TIO TITO’S SUBLIME LIME BAR COOKIES

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F., rack in the middle position.

½ cup finely-chopped coconut (measure after chopping—pack it down when you measure it)

1 cup cold salted butter (2 sticks, 8 ounces, ½ pound)

½ cup powdered (confectioners) sugar (no need to sift unless it’s got big lumps)

2 cups all-purpose flour (pack it down when you measure it)

4 beaten eggs (just whip them up with a fork)

2 cups white (granulated) sugar

cup lime juice (freshly squeezed is best)

cup vodka (I used Tito’s Handmade Vodka)

½ teaspoon salt

1 teaspoon baking powder

½ cup all-purpose flour (pack it down when you measure it)

Powdered (confectioners) sugar to sprinkle on top

Coconut Crust:

To get your half-cup of finely-chopped coconut, you will need to put approximately ¾ cup of shredded coconut in the bowl of a food processor. (The coconut will pack down more when it’s finely-chopped so you’ll need more of the stuff out of the package to get the half-cup you need for this recipe.) Chop the shredded coconut up finely with the steel blade. Pour it out into a bowl and measure out ½ cup, packing it down when you measure it. Return the half-cup of finely chopped coconut to the food processor. (You can also do this by spreading out the shredded coconut on a cutting board and chopping it finely by hand.)

Cut each stick of butter into eight pieces and arrange them in the bowl of the food processor on top of the chopped coconut. Sprinkle the powdered sugar and the flour on top of that. Zoop it all up with an on-and-off motion of the steel blade until it resembles coarse cornmeal.

Prepare a 9-inch by 13-inch rectangular cake pan by spraying it with Pam or another nonstick cooking spray. Alternatively, for even easier removal, line the cake pan with heavy-duty foil and spray that with Pam. (Then all you have to do is lift the bar cookies out when they’re cool, peel off the foil, and cut them up into pieces.)

Sprinkle the crust mixture into the prepared cake pan and spread it out with your fingers. Pat it down with a large spatula or with the palms of your impeccably clean hands.

Hannah’s 1^st Note: If your butter is a bit too soft, you may end up with a mass that balls up and clings to the food processor bowl. That’s okay. Just scoop it up and spread it out in the bottom of your prepared pan. (You can also do this in a bowl with a fork or a pie crust blender if you prefer.)

Hannah’s 2^nd Note: Don’t wash your food processor quite yet. You’ll need it to make the lime layer. (The same applies to your bowl and fork if you make the crust by hand.)

Bake your coconut crust at 350 degrees F. for 15 minutes. While your crust is baking, prepare the lime layer.