Margarita Bars

By MJH

Yield: 16 bars
These bars are full of lime and margarita flavor! There's a burst of citrus in the filling and a sweet crunch from the graham cracker crust.

Ingredients

• 1 1/2 cups graham cracker crumbs
• 7 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted (no substitutions - use REAL butter)
• 2 1/4 cup granulated sugar, divided
• 4 eggs
• 1/3 cup fresh lime juice (from about 5-6 limes)
• 1 teaspoon lime zest
• 1 tablespoon fresh orange juice
• 1 tablespoon tequila, optional (you can omit and use an extra tablespoon lime or orange juice instead)
• 1/4 cup all purpose flour
• Powdered sugar, for dusting

Details

Adapted from crazyforcrust.com

Preparation

Step 1

Preheat oven to 350°F. Line a 9x9 square pan with foil or parchment paper and spray with cooking spray.
Mix crumbs, 1/4 cup sugar, and melted butter with a fork in a large bowl. Press into the bottom of the prepared pan. Bake for 12 minutes.
While the crust is baking, prepare the filling. Whisk the eggs with remaining 2 cups of sugar. Whisk in juices, zest, and tequila, then whisk in flour until no lumps remain.
Note: you can omit the tequila if you wish. Use an extra tablespoon of orange or lime juice in it’s place.
Pour lime mixture slowly and carefully over hot crust then continue baking for about 25 minutes until the top starts to brown and is no longer translucent. Cool bars completely before cutting. It’s easiest to cut cold bars, so I suggest chilling them before cutting. Dust the tops with powdered sugar. Store in refrigerator for up to 3 days.

Notes:
Feel free to replace the tequila with lime or orange juice! And if you want more bars, use a 9x13" pan. The bars will be thinner but still work but baking time will be affected.