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Key Lime Tequila Tart with Pretzel Crust

Key Lime Tequila Tart with Pretzel Crust. AKA, my new favorite drink.
Key Lime Tequila Tart with Pretzel Crust. AKA, my new favorite drink.

April was a crazy whirlwind, it came in like a lion and went out like a bear. Travel, a nasty sickness and big projects took over, and sadly the ol' blog was put on the back burner.

I just realized that Cinco de Mayo has snuck up on me and it's only two days away! There was no way I was going to let my favorite holiday slip by without baking up a celebratory dessert (and hitting a few shots of tequila in the process). While I still have a long laundry list of to-do's, today I was day-drinking while I worked because I needed a break – and a drink.

Since it's Cinco de Mayo season, I wanted to get in the spirit with one of my favorite spirits, tequila.  And since it's been a while, I figured I should probably get into the kitchen and bake up something crazy delicious.

One of my favorite and most popular recipes is my Margarita Cupcakes. They are a little involved, and this tart has similar flavors but is much faster to prepare. The recipe below combines a tangy key lime filling with a tequila chaser and a satisfyingly crunchy salted pretzel crust, topped with tequila-laced whipped cream.

I've adapted my Key Lime Tequila Tart with Pretzel Crust from the Sunrise Key Lime Tarts recipe in the Baked Elements cookbook by pastry wiz duo, Matt Lewis and Renato Poliafito. I tweaked the recipe to fit into a single, 14" x 5" loose bottom rectangular tart pan instead of 8 small individual tarts, mostly because it's less work this way and it's my first down day in longer than I can remember. Less work = more time for this:

Tequila shots while the key lime tart filling sets
Tequila shots while the filling sets, it takes 2 hours so.....

There is not a whole lot of story here. I'm not going to wrap it up with a "the more you know", Full House, sitcom style lesson and leave you with a small sip of advice. When life gets a little overwhelming, get in the kitchen, shoot some tequila, and bake your heart out. It's the sweetest form of therapy there is. If tequila isn't your thing, pop a Topo Chico and you're golden!

Also, don't drink too much tequila or you might over-bake your dessert because you are too busy dancing around and somehow didn't hear the timer beep and then you have to wait until you sober up so you can start over. I speak from experience here.

Ground pretzels for the crust of the key lime tequila tart
Start by grinding up the pretzels until you have a nice mix of fine powder and pea sized bits. This will give the tart base a nice texture and crunch.
Pouring brown butter and brown sugar into the ground pretzels for the key lime tequila tart
Pour the brown butter and brown sugar mixture into the ground pretzels.
When mixed together, the brown butter, brown sugar and crushed pretzels for the key lime tequila tart should look like wet sand
When mixed together, the brown butter, brown sugar and crushed pretzels should look like wet sand.
Evenly press the pretzel crust mixture into a loose bottom tart pan using the back of a spatula.
Evenly press the pretzel mixture into a loose bottom tart pan using the back of a spatula.
Key limes for the tequila tart
Key limes bring a complex and concentrated citrusy zest to the filling, bringing a perfect pucker to your sweet face.
Fresh squeezed key lime juice is the headliner of the fresh and citrusy flavor in this Key Lime Tequila Tart with Pretzel Crust.
Fresh squeezed key lime juice is the headliner of the fresh and citrusy flavor in this Key Lime Tequila Tart with Pretzel Crust.
Sliced and squeezed key limes
It takes a village of key limes to make this filling but it's worth all of the work, I promise.
Adding egg yolks for the key lime tequila tart with pretzel crust
Whisk the sweetened condensed milk and egg yolks together until smooth and creamy.
Adding tequila for the key lime tart
The tequila brings the fiesta to the filling!
Gently pour the whisked tart filling into the pretzel crust shell.
Once the baked pretzel crust has cooled, gently pour the whisked filling into the shell. Looks like somebody has been taking shots of tequila, I should have probably moved the shot glass out of the frame. Oops.
Becky Sue puts the key lime tequila tart into the oven
In she goes. The filling needs to bake just long enough to set, about 12 minutes.
Looking at the tequila whipped cream
While the tart sets, mix up some tequila whipped cream by whisking together the heavy cream, a splash of tequila and 2 tablespoons of sugar until soft peaks form.
This is what happens when I try to act sexy for one second, it's impossible and I just end up laughing like a hyena.
While tequila does bring out my wild side, this is what happens when I try to act sexy for one second. It's impossible and I just end up laughing like a hyena. The opposite of sexy.
Carefully pop the key lime tequila tart out of the pan by pushing the removable bottom up.
Carefully pop the tart out of the pan by pushing the removable bottom up.
Slice the key lime tequila tart with pretzel crust into wedges. I got 9 full wedges plus 2 small sacrificial end pieces.
Slice the tart into wedges. I got 9 full wedges plus 2 small sacrificial end pieces.
Right about here is where things took a turn into one shot too many territory. Notice the half opened drunk eyes. Yikes.
Right about here is where things took a turn into "one shot too many" territory. Notice the half opened drunk eyes. Yikes. A big thanks to the hubs and his steady hands for taking most of the pics in this post since the usual photographer wasn't so much steady as much as tipsy.
Key Lime Tequila Tart with Pretzel Crust.
This Key Lime Tequila Tart with Pretzel Crust looks right at home in this sweet little set up.
Key lime tart with tequila and a pretzel crust.
A fiesta of salty, sweet, tart and tanginess.
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Recipe

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Key Lime Tequila Tart with Pretzel Crust

Key Lime Tequila Tart with Pretzel Crust

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Description

This bright and zesty Key Lime Tequila Tart with Pretzel Crust combines a tangy key lime filling with a tequila chaser and a satisfyingly crunchy salted pretzel crust, topped with boozy tequila laced whipped cream.

Ingredients

Units

Pretzel Crust

  • unsalted butter - 1 ½ sticks (12 tablespoons)
  • light brown sugar (firmly packed - 2 tablespoons)
  • salted pretzel twists - 3 cups

Key Lime Tequila Filling

  • large egg yolks (at room temperature - 3)
  • sweetened condensed milk - 1 (14 ounce can)
  • freshly squeezed key lime juice - ⅓ cup (about 15-18 key limes)
  • good quality tequila - 3 tablespoons

Tequila Whipped Cream

  • heavy cream - 1 cup
  • granulated sugar - 2 tablepoons
  • tequila - 1 tablespoon
  • whole key limes for topping - 2-3
  • Maldon sea salt flakes (for topping - 1 tablespoon)

Instructions

Pretzel Crust

  1. Preheat the oven to 325° F.
  2. Lightly grease a 14" x 5" loose bottom rectangular tart pan with butter or vegetable oil. Place the tart pan on a baking sheet.
  3. Pulse the pretzels in a food processor until they are fairly finely ground, with some larger pea-sized chunks remaining. Pour into a large mixing bowl.
  4. In a small saucepan, melt the butter over low heat. Continue to heat, stirring frequently, until the butter starts to foam up and brown bits begin to form. Whisk in the brown sugar and stir until fully dissolved. Remove from heat and set aside.
  5. Pour the butter mixture over the ground pretzels and stir to combine. The mixture should look like wet sand. Transfer the crumb mixture into the prepared tart pan and use a spatula to spread the mixture evenly into the pan and up the sides slightly.
  6. Bake the tart on the the baking sheet for about 15 minutes, until it starts to turn a deep brown and looks set. Set aside and allow the crust to cool completely.

Key Lime Filling

  1. Turn the oven up to 350° F.
  2. In a medium sized bowl, whisk together the sweetened condensed milk and the egg yolks until smooth. Add the fresh squeezed key lime juice and the tequila and continue whisking until completely smooth.
  3. Gently pour the filling mixture into the cooled pretzel crust shell and smooth out the top with the back of a spatula. Bake for 12-14 minutes until the filling is set and doesn't jiggle when you shake it.
  4. Place on a cooling rack and allow tart to cool completely. Once cooled, transfer to the refrigerator and allow the filling to set for at least 2 hours.

Tequila Whipped Cream

  1. Chill the metal bowl and whisk of a stand mixer in the freezer for at least 10 minutes.
  2. Pour the heavy cream and tequila into the chilled bowl and whisk on a medium-high speed for about 1 minute.
  3. Add the sugar and beat for a couple more minutes until soft peaks form.
  4. Chill in the refrigerator until you're ready to serve the tart.

Serve

  1. Gently push up on the tart loose bottom of the tart pan to release from the sides.
  2. Carefully cut the tart into wedges (about 9 with sacrificial half slices on each end).
  3. Top each slice with whipped cream, lime zest, a thinly sliced lime pinwheel and an optional sprinkle of flake salt (if you're the "with salt" type).
  4. Serve with a shot of tequila, obviously.
  • Prep Time: 30 minutes
  • Cook Time: 30 minutes

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  1. kiz says

    I just had a beta version of this festive tart, appropriately on Cinco de Mayo, and wow. Just W-O-W. Thank you for sharing your amazing talent and spoiling us with your beyond delicious treats!!

    Reply

    • beckysue says

      Hi Kiz! Comments like this make my day, I am happy to share with y'all. So glad you liked them. Feliz Cinco de Mayo!

      Reply

  2. JoniH says

    Hi! Your hubby shared some of these with us at work and they were INCREDIBLE!!! Thank you for sharing!

    Reply

    • beckysue says

      Hi Joni! So glad you enjoyed them. Sometimes it's hard to convince him to actually take things into work and not hoard them all for himself. 😉

      Reply