These coconut lime cheesecake bars are creamy, tangy, and so scrumptious! They’re simple to make with loads of candy tropical taste, a splash of lime, and toasty coconut baked over a buttery shortbread crust. Excellent for potlucks!
These coconut lime cheesecake bars are the proper simple dessert to carry a style of the tropics to your subsequent celebration! They’ve a creamy coconut cheesecake layer zested up with lime, baked over a crunchy shortbread crust. Right here’s why you’ll love them:
Candy, creamy, tangy. Creamy coconut and zesty lime wrapped up in a cheesecake is the BEST mixture. The flavors are piña colada-meets-key lime cheesecake in the absolute best approach.
Simple to make. The cheesecake batter places a recent spin on my favourite baked cheesecake that wants solely 5 substances. Right here, I swap the bitter cream for cream of coconut and add a splash of lime. It’s extremely wealthy with the proper steadiness of candy and tangy in each chunk.
Social gathering-ready. You probably have a summer time potluck developing or one other event that requires a tasty, crowd-friendly dessert, let these coconut lime cheesecake bars knock your socks off. It’s just about assured to occur! Plus, they’re make-ahead pleasant.
Substances You’ll Want
We’re placing the lime within the coconut– coconut lime cheesecake, that’s (does anybody else’s thoughts instantly go to the Coconut tune, or is that simply me?). It takes only a handful of substances to make these cheesecake bars from scratch. Under are some notes. Scroll to the recipe card under the submit for a printable checklist with the total quantities.
Cookie Crust – The crust is my 3-ingredient shortbread cookie recipe. All you want is sugar, flour, and room-temperature butter. I add a little bit vanilla, too. You can even make these bars with a graham cracker crust in case you’d like.
Cream Cheese – You’ll wish to use the cream cheese that is available in blocks and take it out of the fridge forward of time to let it soften to room temperature.
Cream of Coconut – To not be confused with coconut cream. Canned cream of coconut amps up the richness, and the coconut taste shines by in a approach that’s tremendous surprising and scrumptious. Ensure you’re shopping for the precise product! See under for particulars.
Sugar, Eggs, and Vanilla – Only a few fundamentals. I like to recommend utilizing granulated sugar and actual vanilla extract for one of the best texture and taste.
Lime Juice – Since there’s only a small quantity, bottled lime juice is okay. If you may get your fingers on recent limes, although, that’s even higher!
Shredded Coconut – I sprinkle the tops of my bars with sweetened toasted coconut. Unsweetened coconut additionally works in case you want.
Coconut Cream vs. Cream of Coconut
Regardless of the (very) related names, canned cream of coconut and coconut cream are NOT the identical factor. Coconut cream is mainly coconut milk with the next fats content material and no sugar. In the meantime, cream of coconut is a candy and syrupy model of coconut cream. For this cheesecake, ensure you’re utilizing sweetened cream of coconut, in any other case your dessert will find yourself bland.
The way to Make Coconut Lime Cheesecake Bars
Cheesecake bars are a few of my favourite desserts, not solely as a result of you possibly can mess around with enjoyable flavors, like caramel apple and strawberry lemon. These bars are one of the simplest ways to fulfill a cheesecake craving with out baking in a water tub, or letting the cheesecake relaxation in a turned-off oven for ages.
Right here’s the right way to make creamy coconut lime cheesecake bars in just some fast steps. Take a look at the recipe card for printable directions.
Make the crust. Begin by beating collectively the shortbread substances. Afterward, press the crust right into a lined 9×13-inch baking pan. It’ll have to par-bake for about 20 minutes at 350ºF.
Combine the cheesecake batter. Whereas the crust is within the oven, mix cream cheese, sugar, and cream of coconut. Then add eggs, lime juice, and vanilla and blend to make the filling.
Assemble and bake. Pour the cheesecake batter into your cooled par-baked crust. That goes again into the oven, this time for 40-50 minutes.
Toast the coconut. In the meantime, frivolously toast the coconut in a skillet on the range. It’ll toast rapidly, so control it and stir usually.
End and chill. Sprinkle toasted coconut over the freshly baked cheesecake bars, after which cool. Transfer the bars to the fridge after an hour. They’ll want to sit back in there for a superb 3-4 hours (I like to do that in a single day).
Recipe Ideas and Variations
Use recent lime juice. For one of the best taste in these bars, nothing beats freshly juiced limes. Key limes may have a barely sweeter taste, whereas common limes are tangier, though as soon as they’re baked right into a cheesecake it’s onerous to inform the distinction.
Let the crust cool. Let the par-baked crust cool for quarter-hour earlier than including the cheesecake filling. It doesn’t have to be fully cooled to room temperature, but it surely shouldn’t be scorching from the oven.
Price range sufficient time for the bars to sit back. These coconut lime cheesecake bars want at the very least 4 hours of chilling within the fridge earlier than serving. In any other case, they’ll be too comfortable when slicing.
Attempt a pretzel crust. Borrow the pretzel crust from my key lime bars for a enjoyable twist.
The way to Retailer
Fridge. Cowl these coconut lime cheesecake bars tightly and refrigerate them for as much as 5 days.
Freeze. You can even freeze these cheesecake bars for as much as 2 months. Defrost them within the fridge in a single day earlier than serving.
Coconut lime cheesecake bars are creamy, tangy, and scrumptious. They’re simple to make with loads of candy tropical taste and toasty coconut baked in a buttery shortbread crust. Excellent for potlucks!
Shortbread Crust
3/4 cup unsalted butter, room temperature
1/2 cup granulated sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
Lime Coconut Cheesecake Layer
2 (8-ounce) blocks of cream cheese, room temperature
1 (14-ounce) can of cream of coconut
1/2 cup granulated sugar
2 giant eggs
3 tablespoons lime juice
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
Topping
3/4 cup sweetened flaked coconut
Shortbread Crust: Preheat the oven to 350°F. Line a 9×13-inch baking pan with foil and coat with nonstick spray. Put aside.
Within the bowl of a stand mixer, combine butter and sugar collectively for 1 minute on medium velocity. Add vanilla and blend for an extra 30 seconds. Flip the mixer to low and slowly add flour, mixing till simply integrated. Press the dough into the ready pan and bake for 20 minutes or till frivolously golden.
Enable the crust to chill for quarter-hour.
Cheesecake: In the meantime in a clear bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, combine cream cheese and sugar till clean. Add cream of coconut and blend for 1 minute, or till no lumps stay. Add eggs, lime juice, and vanilla and blend till evenly integrated, scraping the edges of the bowl as essential.
When the crust has cooled barely, pour cream cheese combination on high. Bake for 40-45 minutes, till the perimeters are frivolously golden.
Whereas the cheesecake is baking, toast coconut in a nonstick skillet over low warmth till golden. Stir steadily and watch intently, as coconut can go from brown to burned rapidly.
As quickly because the cheesecake is finished, take away it from the oven and sprinkle it with toasted coconut instantly.
Enable the cheesecake to chill for an hour, then cowl and refrigerate for at the very least 3 hours, or in a single day.
Notes
Retailer hermetic within the fridge for as much as 5 days.
Freeze hermetic for as much as 2 months. Thaw within the fridge.
