There are delicious desserts and this key lime pie. This classic key lime pie recipe owes its name to its being prepared with limes from the Florida Keys. Its simplicity is inversely proportional to the sumptuousness of the experience it offers to the palate.
If you like citrus desserts, keep reading because today, I’ll show you how to bake the authentic key lime pie, a traditional American dessert, which will make you look good every time you serve it.
Note: As a member of the Amazon Associates Program and other affiliate programs, I receive compensation for products sold through affiliate links in this post at no cost to the buyer.
Why you’ll love this recipe and will want to make it again and again
First, key lime pie is a delicious dessert made in less than an hour. Its flavor is the perfect harmony between the citrus of the limes and the sweetness of the sweetened condensed milk.
Together with the egg yolks, the mixture produces a key lime filling whose super creamy consistency contrasts with the crunch of the not-very-sweet Graham cracker crust.
What are Key Limes?
Key limes are much smaller than Persian limes. They are also much juicier than regular limes and have significantly more seeds.
Their flavor is less acidic than that of ordinary limes, and to me, they are very similar to the Venezuelan limones criollos. They have thinner skin and, when squeezed, produce more juice than a regular lime.
Key Lime Pie: a Dessert Full of History
In 1965, a Florida state representative failed to pass a law to impose a fine on anyone who called key lime pie to the pies made with limes other than those grown in the southern Florida Keys.
Forty-one years later, in 2006, the Florida House of Representatives and Senate passed the laws that make key lime pie ‘the official pie of the state of Florida.’
But even though this is a Florida recipe, key lime pie is recognized as one of the classic desserts of American cuisine.
Since it was created when refrigeration was not available, and dairy cows were not present in the Keys, the key lime pie was (and still is) made with canned condensed milk (which first arrived in the Keys by boat and later on the train built by Henry M. Flager), which contributes to the creamy texture of the filling.
My long-standing love story with Key Lime Pie
In addition to the official one, I have my own story with himkey lime pie. I tried it for the first time at Joe’s Stone Crab, a restaurant in South Miami Beach. That was love at first bite.
Every time I came to Miami, I made a mandatory stop at Joe’s, not precisely for its crab legs, whose fame transcends the borders of the United States, but for its well-known key lime pie.
When I moved to Southern California, I knew it would not be as easy as when I was single and lived in Caracas or New York to go to Joe’s to ‘kill the craving,’ as we Venezuelans say. So, I decided to do it myself, using Joe’s recipe, which I’m sharing today.
Ingredients to make Key Lime Pie
To make this recipe, you will need:
- Graham crackers
- Butter
- Shall
- Eggs
- Limes (better if they are key limes)
- Sweetened condensed milk
How do I make the Best Key Lime Pie Recipe?
Making this pie is very easy, starting because the base that holds it is nothing more than a simple Graham cracker crust. The preparation process follows:
- Grind the crackers. In a food processor, finely grind the crackers until they resemble sand. If you don’t have a food processor, you can grind them in the vase of a blender or put them in a ziplock bag and, with the help of a rolling pin, crumble them as finely as possible.
- Melt butter. In a small pot, melt the butter and add it to the Graham cracker crumbs. Mix well.
- Bake the crust. Pour the cracker and butter mixture into a spring form pan, distribute evenly, and press to compact the bottom and sides of the crust (I do it with a small glass). Bake on a sheet pan in a preheated 375F oven for eight minutes. Remove from the oven and let cool completely on a wire rack.
- Make the key lime filling. In a large bowl or the Kitchen Aid new three-quarter bowl, beat the egg yolks with the lime zest. Add the condensed milk and continue beating. Add the fresh key lime juice and beat until a mixture with a creamy texture and pale yellow color is formed.
- Bake. Pour the mixture over the base, place it in a preheated oven at 350F, and bake for 20 minutes. Let the pie cool to room temperature on a cooling rack.
- Refrigerate. Chill in the refrigerator for at least two hours before serving. To speed up the process, freeze it for half an hour and then put it in the fridge for another half hour. Unmold and serve.
Can I make this recipe with regular limes?
Since I live in Miami, I make this recipe with key limes because they are available everywhere. But of course, you can make your cake with regular Persian limes (what we Venezuelans call green lemons.) Although they are slightly more tart than key limes, I promise you won’t notice the difference.
Other Substitutions & Variations
- I make a similar pie with lemons instead of limes, and it’s heavenly and delicious.
- You can bake your pie with a store-bought crust (but a homemade Graham cracker crust is tastier and easy to make).
- Although Joe’s key lime pie does not have meringue, you can use the egg whites and beat them to make an Italian meringue. Once the pie is baked, cover it with the meringue and bake for a few more minutes until the meringue begins to brown.
- You can whip heavy cream, decorate your pie using a pastry bag, and add a few lime slices.
- You can bake your pie on a cookie baking sheet, cut it into squares, and serve it as delicious key lime pie bars.
More desserts with lime and lemon
Please check my other lime and lemon desserts:
- No-bake Mojito cheesecake
- No-bake lime mousse
- Lemon meringue pie
- Lemon poundcake with pecans
- Glazed Meyer lemon Bundt cake
- Lemon blueberry Bundt cake
Easy Key Lime Pie Recipe
What follows is the best and easiest recipe for the classic key lime pie I can dream of. I hope you like it as much as we do.
Thanks for subscribing to my YouTube channel and visiting my Amazon shop.
Key Lime Pie
Ingredients
- 2 cups Graham crackers ground (fine crumbs)
- 8 tablespoons butter melted
- 1 pinch salt
- 3 egg yolks
- 1 1/2 tablespoons lime zest
- 1 can sweetened condensed milk
- 2/3 cup lime juice
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 375F.
- In a bowl, put the cracker crumbs and add the melted butter. Mix well.
- Pour the cracker and butter mixture into a springform pan (or pie dish), distribute evenly, and press with your fist or a small glass to compact the bottom and walls.
- Bake on a tray for eight minutes. Remove from the oven and let cool completely.
- Reduce oven temperature to 350F.
- Beat the egg yolks and lime zest in a large bowl with an electric mixer for 5 minutes at medium speed.
- Add the condensed milk and continue beating for about 2 more minutes.
- Add the lime juice and beat for 5 more minutes until a creamy texture mixture is formed.
- Pour the mixture over the crust and bake for 20 minutes.
- Remove from the oven and let cool to room temperature.
- Chill in the refrigerator for at least two hours before serving. To speed up the process, you can freeze it for half an hour and then put it in the fridge for another half an hour.
- Unmold and serve cold.
Video
Nutrition
Did you make this recipe?
Tag @enrilemoine on Instagram and hashtag it #byenrilemoine. Thank you!
- How to Make No-Knead Sourdough Bread: An Easy Artisan Recipe - April 2, 2025
- How to make Homemade Sourdough Starter from Scratch - February 15, 2025
- The Classic Florida Key Lime Pie Recipe + VIDEO - April 21, 2024
