Key Lime Coconut Bars
You can use the baby key limes in this recipe or regular limes, which taste almost identical.
Not surprisingly for a recipe as perfect and delicious as this, it comes to us from the incredible Melissa Clark via New York Times Cooking. Here's what she had to say:
"Imagine lemon bars, but made with a tangy rhubarb curd instead of citrus, and you'll get a sense of this sweet-tart confection. The rhubarb curls on top make it pretty, but they don't add much in terms of flavor, so feel free to skip Step 5. With their crisp crust and soft topping, the bars are at their absolute best when served within a day of baking. You can store leftovers in the fridge for up to five days. They'll get a little soggy, but the flavor will be excellent."
Associate Editor, Ann Walczak made these over Mother's Day weekend. It's safe to say that she and all those she gifted them too were instantly obsessed. "They've replaced lemon bars as the favorite in our house," Ann says. She doubled the recipe to fit in a 13x9 pan and you can, too (more to go around!) but be prepared -- they take much longer in the oven to set in the middle, almost double the time, so keep an eye on them!
Ingredients
Shortbread
- 1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
- 1/3 cup granulated sugar
- 1/4 teaspoon fine sea salt
- 3/4 cup cold unsalted butter, cut into 1-inch pieces
Filling
- 10 ounces rhubarb, sliced - about 2 1/2 cups - plus 1 stalk for the top
- 1 1/4 cups granulated sugar
- 4 large eggs
- 2 tablespoons freshly squeezed lemon juice - about 1 to 2 lemons
- 3 tablespoons all-purpose flour
- 1 tablespoon finely grated lemon zest
- pinch fine sea salt
- confectioners sugar, for serving
Preparation
1. Heat oven to 325 degrees and line a 9-by-9-inch pan with parchment paper, leaving two edges long so they overhang the pan by at least 1 inch. (This is for lifting the bars out later.)
2. In a food processor, pulse together flour, sugar, and salt. Add butter and process until a crumbly dough forms. Press dough into the lined pan in an even layer. Don’t clean out the food processor, you’re going to need it.
3. Bake crust until golden at the edges, 35 to 40 minutes, rotating halfway through. Transfer to a wire rack and raise oven temperature to 350 degrees.
4. While the crust is baking, make the filling. In a medium saucepan, combine the rhubarb slices and 1 cup sugar. Cook, stirring frequently, over medium-low heat until rhubarb releases its juices. Raise heat and bring to a simmer. Keep simmering, stirring once in a while, until the rhubarb breaks down completely, about 15 to 20 minutes. Transfer the rhubarb and juices to the food processor, and let it sit with the cover off until it cools down a bit, about 15 minutes.
5. Meanwhile, using a vegetable peeler, lay the very pink rhubarb stalk on its narrower side. From the edge of the stalk, peel a long strip from the stalk. Continue to peel strips from the stalk, flipping it around the other side to keep it even. (This makes it easier to peel, but don’t worry too much about getting uniform strips.) Line up peeled strips and cut into 1 1/2-inch lengths. Some may curl up, and that’s fine. You’ll have about 1 cup strips.
6. To the food processor, add the eggs, remaining 1/4 cup sugar, lemon juice, flour, zest and salt, and pulse until mixture is puréed. Pour into baked shortbread base, and carefully scatter the rhubarb strips on top. It should look a little like confetti. Bake until the filling is set and puffy, 20 to 30 minutes. Transfer to a wire rack to cool completely in the pan.
7. Once cool, use a butter knife to cut at the edges of the crust to release them from the pan, then use the parchment “handles” to lift up and transfer the pastry to a cutting board. Cut into 1 3/4-inch squares. Dust with confectioners’ sugar before serving.
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