I don’t really know how to name this dessert.  It is not quite a tart, but it isn’t a cheesecake either.  It is very tasty for a small dessert.  My son found a recipe for Key lime bars and we modified it into this one plate dish.  The Key lime flavor is wonderful and its topped with coconut (sorry Rhandalee).  It makes a great dessert on a night of appetizers and soup.

Preheat oven to 325F

For the crust:

2 1/2 cups of animal crackers

4 Tbs raw sugar

6 Tbs unsalted butter, melted

Place the animal crackers and sugar in a food processor and pulse until crumbs are finely crushed.  Open processor and drizzle butter over crumbs and pulse again until well mixed.  Press crust into the bottom of a 8 in springform pan.  Bake for 18-20 minutes until golden brown.  Cool crust.  Do not turn oven off.

For the filling:

2 oz of cream cheese, room temperature

2 Tbs grated lime zest

1  14 oz can of sweetened condensed milk

1 egg yolk

1/2 cup of fresh lime juice, Key lime or regular

Garnish (optional)

1 cup sweetened shredded coconut

In a mixer combine cream cheese, lime zest, sweetened condensed milk until thoroughly combined.  Add egg yolk and mix again.  Add lime juice last and mix gently until incorporated.  Mixture may thicken just a little.

Pour mixture over crust and spread evenly.  Bake for 10 minutes.  Add coconut and bake for another 15 minutes. (Or bake for 25 minutes without coconut.)  Remove from oven and cool at room temp for 1-2 hours.  Cover and refrigerate until chilled (at least 2 hours).

To serve:  Let dessert warm for 30 minutes before serving.  Remove sides from pan and cut into small wedges.  Dessert will keep for 2 day refrigerated.

Key Lime "tart" with Coconut