These vegan lime curd bars combine a chewy and nutty coconut macaroon crust with a tangy and creamy lime curd filling. They’re gluten free, vegan, and perfect if you love bright citrus desserts with a tropical flair! Make these dessert bars extra special with a few edible flowers on top.
Creamy and Tangy Vegan Lime Curd Bars That Dreams are Made Of
It’s a bit presumptuous of me to claim that these vegan lime bars are what dreams are made of but in my personal experience, they’ve been in my dreams plenty of times! Rather than a typical shortbread style crust, I developed them with a coconut macaroon crust. It’s chewy, nutty, and gives these more of a tropical flavor profile paired with the lime. I mean, lime in the coconut, right?!
What makes these vegan dessert bars truly delicious is the complementary textures and flavors: sweet, tart, chewy, and creamy (a little like my lemon coconut macaroons!). While these vegan lime curd bars require a bit of a time investment (about an hour for prep/baking and several hours to chill/set), they are so well worth the effort!
Vegan Lime Curd?! YES!
So how does the vegan curd come together? Pure alchemy. Just kidding, sort of. It’s a combination of soaked and blended cashews, full fat coconut milk, lime juice, sugar, and arrowroot starch. It’s a similar process to making pudding but we’re cooking it just a bit longer in order to get it to thicken and set to a more solid consistency for the bars. If you don’t want to go to the trouble of making the bars, at least make the curd! And before you ask, yes, you can absolutely make this with lemon instead of lime!
Key Ingredients
For the coconut macaroon crust to have a perfectly chewy texture, I recommend using finely shredded unsweetened desiccated coconut and almond flour. To amp up the coconut flavor and add richness, I recommend using coconut oil and full fat coconut milk (from the can). For the lime curd, fresh lime juice and zest is a MUST for the best flavor. Since you’ll already have to buy a can of coconut milk for the macaroon base, you’ll use some of it in the curd for richness. If you don’t keep arrowroot on hand, you can swap in cornstarch. Don’t skip the starch because it helps thicken and set the curd!
How to Make Vegan Lime Curd Bars
We’re taking my coconut macaroon dough and pressing it into a parchment lined 8×8 inch baking pan. Don’t use a 9-inch one because the bars will be too thin. Press the dough into the pan with damp fingers (it’s sticky!) then bake until golden brown. Let the crust cool completely before topping it with the curd.
Now for the curd! You can make it while the crust is cooling. Before you cook the curd, you’ll blend everything but the arrowroot and lime zest until very smooth. This is the key to a smooth vegan curd! You’ll cook it over medium heat, whisking continuously. As soon as you see bubbles, knock the heat down to low and add the slurry (1 tablespoon of coconut milk mixed with 1 tablespoon of arrowroot). This will help thicken and set the curd.
Once the curd reaches the consistency of pudding, remove it from the heat and mix in the lime zest. Let it cool a bit then spread it over the crust. Cover and chill the bars for about 6 hours to allow the curd to thicken and set. I love topping the finished bars with a bit of extra lime zest and edible flowers but this is entirely up to you!
More Citrus Desserts You’ll Love
If you like lime and coconut, you’ll probably LOVE these vegan lemon coconut macaroons. They’re ready in just 35 minutes! If you want a more portable dessert with curd that takes a fraction of the time to make, try these macaroon thumbprints with lemon curd! They use store-bought lemon curd so they aren’t vegan but you can simply make the curd in this recipe with lemon juice and zest and use it in the thumbprints. Love lime desserts? Try this vegan coconut lime sherbet or these no-bake coconut mini tarts with turmeric and lime!
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Vegan Lime Curd Bars
- Total Time: 65 minutes
- Yield: 9 1x
- Diet: Gluten-Free, Vegan
Description
These vegan lime curd bars combine a chewy and nutty coconut macaroon crust with a tangy and creamy lime curd filling. They’re gluten free, vegan, and perfect if you love bright citrus desserts with a tropical flair! Make these dessert bars extra special with a few edible flowers on top.
Ingredients
for the coconut macaroon crust:
- 3/4 cup almond meal
- 3/4 cup finely shredded unsweetened desiccated coconut
- 1/4 teaspoon fine sea salt
- 1/3 cup cane sugar
- 2 tablespoons virgin coconut oil, melted
- 1/4 cup full fat coconut milk, at room temperature
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
for the vegan lime curd:
- 1/2 cup cashews, covered with boiling water then soaked for 20 minutes
- 1/2 cup + 1 tablespoon full fat coconut milk, divided
- 3/4 cup fresh lime juice, from about 5-7 limes
- 1/2 cup cane sugar
- 1 tablespoon agave syrup, or maple syrup
- 1 tablespoon arrowroot flour, or cornstarch
- 2 medium limes, zested, plus extra for garnish
- edible flowers, optional for garnish
Instructions
Make the base first. Preheat your oven to 325 degrees and line an 8×8 inch square baking pan with parchment paper leaving an overhang (this will make it much easier to remove and cut the bars).
Mix the almond meal, coconut, sugar, and salt together, making sure to break up any lumps. In a separate small bowl, whisk together the melted coconut oil, 1/2 cup of coconut milk, and vanilla, then pour it over your dry mixture. Mix until the macaroon dough begins to stick together. Dump the dough into your lined baking pan and press it into an even layer. The dough is sticky so make sure to use damp fingers!
Bake the macaroon base in your preheated oven for 25 to 30 minutes until it is golden brown around the edges and just beginning to turn golden on top. Let the base cool completely at room temperature before topping it with the curd.
Make the curd while the crust is cooling. Drain and rinse the cashews then add them to a blender along with 1/2 cup of coconut milk, the lime juice, cane sugar, and agave syrup. Blend on high until smooth and the cashews have been broken down.
Add the blended mixture to a pot and heat it on a level just under medium on the stove. Whisk the curd continuously as it begins to heat up. Once you begin to see bubbles breaking the surface, turn the heat down to low. Mix the remaining tablespoon of coconut milk with the arrowroot in a small bowl (your slurry) then add it to the curd. Continue to whisk and cook the curd mixture over low heat until it thickens to a consistency similar to pudding. This should only take about 5-7 minutes. Remove the curd from the heat and mix in the lime zest. Allow the curd to cool in the pot for 15-20 minutes before spreading it in an even layer over the macaroon base.
Chill the bars in the fridge at least 6 hours or overnight to allow them to set.
When you’re ready to serve the bars, feel free to enjoy them as is or add a fresh sprinkle of lime zest and edible flowers. Cut the bars into 9 equal pieces.
These bars store best in the fridge so make sure to eat and serve them straight from there! Leftovers will keep in the fridge for up to 5 days.
Notes
- These bars need a full 6 hours to chill and set in the fridge before enjoying so make sure to factor that in!
- For the cashews, measure out 1/2 cup before soaking rather than after.
- If you are making the lime curd on its own rather than using it to top the bars, you’ll need to adjust the recipe just slightly. Once you add the arrowroot slurry towards the end of cooking time, you’ll cook it only a minute more before removing it from the heat so that it doesn’t thicken quite as much. Cool it completely in the fridge before enjoying!
- An equal amount of cornstarch can be used in place of the arrowroot.
- Prep Time: 15 minutes
- Cook Time: 50 minutes
- Category: Dessert
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