I don’t have a huge sweet tooth and rarely eat desserts, but I sure do like to make them! So recently when friends came over for dinner, and one of them being a huge key lime pie fan, I jumped at the opportunity to make a key lime pie.
The key to this pie is indeed, key limes. If you’ve ever done a side-by-side comparison between regular limes and key limes, you’ll immediately know there is a big difference – both in flavor and complexity. Key limes have a more citrusy aroma and a deeper, richer lime flavor which is perfectly suited to balance the sweetened condensed milk. If you use regular limes, just keep in mind that the pie will taste different and likely sweeter than if using key limes.
If you like pies, especially cream-style pies, a key lime pie is easy to make. You can buy a pre-made crust, which would make this even easier, or you can make your own home made graham cracker crust. So I hope you give this recipe a try!
Ingredients
Graham Cracker Crust
- 1½ cups graham cracker crumbs
- 3 tbsp light brown sugar
- 6 tbsp butter, melted
Key Lime Filling
- 1 cup key lime juice, about 25-30 limes
- 2 14oz sweetened condensed milk
- 2 egg yolk
- 1/2 cup sour cream
- lime zest
Whipped Cream Topping
- 1 cup heavy cream
- 2 tbsp sugar
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
How I Make It
Crust
- Pre-heat oven to 350F.
- Combine graham cracker and sugar, butter in a food processor. Add melted butter until you have a mixture that has the consistency of wet sand. Press the graham cracker mixture into a 9-inch pie pan. Use something round and flat (like a measuring cup) to press the crumbs down into a tight crust, and use the edges of the measuring cup to do the same all the way around the sides of the pie pan.
- Bake the crust for about 10-12 minutes, or until crumbs are lightly toasted. Cool completely before filling.
Pie Filling
- Whisk all the pie filling ingredients together.
- Preheat oven to 350F. Pour the pie filling into the (completely cooled) crust. Bake for about 15-20 minutes, or until filling is set. Let cool at room tempurature then chill for at least 3 hours before serving.
Whipped topping
- Combine the cream, sugar, vanilla and whisk until soft peaks form. Add more zest to the cream if deesired. Scoop or pipe the cream on the pie when ready to serve.
