Strawberry Margarita Squares

Let me tell you this is one refreshing summer dessert. Fresh, sweet strawberries and whipping cream over a layer of smooth cream cheese with just a hint of tart lime flavor atop a graham cracker crust.

Sound like your kind of dessert? Honestly I didn’t think my mom would touch this just because one of the ingredients is margarita mix. But she LOVED it! She even took a few large pieces home with her for later. Now that is what I call a winner. If my picky mom who doesn’t like anything “different” likes it then I know I did a good job.

This is a Pampered Chef recipe that I tweaked just a little bit. I couldn’t find any frozen margarita mix so used some frozen pink lemonade and bottled margarita mix which I ended up really, really liking better.

I suggest you run, not walk, and get all the ingredients for this recipe and try it today. You won’t regret it

Strawberry Margarita Squares

Crust:
1 1/2 cups graham cracker crumbs
1/2 cup butter or margarine, melted
1/4 cup sugar

Filling:
2 (8 oz) pkgs cream cheese, softened
**1/2 cup thawed, frozen margarita mix concentrate (non-alcoholic)
2 (8 oz) containers frozen whipped topping, thawed, divided
1 (3 oz) pkg strawberry gelatin
1/2 cup boiling water
1 (10 oz) pkg frozen sliced strawberries in syrup, DO NOT THAW
Fresh strawberry slices (optional)
Lime slices (optional)

1. Preheat oven to 350F. For crust, finely crush graham crackers in resealable plastic bag with a rolling pin Melt butter in glass bowl on HIGH 30 seconds or until melted. Add crushed graham crackers and sugar to small bowl, mix well with melted butter. Press mixture onto bottom of 9 x 13 inch baking dish. Bake 10 minutes. Cool completely.

2. For filling, beat cream cheese and margarita mix (or the half frozen lemonade and half margarita mix) in large bowl until well blended. Fold in 2 cups of the whipped topping. Using an offset spatula carefully spread cream cheese mixture evenly over crust. Refrigerate while preparing strawberry layer.

3. Place gelatin in large glass bowl. Stir in boiling water; stir until completely dissolved. Add frozen strawberries and stir until strawberries separate and gelatin is thickened (a spoon drawn through mixture will leave an impression). Whisk in 3 cups of the whipped topping. Pour over cream cheese layer, spreading to edges. Refrigerate 3 hours to set.

4. Cut dessert into 15 squares. Garnish each serving with remaining whipped topping. Top with fresh strawberry and lime slices, if desired.

**If you can’t find the frozen concentrate, use half frozen pink lemonade and half bottled margarita mix.