about 15 minutes.

Cool the pan on a rack. Use a slotted spoon to place the strawberries on top of the bars, straining off as much of the juice as possible. Chill for at least 1 hour before serving. Using the foil overhang, lift the bars out of the pan and transfer to a cutting board to cut into bars. Store covered in the refrigerate until serving.

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