Passion Fruit Bars with Gluten Free Shortbread Crust (Lilikoi Bars)
These easy passion fruit bars (lilikoi bars) consist of 9 simple ingredients! A buttery shortbread crust is topped with fresh passion fruit curd, then chilled and set. The resulting cookie bar has a perfect, tropical sweet-tart flavor with a yummy gluten-free crust.
Servings: 16 servings
Equipment
- 9x9 baking sheet
- parchment paper
- small saucepan
Ingredients
Vegan Shortbread Crust
- 3/4 cup vegan butter, melted
- 6 tbsp organic cane sugar
- 1 1/2 cups gluten free all-purpose flour
- 1/4 tsp salt kosher
Passionfruit Curd
- 1/2 cup passionfruit juice or purée
- 2 fresh passion fruits optional
- 1 cup organic cane sugar
- 1 1/4 cup full fat coconut milk
- 6 tbsp cornstarch
Instructions
- Preheat your oven to 350F and line a baking dish with parchment paper.
- In a mixing bowl, combine melted butter, sugar, flour and salt with a spatula until a dough forms.
- Transfer the dough into the lined baking dish and press down using your hands or a spatula to create an even crust. Bake for 18 minutes, or until edges are golden brown. Remove from the oven and let cool.
- In a saucepan over a medium heat, combine passionfruit juice, passionfruit pulp, sugar, coconut milk, cornstarch and vanilla. Whisk continuously while the mixture cooks, about 3-4 minutes. It will start to thicken up considerably (and create a hair gel-like texture), and you should be able to create stiff peaks when you remove the whisk from the mixture. Remove the mixture from the heat.
- Pour the passionfruit curd mixture over the shortbread crust and use a spatula to evenly spread the mixture out. It will set as you leave it so do make sure the top is smooth. Let the passionfruit bars cool to room temperature, then transfer to set in the fridge for at least 2 hours.
- When ready to serve, cut into 14 pieces, or squares the size of your choice. Store leftovers in an airtight container in the refrigerator for one week, or freeze and let thaw to enjoy for up to 3 weeks.
Notes
Expert Tips
- Fresh passionfruit can be difficult to source. Passion fruit is typically in season between late summer and early Fall (July-November). In California, it’s typically August-October. You can typically find it at your local grocery store during this time, but if not, I recommend checking Farmer’s markets, your local Mexican grocery store or Asian market, or other specialty markets.
- Use this gluten free shortbread crust recipe as a base for other cookie bars! If you’re looking for more, try this matcha lemon bar recipe or these salted caramel shortbread cookies.