key lime bars

My hubby and I used to go to exotic locations for vacation…until kids and one income came along….we have wonderful memories of Costa Rica, Dominican Republic and Jamaica.

The, we realized it’s just as exotic down the road.

Well, 2-4 hours down the road.

Every year around this time- as we begin packing our belongings and preparing the boat- I start to cave “tropical” food. So- to kick it off I will be featuring lots of tropic inspired dishes. Yum.

Key lime bars. Why bars? Because my hubby prefers finger food dessert. It took me a few years to notice that.

Take 1ans 1/2 c vanilla wafer crumbs (finely crushed) and 6 tbs melted butter and 1/3 c sugar- pat into a 8×8 or 9×9 (nonstick) pan and bake at 350 for ten minutes.

You will need about 25 key limes to get 1/3 of a cup of juice. Or, you can buy it bottled. Key limes are way different from Persian limes- aside from the size (see picture) they have a thin skin, lighter interior and much more complex flavor.

Traditional key lime pie is a graham cracker crust, and it is not baked- the acidity of the limes set the yolks and “cook” them. I usually never bake my traditional pie-but, for safety reasons you may cook yours. They are also not green. They should be a creamy yellow. Don’t trust the green ones. Why change nature?

In a bowl combine 3 egg yolks, 1 can sweetened condensed milk and mix well. Add in the 1/3 c lime juice and 1 tsp lime zest. Pour into cooled crust and bake at 350 for 10 minutes. Chill thoroughly before serving.