These Coconut Lemon Lime Squares are an upgraded lemon bar with a coconut cake crust and a lemon-lime filling. You might never make regular lemon bars again! A white cake mix simplifies the crust preparation. We also have a fantastic recipe for a traditional Lemon Bar with homemade crust.
Ingredients
- For the crust:
1-1/2 cups sweetened coconut flakes
1 (16.5-ounce or 460g) box white cake mix. See note below if you can’t find exactly this size *
1/2 cup unsalted butter, melted
- For the filling:
2 cups granulated sugar
1/2 cup all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking powder
4 large eggs
1 tablespoon freshly grated lime peel
1/3 cup fresh lime juice (see note **)
1/3 cup fresh lemon juice* (see note **)
- For the garnish:
powdered sugar or 1 cup sweetened coconut flakes
Directions
- Pre-heat oven to 350 F. Line a 9×13″ baking pan with foil, letting ends extend above pan. Spray lightly with cooking spray.
- Make the crust:
- To make the crust, spread coconut on a baking sheet. Bake 8 minutes, stirring once, until lightly toasted. Let cool. In a food processor, pulse together cake mix and melted butter until evenly moistened and crumbs form. Stir in coconut. Press mixture evenly into the bottom of the foil-lined baking pan. Bake 10-12 minutes until crust just begins to lightly brown at edges.
- Make the filling:
- To make the filling, whisk sugar, flour and baking powder in a large bowl to combine. Whisk in eggs, lime peel and juices until well blended. Pour over hot crust. Garnish with either powdered sugar or more coconut flakes. Bake 25 minutes or until topping is golden brown and set. Cool completely in pan on a wire rack. Holding foil ends, lift the whole thing out of the baking plan and place on a cutting board. Allow to cool thoroughly.
Notes
- * Since this recipe was posted, cake mix boxes have shrunk from 16.5 ounces, to, as of this writing, 15.25 ounces. Many “cake mix” recipes don’t work anymore because a box of cake mix is not what it used to be. My advice: use only recipes that specify EXACTLY what size box this was developed for, and avoid any recipes that just call for “1 box of cake mix” without specifying which size. The Cake Decorist has a great in-depth article on this, but in short:
— to turn a 15.25 oz cake mix into an 16.5 oz mix, add in 2 tablespoons of all-purpose flour - ** You can use all lemon juice, all lime juice, or all key lime juice!
