Tequila Lime Cheesecake Bars

Name: Tequila Lime Cheesecake Bars
Prep time: 15 min
Cook time: 25 min
Total time: 40 min
Yield: 12
Ingredients: 1/4 cup butter (melted); 1 1/4 cup graham cracker crumbs; 16- oz cream cheese (2 8-oz packages; *at room temperature); 1/2 cup granulated sugar; 2 tablespoons lime zest (approximately 2 limes); 4 tablespoons lime juice (approximately 2 limes); 2-4 tablespoons tequila; 2 tablespoons cointreau; 2 tablespoons heavy cream; 2 eggs (at room temperature)

May 2, 2014 43 Comments

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Tequila lime cheesecake bars are creamy and citrussy, with a hint of tequila. Perfect for a party or for Cinco de Mayo!

Happy Friday!

I actually had a healthy muffin recipe all set to post today, but changed my mind. Friday is not a day for healthy muffins. Friday is a day for booze-laden goodies.

I fought the urge to name these tequila lime cheesecake bars ‘margarita’ cheesecake squares. I just really thought you should know…there’s tequila in these guys, not margarita mix concentrate. Tequila…a lot of it.

Actually you can tailor it to your tequila needs. These cheesecake bars can be “Yum” or they can be “Woohoo!!!”. Totally your decision.

Reasons you’ll ♡ these tequila lime cheesecake bars

they are easy to make
they are boozy and fun for a party
they would be perfect for Cinco de Mayo!

I was going to make some sort of Nutella-raspberry swirled squares…but then it hit me. Cinco de Mayo! Tequila! Lime! Yeehaaaa!

{This is about as wild as I get these days…tequila in my cheesecake.}

I was a little worried that tequila in the cheesecake would result in problems with the cheesecake setting. Not so. My last batch, I added a whole 1/4 cup of tequila, plus 2 tablespoons of Cointreau. No problemos setting whatsoever!

I am happy to announce I have finally found my favorite cheesecake bar recipe. I have tried several. Some were too jiggly. Some tasted too ‘eggy’. This one seems to have the right balance. I’m like the Goldilocks of cheesecake bars 😉

This tequila lime cheesecake bars recipe is surprisingly simple and easy. You do need to remember to bring your cream cheese to room temperature {microwaving it will not replace this step, I found out the hard way and ended up with thousands of tiny cream cheese lumps…blech…not appetizing}. You also need to wait for it to set…around 3 hours in the refrigerator. I will admit to sneaking a little sliver before my 3 hours were up! But it is best after it has completely chilled.

I tried this tequila lime cheesecake bars recipe first using 3 tbsp of silver tequila, and found that I couldn’t taste the tequila much…maybe a subtle aftertaste. My second batch, I used 1/4 cup of gold tequila and 2 tbsp Cointreau. I preferred this batch. The tequila flavor is still somewhat subtle though.

Kind of like those super dangerous margaritas you can down on the patio before your head spins and you realize how much tequila you just drank 😉

If you want a boozier cheesecake bar, I’d go with 1/4 cup tequila + 2 tbsp Cointreau. If you want a less boozy cheesecake bar, I’d go with 3 tbsp tequila.

Either way you go, you will have a sweet, tangy, creamy, limey and tequila-ey delicious cheesecake bar.

Have a great week-end!

Tips & equipment for tequila lime cheesecake bars

for this recipe, you’ll need a 9 inch baking pan and an electric hand mixer, and here’s my favorite microplane for zesting the limes
be absolutely sure your cream cheese is at room temperature for silky smooth bars
looking for more cheesecake recipes? Check out these Mini Pumpkin Greek Yogurt Cheesecakes, these Leftover Cranberry Sauce Cheesecakes and these Key Lime Greek Yogurt Cheesecakes

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4 from 3 votes