This key lime pie is so creamy, smooth, and refreshing. It has a buttery graham cracker and a tangy and sweet lime custard filling, and is all topped with whipped cream. It’s so delicious, you won’t be able to stop at one bite!
A couple weeks ago I did some poll questions on our instagram page for everyone’s favorite flavor of pie and the top two results were lemon meringue pie and key lime pie. Since we already have a lemon meringue pie on here. Key lime just barely won out and since I didn’t have a key lime pie recipe on here I knew I needed to share one with you!
This key lime pie is very similar to my lemon cream pie, but of course it’s made with key limes instead of lemons. It uses both key lime juice and key lime zest.
What are Key Limes?
Key limes are limes that started in the Florida keys. However today most key limes you’ll get from the grocery store are now from Mexico.
Key limes are smaller, and a bit more tart and bitter than Persian limes (which are the limes we are used to seeing in the grocery stores). They have more seeds, and a thinner rind.
How to make key lime pie?
You’ll first start with the graham cracker pie crust. It’s only 3 ingredients to make, and so easy. You’ll crush up graham crackers into crumbs, I use a high powered blender, but a food processor works really well for this too. Then add the crumbs into a bowl with melted butter and a little bit of granulated sugar. Mix it all together until you have a nice wet sand like consistency. Pour the mixture into a 9inch pie plate, then press it all around the bottom and up the sides of the pie dish. Bake the crust in the oven for about 10 minutes. Then remove it and let it cool while you make the custard filling.
In a medium sized bowl, whisk together your sweetened condensed milk, egg yolks (remember you can save your egg whites to make a pavlova, or for the meringue on a lemon meringue pie, it’s just the right amount for either) key lime juice, and lime zest. Whisk them together till it’s nice and smooth. Then pour the custard into the prepared pie crust.
Bake the pie in the preheated oven for about 15 minutes, or until it’s set throughout. It’s okay if the very center is still a little jiggly. Let the pie cool at room temperature for about 1 hour, then carefully cover it with plastic wrap and put it in the fridge to chill for a few hours.
When you’re ready to serve the pie top it with whipped cream. You can pipe little rosettes around the edges like I did, or you can spread it evenly over the whole top of the pie like frosting.
Tips for making key lime pie:
- You can use a premade graham cracker crust if you need to save a few minutes.
- You can use regular limes (persian limes) instead of key limes in this pie. It can be hard to find fresh key limes in the store, or they can be expensive. But fresh persian limes are better than using bottled key lime juice.
- The lime zest adds a lot of flavor to the pie, but it can also be bitter. You can leave it out, or cut it in half if you want it less bitter, though it may also make the lime flavor less prevalent. (You can also choose to leave it out if you don’t love the look of the flecks of lime zest in the pie as you will see some through out.)
- Refrigerate your pie for at least a few hours, but overnight is even better to really let the pie set and firm up in the fridge.
- The pie will stay good in the fridge for up to 4 or 5 days, so it’s a great make ahead dessert.
This key lime pie is tangy and sweet, it has the best buttery and crunchy graham cracker crust, with a smooth custard filling. Top it all with whipped cream and it’s a must make any time of the year. And if you love key lime pie, you HAVE to try our key lime pie ice cream too, it’s got the same great flavors all wrapped up in the easiest ice cream recipe.
This lime pie is perfect for a spring get together, a summer potluck, or for Thanksgiving dinner! It’s easy to make, and only takes about 10 minutes of active time, 25 minutes of baking, and a few hours of chilling, and voila – a simple show stopper of a dessert.
Looking for more cream pie recipes?
- Lemon Cream Pie
- Lemon Sour Cream Pie
- Banana Coconut Cream Pie
- Banana Cream Pie with Pudding Mix
- Chocolate Cream Pie
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Key Lime Pie
Ingredients
For the Graham Cracker Crust:
- 1 1/2 cups graham cracker crumbs (12 whole graham crackers)
- 2 TBS white granulated sugar
- 6 TBS butter (melted)
For the Key Lime Filling:
- 28 oz condensed milk
- 3/4 cup key lime juice
- 1 1/2 tsp lime zest (optional)
- 4 large egg yolks
For the Garnish:
- 2 cups fresh whipped cream (1 cup heavy cream, with 1/4 cup sugar, and 1/2 tsp vanilla, or use cool whip)
- 1 tsp lime zest
- lime slices
Equipment
- Large Mixing Bowl
Instructions
For the Graham Cracker Crust:
- Preheat the oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit.
- Crush the graham crackers into a fine crumb using a food processor, or high powered blender.
- In a medium sized bowl, combine the graham cracker crumbs, sugar and melted butter.
- Pour the graham cracker crumbs into a 9inch pie plate, then press them evenly around the bottom and up the sides of the pie dish.
- Bake in the preheated oven for 10 minutes, until it is golden and starts to smell delicious.
- Remove from the oven and allow the pie crust to cool while you make the filling.
For the Key Lime Filling:
- In a large bowl, add the sweetened condensed milk, key lime juice, lime zest, and egg yolks. Stir it all together till it's nice and smooth. Scrape the bottom and sides as needed with a rubber spatula.
- Pour the mixture into the pie crust.
- Bake the pie for 13-18 minutes (mine took 15) until the pie is mostly set. It's okay if the very middle is still slightly jiggly.
- Remove the pie from the oven and let it cool to room temperature.
- Carefully cover the pie with plastic wrap, and refrigerate it for at least 4 hours, but I recommend overnight.
For the Garnish:
- Spread the whipped cream over the top of the pie evenly, or pipe it onto the edges of the pie.
- Sprinkle the top with fresh key lime zest.
- Top with lime slices if desired.
Carolyn Pollock says
This looks delicious! Did you use bottled lime juice?
Aimee says
I’ve used fresh juice, but I’ve heard good things about Nellie or Joe’s Key Lime Juice. But I’ve also used persian limes (traditional limes) juiced for the pie and that is yummy too
Alice Patton says
As usual every recipe I see on line is not the way I like key lime pie. I like the original I have always made. No eggs no baking!
Aimee says
Since you haven’t tried my recipe you shouldn’t give it a 1 star rating, but you can find a no bake key lime pie recipe by googling that. You can find one on Garnish and Glaze.