What to do with Agar Agar? Make a Coconut Milk Dessert-Puckery Good Lime Bars (soy free, can be vegan)

Having fun with the camera art filter with the less than photogenic citrus dessert

Inspiration: First I purchased a package of kanten bars (or agar agar) at the Japanese market. These are very odd looking, plastic-y looking footlong, semi-translucent bars. I never thought of agar as something to eat. Agar makes me think of the science experiment I did in grade school. Dad helped me dissolve agar powder and pour it into petri dishes to serve as a growing medium for bacteria cultures. Walked around swabbing items around the house like door handles, areas of the bathroom and our pet dogs' noses. Contrary to my young intuition of what would be dirty and have more bacteria, the experiment taught me it's how much use influences the bacteria present! 

Anyway, agar agar is a good substitute for gelatin for vegetarian/vegan folk. It's made from seaweed. However, I did read a message board that suggested some teeny sea critters could be inadvertently taken in the process. Makes me think though, when we harvest veggies sometimes we lose bugs too. I don't think I know anyone that strict, but maybe you do and should be aware . Cook's Thesaurus has a lot of useful information about equivalencies in different forms of agar and other gel-ing agents. They also make notes about which types of fruits need to be cooked first so that the agar or gelatin can set. From this recipe and the other I would like to try, it's important to keep the agar warmed (but not boiling) on the stove to keep it from setting before you're ready.

Second, this month my fabulous co-worker shared a large basket of limes with us.  Dave hasn't had Corona's lately so, what to do with all 20 (hey I collected them over a week, just taking 5 at a time, don't judge!) of them other than hot water/lime juice in the morning and squeezing over stir-fried greens? 

A perfect opportunity came up to use both agar and limes as my friends were having their annual holiday potluck party and it didn't sound like many desserts were on the menu. Had to patch together a few recipes to make it work for what was on hand and to meet the gluten free desire! But the results were worth the chance taken. My changes and notes in strike out or after * This could be made vegan with a butter substitute.

Give yourself some time for this one, not an instant 1/2 hour dessert. Again apologies I don't have an estimate as I was simultaneously making the noodle salad I posted about last time and the coconut macaroons. If I had to gander maybe 1-1.5 hours for prep the filling and crust including baking. Then add 3 hours to chill. It yields a 9 x 11 pan of the dessert.   

For time saving, I am fairly certain I have seen pre-made gluten free pie crust sold at Whole Foods. I just don't have one near me (half an hour drive one way) so it was easier to make from scratch since I had everything in the pantry. Or perhaps you could just try making the filling as a custard and eating alone or serving with some store-bought gluten free crispy vanilla cookies or graham crackers (gluten free version also hard to find for me locally, only seen them at Whole Foods again.)

Don't be afraid of the coconut milk, with all that lime juice and sweetness, I could not even taste the coconut flavor. 

CRUST from Brittany Angel's Key Lime Bars-

1/2 Cup Butter at Room Temp (*note to self: try using coconut oil as a vegan option)
1/4 Cup Sugar (Refined or unrefined-a white sugar will work best- such as xylitol, or organic cane sugar)
160 Grams (1 Cup) Sweet Rice Flour   Gluten Free Flour Baking Blend (recipe below)
1 Tsp Vanilla Extract
1 TBS Cold Water

GLUTEN FREE FLOUR BLEND from Land O'Lakes
To make flour blend, combine 2 cups rice flour, 2/3 cup potato starch, 1/3 cup tapioca flour and 1 teaspoon xanthan gum. Use appropriate amount for recipe; store remainder in container with tight-fitting lid. Stir before using.

FILLING from Post Punk Kitchen's Latchkey Lime Pie
1 tablespoon finely grated lime zest
2/3 cups fresh lime juice (*# depends how juicy your limes are, mine were heavy and I used 7)
1 1/2 cups unsweetened almond *hemp milk, at room temperature (*imagine any type of non-dairy milk will work)
2 tablespoons agar flakes (or two teaspoons agar powder and skip the soaking step) (*or use 1 kanten stick with the soaking method)
1 16 oz can coconut milk at room temperature
2 tablespoons tapioca flour (or try it with corn starch or arowroot � but I like tapioca best) *I did try cornstarch and had lovely results
1/2 cup sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla


1. Start out by preheating the oven to 350F. In a small sauce pan, soak the agar in milk substitute for about 15 minutes for your filling.

2. Make your gluten free flour blend for the pie crust if needed.

3. Use a food processor or you can make do using 2 blunt edged dinner knives (or if you happen to have a pastry cutter tool), by combining the first two crust ingredients in a medium sized mixing bowl. Cut the butter into small pieces to blend with the sugar.

4. Add the rest of the crust ingredients and mix to incorporate evenly. You may need to use your hands if not using the food processor.  A dough should form.

5. Butter/grease your pan-I used a 9 x 11 glass baking pan and did not realize to do this as it was not in the original recipe instructions (maybe using the original sweet rice flour changes this, but my GF flour blend stuck stubbornly). Then press the dough into an even layer in the pan.

6. Bake for 30-45 minutes until the crust is lightly browned. Remove and let cool.

7. While your crust bakes,work on the filling. Grate the zest off and then juice the limes.

8. Mix together coconut milk, tapioca, sugar and vanilla in a medium mixing bowl. Make sure your coconut milk is at room temperature so that it doesn�t affect the agar when you add it to the pot.

9. After soaking agar, turn up the heat and bring to a boil. Watch it so that it doesn�t boil over. Immediately reduce heat and let simmer for about 5 minutes, until agar stick (kanten) is dissolved. If using powdered it will only take about 5 minutes to dissolve. (original directions say 15 minutes for agar flakes)

10. Very slowly whisk in the coconut mixture and then the lime juice and zest.  Whisk often for about 10 minutes, until mixture has thickened. If it isn�t thickening, turn the heat up just a bit, but you don�t want it to boil.

11.  Add the filling to the crust, then let cool on the counter for about half an hour. Refrigerate for at least 3 hours, until fully set.


How to you plan to unwind during the holidays?