Gluten-Free Cashew Lime Bars
These Gluten-Free Cashew Lime Bars are made extra decadent with coconut cream and cashews. We love them as a perfect summer treat loaded with fresh citrus and healthy fats.
A SWEET (AND SOUR) TASTE OF SUMMER
One of the Green Child offices is in Florida, so when citrus is in season we’re constantly looking for great ways to use it. Especially when we end up with a lemon or lime surplus!
We also have kids who make Pinterest boards around lemon or lime desserts. When they find something that interests them, we look for a healthier version. If we can’t find one, we make our own.
These gluten-free cashew lime bars definitely fit the bill for a healthy dessert. They’re extremely rich, so we recommend cutting them into bite-sized squares.
HOW TO MAKE GLUTEN-FREE CRUST
For a gluten-free crust, we went with organic, sprouted rolled oats, coconut oil, grass-fed butter, and just a bit of organic maple syrup and brown sugar for sweetness. Be cautious about which brand of oats you use. Oats are often sprayed with glyphosate near the end of harvest to help speed up the ripening process and to dry them out. Some oats have even been found to be contaminated with gluten. These sprouted rolled oats from One Degree Organics are certified organic, gluten-free, nonGMO, and glyphosate-free.
If you’d like to make this gluten-free cashew lime bars recipe dairy-free, you can use more coconut oil instead of the butter, but we think the butter adds a better texture and flavor.
Add the oats into a food processor and process until they make a fine flour consistency. Then add the salt and brown sugar, and give it a quick pulse. Add in the syrup, coconut oil, and butter until combined.
You’re looking for a texture that holds together when you press it but isn’t too oily. If you find it too oily, add a bit more oats and give it another good process. If the crust isn’t holding together, add a tablespoon of water.
Press the crust into the bottom of the parchment paper (we use unbleached parchment paper) into a lined 8×8 glass dish or baking pan. Bake at 350 degrees for 15-18 minutes or just until golden brown.
Let cool for about 10 minutes before pouring the filling on top.
HOW TO MAKE THE CASHEW LIME TOPPING
If you have kids, you might be shielding this from oncoming spoons!
Pour boiling water over the cashews and let them soak for one hour. Next, you’ll process them in the food processor until creamy.
Add the coconut cream and cornstarch and process well. Then add the lime juice, zest, salt, and syrup and process again until well combined. From here, give it a taste to make sure there is a strong lime flavor. If not, increase the lime juice and zest.
Pour the cashew mixture over the crust.
Bake at 375 for 25-30 minutes or until the edges are dry and the top is set. Cool for 10 minutes and then place in the fridge to chill completely (at least 2 hours, overnight if possible.)
Cut into small squares and serve.
CREAMY GLUTEN-FREE CASHEW LIME BARS RECIPE
These decadent bars have easily made our list of favorite healthy-ish desserts. This recipe makes 24 small squares or 9 large (and very rich) squares.
Creamy Gluten-Free Cashew Lime Bars
Ingredients
- 2 cups sprouted rolled oats
- 1/4 teaspoon salt
- 1 tablespoon organic brown sugar
- 1 tablespoon organic maple syrup
- 3 tablespoons melted coconut oil
- 2 tablespoons melted butter you could use coconut oil but the butter gives a better texture and flavor
- 1 cup cashews soaked in boiling water for 1 hour drained
- 1 cup organic coconut cream the thick cream from an unshaken can of coconut milk
- 2 tablespoons cornstarch or arrowroot
- 1/2 cup freshly squeezed lime juice
- 2 tablespoons fresh organic lime zest
- Pinch of sea salt
- 1/4 cup organic maple syrup
Instructions
- Add the oats into a food processor and process until they are a fine flour consistency.
- Add the salt and brown sugar, give it a quick pulse.
- Pour the syrup, coconut oil, and butter in.
- Process until combined.
- Note: you want a texture that holds together when you press it but isn’t too oily. If you find it too oily, add a bit more oats and give it another good process. If the crust isn’t holding together, add a tablespoon of water.
- Press the crust into the bottom of the parchment paper lined 8×8 pan.
- Bake at 350 degrees for 15-18 minutes or just until golden brown.
- Let cool about 10 minutes before pouring the filling on top.
- Turn the oven up to 375 degrees.
- Place the cashews (that have been soaked in water) into the food processor and process until creamy.
- Add the coconut cream and cornstarch and process well.
- Add the lime juice, zest, salt, and syrup and process until well combined.
- From here, give it a taste to make sure there is a strong lime flavor. If not, increase the lime juice and zest.
- Pour the cashew mixture over the crust.
- Bake at 375 for 25-30 minutes or until the edges are dry and the top is set.
- Cool for 10 minutes and then place in the fridge to chill completely (at least 2 hours, overnight if possible.)
- Cut into small squares (these are very rich!) and serve.
