Monday, April 26, 2010

Key Lime Pie Recipe


We dined en familia, with the husband's family, at the home of my brother and sister in law on Saturday night and I made the dessert. A lovely Key Lime Pie, to be exact.

Key Lime Pie might just be my favorite kind of pie to make. Its easy, incredibly delicious, and the bright, tart flavor seems just right for early spring.

One of the nicest things about making this pie, is that the filling only requires four ingredients: egg yolks, lime zest, sweetened condensed milk and key lime juice. Of course, its the lime juice that really counts. Key limes are smaller and more tart than regular (Persian) limes and they are technically in season from May to September. If you are unable to find key limes in your market, you can always default to bottled key lime juice, as I've done here.

Key lime juice is generally available in specialty markets and in some grocery stores. In this case, I used Nellie & Joe's, which I found at Zabar's.

Key Lime Pie:
  • 3 large egg yolks
  • zest from 2 large limes, finely grated (you can use regular limes)
  • one 14 ounce can of sweetened condensed milk
  • 2/3 cup key lime juice
  • 9 inch graham cracker crust
Pre-heat your oven to 350 degrees F.

1. Pour the egg yolks and lime zest into the bowl of your standing electric mixer and, with the wire whisk attachment, beat them on high speed until the yolks are pale in color and very fluffy, about 5 full minutes, scraping down the sides of the bowl as necessary.

2. With the mixer still running, add the entire can of sweetened condensed milk in a slow steady stream and continue beating, on high, for 3 to 4 minutes until the mixture becomes thick and creamy, scraping down the sides of the bowl as necessary.

3. Lower the mixer speed to medium-low and add the key lime juice in a slow steady stream and mix until its just incorporated. Do not over mix.

4. Using a rubber spatula to get every drop, pour the mixture into the graham cracker crust, place the filled pie on a cookie sheet, and bake in the middle of a pre-heated 350 degree F oven for 15 to 20 minutes, until the custard has set. (I baked mine for 20 minutes.) Remove from the oven and cool on a wire rack, then refrigerate. Keep pie refrigerated until serving, so it will stay firm. Serve each slice with a dollop of whipped cream.

As written this recipe will yield one amazing pie!

And, just so we're clear, yes, that is a store bought graham cracker crust. So sue me, I don't enjoy making crusts. If you enjoy making crusts, by all means, opt for home made!

There are dozens and dozens of recipes for key lime pie in the world, each with the same combination of ingredients, though the amount of lime juice tends to vary. I like a tart pie, so I opt for more key lime juice. If you're unable to find either key limes or the bottled juice, you can substitute regular lime juice, though the flavor of the finished pie will be less tart.

I like to make the pie they day before I want to serve it, so the flavors will have a chance to develop as the pie rests in the fridge.

So, what's your favorite kind of pie to make? Hungry Diva wants to know.

Bon appetite!

24 comments:

Christo Gonzales said...

I like making cheesecakes - I know you asked for pie but cheesecake really isnt a "cake" in my book.

Fresh Local and Best said...

Key lime pie is my husband's favorite all time dessert! This looks like a fabulous treat for la famiglia! Sorry I've been incognito Diva, been swamped at work! Miss you!

Mo Diva said...

MMMM I love the color of this too! I like making apple pie but the peelin and coring of the apples drives me insane!

this looks simple enough! yum!

Unknown said...

That looks really good....I love key lime pie

words...words...words... said...

I love key lime pie! I really love lemon too, and I wish more lemon pies had the tartness key lime pie does. So many lemon pies are too sweet and not very tart and refreshing.

The Diva on a Diet said...

doggybloggy - I agree, cheesecake really isn't a cake, and, actually, this pie has a rather cheesecake like texture. Yum!

FLB - It's my brother in law's all time favorite dessert too! No worries, I've been crazy too lately. I keep thinking things will calm down ... yet they never do! LOL

Mo Diva - I love apple pie too, but it is kind of time consuming. I like it best when Mama Diva makes it! ;)

Thanks, Sandi! :)

words words words - I couldn't agree more about the overly sweet lemon pies. I like a really tart lemon meringue pie ... I should probably work on developing a recipe for that. Do you have a good one?

Unknown said...

Fabulous, and i love it that its just made with simple ingredients. THis pie looks awesome daaaaaahling!
*kisses* HH

Holly said...

I have got to try key lime pie sometime soon!! This sounds so good!

Mary Bergfeld said...

I - like most of America - love Key Lime Pie. Yours looks especially good. I hope you are having a wonderful day. Blessings...Mary

Sook said...

Oh I love key lime pie! Delicious!

The Diva on a Diet said...

HH - thank you! Dieting and all is fine, but it IS nice to do a dessert now and then. I knew you'd approve! ;)

Holly - this recipe is nice and simple so it would be a good one for your first try. If you like citrus, you'll love this pie!

Mary - aw, thanks, I hope you are having a wonderful day too! So far, mines pretty great ... but it would be even better if I had made a second pie for us to enjoy this week! LOL

Sook -thank you too! :)

pixelgal said...

The pie looks great. I demand one the next time you're home! But seriously now, I've never made key lime pie but it looks easy enough and we do love it so maybe I'll try it. The pie I make the best is apple but for some reason I rarely bake any more. Think it's the fear of fat factor. I also used to enjoy making cheesecake.

Anonymous said...

Yum, this key lime pie sounds wonderful! I think my favorite pie to make is a pecan pie :)

n said...

yummm!! vat a great looking key lime pie!! love the texturee as welll!! shud giiv a try some time sooner!!
cheers!!

nora@ffr said...

yummm!! vat a great looking key lime pie!! love the texturee as welll!! shud giiv a try some time sooner!!
cheers!!

Deb in Hawaii said...

Key Lime Pie is one of my favorites--it looks delicious!

Wilma said...

Auntie,
Brigitte likes "pug pies"(kindalike cowpies ew) I like meat pies of course. Sluggo likes kissy pies and Mom makes a pretty good sweet potato pie. She said that she loves key lime pie, and never realised how easy it is to make. Looks like someones getting pie for desert.

Molly said...

I never make my own crusts either, it's a waste of time.

My mouth is pukering and watering after reading this. My in laws spend winters in Islamorada, in the Keyes, so your pie is making me fantasize about sitting outside by the water with a slice, and a ton of whipped cream.

The Duo Dishes said...

A good one. Very cool and creamy for the summer. Apple pie and sweet potato pie top the list of faves.

SSI said...

And to think I was happy with the Key Lime yogurt I had been eating.....now all I can think about is this pie.

stephchows said...

mmmmmmm perfect for a hot summer day!

Julie said...

I don't blame ya at all for the store bought crust..makes life easier! The pie looks great. One of my favorites is a chilled blueberry, I can just about consume the whole thing in a day, which is kinda sad now that I think about it.

Delicious Dishings said...

Ok, so I tried to make a key lime pie once when I was in high school, and it curdled. I haven't tried again since then! I probably should get over my fear and just go for it! As far as my favorite kind of pie to make... I honestly don't love making pies; I'd rather make crisps, but I tend to make apple pie the most because that's what everyone around me seems to like eating best.

gfe--gluten free easily said...

Key Lime pies always make me think of Key West, one of my favorite, fun places. Yum, yum, yum on this one. I'd make this flourless by adding a 1/4 cup of gf flour. (One wouldn't even notice the flour in any way, but then the pie could "stand" on its own.) Or, maybe a pecan and coconut oil crust would be nice, too. I'm not eating dairy or sugar right now, but I'm definitely remembering this one for the future. Thanks as always, Diva!

Shirley