These no bake key lime pie bars are the ultimate healthy treat! Made with a creamy cashew filling, a crunchy crust and bursting with tons of lime flavor!
When it's hot as all get out and you're craving something sweet, the last thing you want to do is turn on your oven. Sure you could pick up some popsicles from the store or make some banana ice cream, but wouldn't it be nice to just have a freezer stocked with yummy treats?
That's one of the reasons I love no bake desserts! You can keep a stockpile in your freezer all year long and just pull out a delicious bite of goodness whenever it strikes your fancy.
Lately, I've been obsessing over these no bake key lime pie bars! They've got the texture of a cheesecake, but also kind of like ice cream and they taste incredible.
How to make a No Bake Crust
The first order of business with these key lime pie bars is the base. Traditional cheesecake recipes have a graham cracker crust, but I wanted to a) keep things gluten-free and b) keep them unprocessed.
So rather than blending up some gluten-free graham crackers with vegan butter, we're going to go the healthy route. In this no bake crust we're using…
- oats: they have a mild flavor and help us use less nuts
- pecans: have that semi-sweet nuttiness that is awesome in recipes like this
- dates: add sweetness, but also make the crust stick together
- coconut oil: also helps hold everything together, especially when frozen
And all you need to make the crust is a food processor! Just add everything in, blend it up until it's a sandy, somewhat sticky texture, transfer it into your pan, press it down firmly to form the base and move on to the filling!
Ingredients for No Bake Vegan Cheesecake Filling
The secret ingredient to almost any no bake vegan cheesecake chilling is raw cashews. And the key here is that those cashews need to be soaked.
I don't know what it is about raw cashews, but when you soak them and let them soften up they have the most insanely smooth and creamy texture. Just like thick full-fat cream or cream cheese would. So basically they're perfect for a vegan cheesecake filling and are the best way to make these no key lime pie bars.
Here are the other ingredients we're using in the vegan cheesecake filling:
- raw cashews: that cream factor!
- limes: we're using both the juice and zest and you could use regular or key limes if you can find them
- maple syrup: for sweetness
- coconut oil: to help it hold its shape when frozen
- vanilla extract: for just a hint of added flavor
And again, just like the crust, all we're doing is blending all these ingredients (this time in a blender to get the silky smooth texture), pouring it over the crust and popping it into the freezer.
Healthy No Bake Key Lime Pie Bars
And that's how easy it is to make these no bake key lime pie bars. The hardest part of the whole recipe is waiting for them to firm up in the freezer! Otherwise, it's just a little blending and bam!
Here's a quick tip to make these even more enjoyable: when you take them out of the freezer, give them a few minutes to soften. It makes them easier to bite into and really gives you that soft, cheesecake-y texture.
Oh and lastly, you definitely want to keep these in the freezer. They tend to get a little “melty” if they're in the fridge. So I just like to keep a stash on hand for a quick and easy treat whenever I don't feel like baking. Hope you love them too!
More No-Bake Vegan Treats:
- No-Bake Chocolate Quinoa Cookies
- Vegan Snickers Banana Bites
- No-Bake Frozen Berry Tarts
- Raw & Vegan Carrot Cake Bites
- Superfood Chocolate Quinoa Bars
- Healthy Cake Batter Energy Bites
- Vegan Rice Crispy Treats
- Mini No-Bake Raspberry Cheesecake
No Bake Key Lime Pie Bars
Ingredients
for the crust:
- ¾ cup oats
- ½ cup pecans
- 1 cup dates (about 10)
- 1 tablespoon coconut oil
for the filling:
- 1 ½ cups raw cashews , soaked for 2+ hours
- Juice of 3 limes (¼ cup + 2 tablespoons)
- Zest of 3 limes
- 2 tbsp maple syrup
- 1 tbsp coconut oil
- 1 tsp vanilla
Instructions
- Add the oats, pecans, dates and coconut oil into a food processor. Process until a sandy, sticky texture forms. Transfer this into a parchment-lined 8x8 baking pan. Press firmly (like really hard) into the bottom to create a crust.
- Add the soaked cashews (they need to be soaked!), lime juice and zest, syrup, coconut oil and vanilla into a blender. Blend on high until smooth and creamy.
- Pour the filling over the crust and freeze for at least 4 - 6 hours, preferably overnight.
- When ready to serve, allow to sit at room temperature for 5 minutes, then slice. Store in the freezer and enjoy as a refreshing cold treat on a hot day!
Video
Nutrition
Can I replace the limes with lemons and turn these into lemon bars?
I think so, yes!
What can I use instead of processed oil? I don’t use oil. Thanks.
Carolyn
I think you could swap in full-fat coconut milk 🙂
These sound dreamy, but I avoid added oils. Can you suggest an alternative to the coconut oil in both the crust and topping?
Maybe coconut butter!
I am so excited to taste these. I just put a batch in the freezer. Thank you for your delicious recipes!
I hope you love them!
What are you soaking the cashews in? Just water for 2 hours?
Can EVOO replace the coconut oil?
Yep just soaking them in water! You could try EVOO, but I don’t think it would work as well since the texture is different when chilled.
Soak cashews in boiling water. That does a better job of it & also shortens the time.
Thanks for the tip!!
what can I substitute the maple syrup for?
honey should work!
I can’t wait to try these! I am allergic to pecans. Could I maybe use almonds or cashews instead for the crust?
Absolutely! I think whatever nut works for you, would be totally fine 🙂
Thank you for the question and answer. I definitely want to make these and am going to try swapping out the cashews for macadamia nuts. Hopefully the creamy factor will still be there!
Yes! I’m excited to hear how it goes!
Great recipe. I made it. My husband and I love them. 😊 Thank you Simple Quinoa! We enjoy your recipes ❤
So glad you both enjoyed them!! Thanks, Gabriela!
I made these. But the cashews didn’t break down into a nice liquid type creamy. It was creamy. But thicker then the video. Any advice? I tasted the mix and it taste awesome. Just not as liquidity as your video.
What type of machine did you use? I think that would be the problem and/or maybe you just needed a splash more of liquid.
These are AMAZING bars!!!! I loved them so much that I decided to make strawberry bars too. I pureed some strawberries and added them instead of the lime juice and zest. Turned out fantastic!!!
Amazing idea!!! I love love love that!
Great idea. I’m going to try that next.
I have never used coconut oil before and I’ve learned there are two types, refined and unrefined. What kind do you suggest for this recipe and why?
Always unrefined! The refined ones don’t solidify the same way and have no flavor. Plus, my motto with all food, the more unrefined the better 🙂
Please share time table for soaking cashews.
Thank you.
I typically let them soak in hot water for about 30 minutes.
These were easy to make and tare del7cious!!! All natural ingredients make it a great dessert 😋
YES! These bars are amazing. I cut them into small bite size pieces and pull one out of the freezer when I have a sweet craving. Can’t think of one way to improve them!
These bars are delicious! Great recipe:). Thank you 😊
Woohoo!
Can you recommend substitutions for the nuts?
You could try a DF cream cheese maybe! I haven’t actually tried these without the cashews.
Try soaked sunflower seeds instead. You may have to add a little more liquid.
Great idea!!
It’s feeling hot in Los Angeles. I decided to make these delicious treats, unfortunately the cashews didn’t blend well, but I soaked them for roughly 4-5 hours. I’d recommend to all to soak overnight then make this recipe. Learned my lesson. Don’t worry all I didn’t waste it and I just added some plant milk which hopefully didn’t ruin it to get the smooth creamy texture because zesting limes is a lot of work. Can’t wait to officially taste one of these once they are frozen. Thank you for the marvelous recipe.
Ugh, I’m sorry about the cashews! Great call adding the plant milk. Let me know how they turned out!!
Dates are hard to come by where I live. Is there another option to replace substitute the dates with?
You could try dried figs!
This was awesome, My husband loved it so much he suggested I double the filling. Would that be too much? Maybe 1-1/2 times the filling. My pie filling was not as high as what is pictured? Why not use the food process or to mix the cashew filling instead of of a blender?
Problem solved. Went to Print option and found out how ton increase the recipe.