Citrus Crumb Bars

Lemon Crumb Bars

adapted from TastyKitchen

INGREDIENTS

Filling
2- 14 oz can sweetened condensed milk

1 cup lemon juice

Zest of lemon
0.5 tsp vanilla extract
0.5 tsp salt
Crumb

1.5 cups ap flour

1 cup oatmeal

1 cup brown sugar

2/3 cup melted butter

1 tsp baking powder

1 tsp salt

DIRECTIONS

Preheat the oven to 350ºF.

Combine milk, citrus juice and zest. Mix well and set aside.

Mix remaining ingredients until crumbly..

Press half of the dry mixture into a lightly greased 9x13 baking dish.

Pour the sweetened condensed milk mixture over top.

Finish by sprinkling remaining dry mixture over the top of the citrus filling, and gently press.

Bake for 25-30 minutes.

Cool completely then store in the refrigerator.

KEY LIME COCONUT CRUMB BARS

Key Lime Coconut Crumb Bars

INGREDIENTS

Filling
2- 14 oz can sweetened condensed milk

1 cup Key Lime juice

zest of Key Limes
0.5 tsp vanilla extract
0.5 tsp salt
Crumb

1.5 cups ap flour

0.5 cup oatmeal
1 cup flaked coconut

1 cup brown sugar

3/4 cup melted butter

1 tsp baking powder

1 tsp salt

DIRECTIONS

Same as above.

I first found this recipe a couple years ago, and instantly fell in love. I was going through a lemon phase, and this recipe filled my need for all things lemon. I doubled the sweetened condensed milk and juice from the original recipe because I needed it to have a little more zip. About a year later I went through a lime phase, and revamped this recipe to be my ultimate lime dream. I think this works best with citrus fruits that are zippy! Oranges might be too sweet to for this application. I'm not sure about grapefruit, because I'm allergic- but someone should try it and let me know! This recipe is fool proof, and easy!

Margarita Cake

In honor of Cinco de Cuatro, and my love for all things lime, I give unto you, Margarita Cake!

adapted from Betty Crocker

INGREDIENTS
CRUST:

1 1/2 cups coarsely crushed pretzels
1/2 cup sugar
1/2 cup butter -- melted

Zest of 1 lime

CAKE:
1 box Betty Crocker® SuperMoist® white cake mix
3/4 cups bottled nonalcoholic margarita mix

1 Tablespoon tequila

3 Tablespoons lime juice

1/4 cup water
1/3 cup vegetable oil
Zest of 2 limes
3 egg whites

TOPPING:
1 container (8 oz) frozen whipped topping -- thawed

Zest of 1 lime

DIRECTIONS
Heat oven to 350°F (325°F for dark or nonstick pan). Grease bottom only and lightly flour 13x9-inch pan, or spray bottom with baking spray with flour. In medium bowl, mix crust ingredients. Sprinkle evenly on bottom of pan; press gently.

In large bowl, beat cake ingredients with electric mixer on low speed 30 seconds, then on medium speed 2 minutes, scraping bowl occasionally. Pour batter over crust.

Bake 34 to 39 minutes or until light golden brown and top springs back when touched lightly in center. Cool completely, about 2 hours. Frost with whipped topping; sprinkle with additional lime peel. Store loosely covered in refrigerator.

The original recipe did not call for quite so much lime zest, lime juice or tequila… but I am a Mormon that likes to live on the wild side, and I still had half a bottle of Jose Cuervo from the time I made these, and I would feel like such a fraud if I called this a Margarita Cake and didn't use tequila. Fun fact: the batter for this cake, was amazing. I literally stuck my head in the bowl to lick it! The pretzel crust was REALLY hard to eat with plastic spoons, so do some dishes and use real utensils. Also, I would probably add more tequila and less water.

Tequila Lime Chicken

adapted from The Pioneer Woman on FoodNetwork

INGREDIENTS
4 limes
Zest of two limes
1 cup tequila
1/4 cup olive oil
2 teaspoons kosher salt
5 cloves garlic
1 jalapeño, sliced
1/2 bunch chopped fresh cilantro
12 boneless, skinless chicken breasts
2 cups grated Monterey Jack

DIRECTIONS
Slice open the limes and squeeze the juice into a food processor or blender. Add the tequila, olive oil, salt, garlic, jalapenos, lime zest, and cilantro. Blend the mixture until totally combined. Add the chicken to a large plastic bag and pour in the lime-tequila mixture. Seal the bag and marinate in the fridge for several hours or overnight.

Remove the chicken from the bag and grill it over medium-high heat. Rotate the chicken 45-degrees on both sides to create nice grill marks, and continue grilling until the chicken is cooked through, 4 to 5 minutes per side.

Melt the Monterey Jack over the top of the chicken breasts.

I watched this episode of The Pioneer Woman, and knew that I had to make this chicken. How can you go wrong with tequila, limes, jalapeños, and cheese? Well friendos, you can't because this chicken is amazeballs. I'm like 99% sure that the tequila made all the difference. Because I have a crazy love affair with limes, I decided to add lime zest to the recipe, to give it just a little bit more intense lime flavor. I served it with black beans, spanish rice, and corn tortillas. My entire family loved it, which is a rare, so you should definitely add this to your recipe list!

Grilled Salsa

INGREDIENTS
7 tomatoes, cut into quarters
1 large white onion, cut into quarters
2 jalapeños, sliced in half, remove tops and bottom
4 cloves garlic
1 lime, juice
small handful of cilantro
salt, pepper, cumin to taste
2 Tbsp vegetable oil

DIRECTIONS
Toss tomatoes, onion, and jalapeños in a large bowl with vegetable oil.
Sprinkle with salt, peper, and cumin.
Heat grill to medium heat, and grill the tomatoes, onion, and jalapeños until you get a nice char on them.
Squeeze excess water out of the tomatoes, because no one likes runny salsa.
Purée each ingredient separately, until you get the consistency you like. I puréed my cilantro with some of the tomatoes, because I hate chopping herbs. Then I grated in the garlic raw, because I like that bite.
Mix all the ingredients in a large bowl, then salt and pepper to taste.

I've been thinking of making my own salsa for awhile now, store bought salsa just doesn't cut it.
I'm not a fan of raw salsas, or chunks, I'm also not a fan of that kind of weird can taste you get from canned tomatoes. So, I decided to use all fresh ingredients, and grill them, because you can't go wrong when you grill something. I used two good sized jalapeños, and left the seeds and ribs in, because I am pretty hard core, and love me some heat! But you lightweights out there can definitely cut down on the amount of jalapeño, and even remove the seeds and ribs to make it even more mild.

Blackberry-Lime Muffins

Adapted from two peas & their pod

INGREDIENTS:

1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour

1/2 teaspoon salt

2 teaspoons baking powder

1/2 cup sugar

Zest of 2 limes

1/4 cup canola oil

1 large egg

1/3 cup buttermilk

1 tablespoon fresh lime juice

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

1 cup fresh blackberries

DIRECTIONS:

Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Line a muffin pan with 9 paper liners or spray with cooking spray. Set aside. In a medium bowl, whisk together flour, salt, and baking powder.

In a small bowl, add the sugar and lime zest. Rub sugar and zest together until fragrant. Add sugar and zest to the flour mixture. Whisk ingredients together.

In a glass measuring cup or small bowl, mix canola oil, egg, buttermilk, lime juice, and vanilla extract together.

Pour the wet ingredients over the flour mixture. Slowly stir together, the batter will be thick. Don't over mix. Gently fold in the blackberries.

Fill 9 muffin cups with the batter.

Bake muffins for 17-20 minutes, or until muffins are golden brown and a toothpick comes out clean. Let muffins cool on a cooking rack.