KEY Lime Bars (From Ameera)

for an 8" square pan:

Crust:
5 ounces of animal crackers
3 tbs of packed brown sugar
pinch of table salt
4 tbs unsalted butter, melted and cooled
filling:
2 ounces of room temp cream cheese
1 tbs minced lime zest
1 14oz can of sweetened, condensed milk. fat free or reg is fine. i tend to use fat free
1 egg yolk
1/2 cup fresh lime juice
garnish (optional):
3/4 cup of sweetened, shredded coconut, toasted until golden and crisp
I find that 2 limes gives enough juice
Instructions:
pre-heat oven to 325. cut about 12" length of extra wide heavy duty foil; fold cut edges back to form 7.5"
width. with folded sides facing down, fit foil securely into bottom and up sides of 8" square baking pan,
allowing excess to overhang pan sides. spray foil with nonstick cooking spray or cover with parchment
paper.
crust: crush animal crackers until broken down to evenly fine powder (about 10 sec in a food processor).
add brown sugar and salt, and mix until combined, drizzle butter over crumbs and mix until evenly moist.
press crumbs evenly and firmly into bottom of pan, bake until deep golden brown, 18-20 min. cool on wire
rack while making filling. do not turn off the oven.
filling: while the crust cools, in a medium bowl, stir cream cheese, zest, and salt until softened, creamy, and
thoroughly combined. add sweetened condensed milk and whisk vigorously until incorporated and no
lumps of cream cheese remain; whisk in egg yolk. add lime juice and whisk gently until incorporated
(mixture will thicken slightly)
pour filling onto crust; spread to corners and smooth the surface. bake until set and the edges begin to pull
away from sides, 15-20 minutes (closer to 20 for me usually). cool on wire rack to room temp, 1 to 1.5
hours. cover with foil and refrigerate until thoroughly chilled, at least 2 hours. (i cut these cooling and
refrigerating times short)
loosen edges with paring knife and lift bars from baking pan using foil extensions; cut bars into 16 squares.
sprinkle with toasted coconut, if using, and serve. (leftovers can be refrigerated up to 2 days; crust will
soften slightly. let bars stand at room temp about 15 min before serving.)