Passionfruit Lime Cookie Bars

These luscious cookie bars may resemble ordinary lemon squares, but there's nothing ordinary about the flavors here. Tart passionfruit and tangy lime complement each other perfectly. The crust is made with cookie crumbs - use graham cracker crumbs or whatever cookies you have on hand. I like to use half graham crackers and half butter cookies (like lorna dune) or even vanilla sandwich cookies. You can find frozen passionfruit pulp at many grocery stores and at Latin food markets.

Prep Time: 20 minutes

Cook Time: 35 minutes

Ingredients:

• 7 ounces of cookies (graham crackers or similar)
• 5 tablespoons butter, melted
• 4 tablespoons brown sugar
• Pinch of salt
• 3 limes
• 3 ounces cream cheese, softened
• 1 can of condensed milk (14 ounces)
• 1 egg yolk
• 1/3 cup passionfruit pulp or juice
• Pinch of salt

Preparation:

1. Preheat oven to 325 degrees.
   
   
2. Spray a 9 inch by 9 inch square baking pan lightly with cooking spray. Line the pan with two pieces of aluminum foil, letting the foil liner hang over the edges of the pan. Spray the foil lightly with cooking spray.
   
   
3. Process the cookies in a food processor until they are very fine crumbs. Stir the melted butter, brown sugar, and pinch of salt into the crumbs until evenly mixed.
   
   
4. Press the crumbs into the bottom of the foil-lined pan, making a smooth layer.
   
   
5. Bake the crumbs for about 15 minutes, until golden brown.
   
   
6. Remove from the oven and set aside to cool. Zest 2 of the limes and chop the zest fine. You should have about 2 tablespoons of zest. Juice all 3 of the limes.
   
   
7. In a medium bowl, whisk together the condensed milk, the lime juice, the passionfruit pulp, the cream cheese, the egg yolk, a pinch of salt, and 1 tablespoon of the lime zest.
   
   
8. Pour the condensed milk mixture into the pan on top of the cookie crust. Return pan to the oven and bake until center is set, about 20-25 minutes.
   
   
9. Remove pan from the oven and let cool on a rack for at least an hour. Chill in the refrigerator for another hour before cutting. Lift bars from pan using the foil liner and lay on a flat surface to cut. Sprinkle bars with remaining lime zest.

Makes about 16 squares.

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