Shower Perfect

It seems that people everywhere are having babies, taking care of their children, adopting children, etc.  Well, I guess that would be an obvious statement! But really, there are many bloggers out there who are expecting, some quite soon!  :-)  Last year, the pediatric department had a baby boom of our own.  We like any excuse to have a party, so there were quite a few baby showers!  When I got the Southern Living Cookie cookbook, there were a couple of recipes that looked perfect for a shower. 

In May, I had the chance to make one of those when we had a shower for Whitney (who has now given birth to Mr. Hudson). These turned out great!  They were light and airy with just the perfect citrus flavor.  I love these kind of desserts simply because of the crust; unfortunately, I overbaked this one just a bit.  If given more time, I could have dressed these up a bit, but May was a busy month.  These would be perfect at any shower, but especially if the gender of the baby is unknown or secret...green is such a great neutral color!  Check this one out!

Key Lime Bars with Macadamia Crust from Southern Living Incredible Cookies
2 cups flour
1/2 cup brown sugar
2/3 cup chopped macadamia nuts
7 tablespoons butter, cut
1/2 teaspoon salt
3/4 cup sugar
1/2 cup Key lime juice
1 envelope unflavored gelatin
2 tablespoons Key lime juice
1 (14oz) can sweetened condensed milk
food coloring - optional, I did use it
2 1/2 cups whipping cream, whipped (pretty sure I used only 2 cups

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.  Line 13X9 pan with aluminum foil.  Blend flour, brown sugar, nuts, butter, and salt in a food processor until nuts are ground.  Press into prepared pan.  Bake for 18 minutes or until just golden.  Cool.

Place sugar and 1/2 cup lime juice in a sauce pan until sugar dissolves.  Remove and set aside.  Sprinkle gelatin over the 2 T lime juice and let sit for 3-5 minutes.  Combine these two and stir until gelatin dissolves.  Whisk in sweetened condensed milk.  If using food coloring add 1 drop green and 3 drops yellow (I think I ended up adding an extra green drop!).  Place the bowl containing this mixture into a large bowl filled with ice and whisk for 10 minutes or until beginning to set.

Whip cream.  Then fold lime mixture into whipped cream.  Pour this over the baked, cooled crust and chill in refrigerator for 8 hours.  When ready to serve, lift carefully out of pan and cut into desired shape.  Enjoy!