Raw Coconut-Lime Tarts

If you know me, you know I love key-lime anything and everything! Borderline obsessed. I used to indulge in key-lime pie, cheesecake, ice-cream, whatever I could get my hands on. I didn't think about what it was made from, how would make me feel, nothing! One winter, my sister and I decided we were going to MAKE a key-lime cheesecake. Well, it took 3 packages of cream cheese, 2 cups of white sugar, a cookie crust... I remember we looked at each other with stunned faces and i knew we were both thinking.. "Whoa, That can't be healthy". We indulged in it anyway and it was delicious. Since starting my health journey, every time I see a key-lime tart.. or cheesecake.. it takes me back to that moment. It was just too much

I was flipping through Gwyneth Paltrow's book "It's All Easy" when I came across her recipe for key-lime tarts. The ingredients were simple and there was no baking involved. I was instantly inspired to make my own version.

While I love the taste of traditional buttery/sugary tarts, these are made with whole natural ingredients and are just as great! They are packed with healthy fats like avocado, full-fat coconut milk, and coconut oil. Healthy fats are essential to brain health. Did you know that our brain tissue is made of nearly 60% fat? Healthy fats like coconut oil also play a role in boosting our immune systems and keep the largest organ of our body healthy. Our skin.

In the original recipe, they use brown rice syrup as a sweetener for the crust. I personally love the caramel taste of medjool dates so thats the route I decided to take. If you don't have medjool dates, you could substitute 2 extra tablespoons of maple syrup or honey. I used my mini food processor to make the crust but you could use a vitamix as well. I added a heaping tablespoon to 8 regular sized muffin tins and lightly packed down, making the bottom layer a little thicker as this crust is a little more fragile than the regular type. I put the muffin tin in the freezer so the crust would set while I made the filling.



For the filling, I added a avocado to the coconut. This is optional but I loved the light lime green colour it gave to the tarts.  Make sure to whisk the avocado as smooth as possible before adding the solid coconut milk and honey. It will make it easier to incorporate if there are no lumps. I do not have a stand mixer with me here in Ottawa so I whisked everything by hand. Feel free to use your Kitchen Aid whisk attachment if you have one!