Key Lime Coconut Bars

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There is nothing like the taste of the island or taste of the tropics. When I hear tropics, I think of coconut, mango and key limes. I love a good citrus dessert, which would explain why one of my favorite desserts is a lemon meringue pie. I had this recipe pinned on Pinterest for awhile. It was staring at me every time I logged into Pinterest, it was calling me to make it and of course eat it. I finally caved to the yummy goodness and made this delicious dessert, eating it while watching the Bachelorette finale with my friend Stephanie, while my husband and her husband went to grab a beer.

Two great things about this recipe, it is super yummy, and requires no eggs. Not to make the entire baking time is 20 minutes and then bam! you have a delicious dessert. The hardest part of this recipe is waiting for it to cool, then chill in the refrigerator before you eat it. The best part the smoothness and creaminess you get when you bite into the dessert not to mention homemade whipped cream. Yah baby!
First, gather together your ingredients. 1 1/2 cup graham cracker crumbs, 2 tablespoons sugar, 1/2 cup of sweetened coconut flakes, 1/2 cup melted butter, 3 cans of sweetened condensed milk, 3/4 cup lime juice(freshly squeezed is best), 1/2 cup sour cream, 1 tablespoon lime zest.

Preheat your oven to 350F degrees. In your square 8X8 pan, line it with parchment paper and leave the ends out. Or if you are using a non-stick pan, you are good to go. In a bowl, combine the graham cracker crumbs, sugar and coconut flakes.

Add in the melted butter and combine the ingredients until it is the consistency of wet sand.

 Press this mixture evenly into the bottom of the pan and bake for 8-10 minutes.

Once the crust is baked, take it out of the oven and let it cool and leave the oven on.
In your mixing bowl, add the 3 cans of sweetened condensed milk, sour cream, lime juice and zest.

Turn your mixer to get the ingredients a good mix.
Pour the contents over the cooled graham cracker crust.

Then bake the lime bars into the oven for another 8-10 minutes or until the mixture is set. Remove the bars out of the oven, let it cool and once cooled, put them in the refrigerator to chill.
When the bars are chilled, slice up them into squares, make some homemade whipped cream, put a dollop on the square and sprinkle some toasted coconut flakes on top of the whipped cream.

To toast coconut flakes, you can do this while the crust or filling is baking, spread some coconut flakes on a baking sheet, pop it in the oven for 3-4 minutes until lightly golden brown. Put the flakes out, let them cool and garnish your key lime coconut squares with them.

recipe via
Then serve, eat and enjoy!