Key West Key Lime Pie - I'm so very happy to share this real deal recipe taken from my time in south Florida and the Florida Keys. This simple recipe checks all of the boxes, the creamy texture of the key lime filling, a homemade graham cracker crust, and real key lime juice.
Just about every restaurant menu in Florida claims to have the best key lime pie recipe. With the hot summer days, the tangy flavor of that tart filling really does hit the spot.
We love using the flavor of citrus in our desserts. If you're looking for a delicious recipe, try the almond lemon olive oil cake, or the lemon lavender cheesecake. Both of those are also gluten free.
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What You're Going to Need!
- Eggs - Large eggs work great, just the yolks are needed for this recipe.
- Sweetened Condensed Milk - One 14 ounce can provides all the sweetness you need for this pie!
- Key Lime Juice - Nellie & Joe's is the standard for ready to use key lime juice, and is thankfully readily available in the grocery store in most areas.
- Fresh Limes - The zest adds an additional lime flavor to the filling, and you can garnish the finished pie with lime slices. We used ordinary limes for this garnish.
- Graham Cracker Crumbs - Buying the crumbs saves a step (no crushing involved)
- Butter - Unsalted is always helpful in controlling the salt in the recipe.
- Brown Sugar - I just love the little bit of caramel flavor brown sugar adds!
- Heavy Whipping Cream - Nothing beats the creamy deliciousness of fresh whipped cream.
- Icing Sugar - Is the perfect sweetener for fresh whipped cream, it dissolves very easily.
See recipe card for quantities.
Recipe
Key Lime Pie
Ingredients
Equipment
Method
- Preheat the oven to 375℉
- In a mixing bowl combine the graham cracker crumbs, salt, and brown sugar.
- Melt the butter in a small saucepan, and add it to the graham cracker crumb mixture. Mix well to combine.
- Press the graham cracker crumb mixture evenly into a pie pan. Place in the oven to bake for 8 minutes. Remove and set aside.
- Turn the oven down to 350℉.
- In a mixing bowl whisk together the egg yolks and sweetened condensed milk.
- Add the key lime juice and fresh lime zest and whisk to combine.
- Pour the filling into the prepared graham cracker crust and using a rubber spatula scrap the bowl clean and even out the filling.
- Place the prepared pie on a baking sheet pan and place in the center rack of the oven. Bake for 11 minutes at 350℉.
- Remove from the oven, and cool completely in the refrigerator for 1-2 hours.
- While the pie cools down, add the heavy whipping cream and icing sugar to the bowl of a stand mixer and whip on low speed increasing to high until it's light and fluffy (whipped cream consistency).
- Fill the pastry bag fitted with a star tip and pipe whipped cream on the cooled pie. Use sliced lime and lime zest to garnish, slice and enjoy!
Nutrition
Tried this recipe?
Let us know how it was!How to Make a Key Lime Pie
- Combine the graham cracker crumbs, brown sugar, and salt in a mixing bowl. Melt the butter in a small saucepan.
2. Add the melted butter to the graham cracker crumb mixture.
3. Combine the ingredients evenly, so that it resembles coarse sand.
4. Press the crumbs evenly into a pie pan. I like to place a sheet pan underneath to catch the extra crumbs. Then it's ready for the oven! -You can use a pre-baked crust if you like.
5. In a large mixing bowl mix together the large egg yolks and room temperature sweetened condensed milk.
6. Add the bottled key lime juice and whisk to combine, (you can use a hand mixer for this if you prefer),.
7. Add the zest of one lime and whisk together.
8. Pour the filling into the prepared graham cracker crust, and place on a baking sheet pan. Bake in a 350-degree oven for 11 minutes. (Turn the oven down to 350-degrees after you bake the crust for 8 minutes).
9. Remove from the oven, and cool in the refrigerator for 1-2 hours.
10. Garnish with prepared whipped cream, lime slices, and lime zest.
Chef Tip
I prefer to use brown sugar in the graham cracker crust, it provides a really nice caramel flavor. In addition, I bake the crust for eight minutes before pouring in the filling and continuing to bake the pie. I find that it makes a crunchier crust that holds up better to the creamy filling.
Key West and Key Lime Pie
Like so many culinary tales, this is a story of how a resilient, strong, and inventive group of people created something sweet out of adversity.
There are many different origin stories attributed to the creation of the classic key lime pie recipe. The sad thing is that there really is no way to know which one is the absolute truth. There are a few things that we know for sure, though...
Sweetened Condensed Milk - The 1856 invention of this shelf stable canned product was essential to this easy pie recipe. The Florida keys were only accessible by boat,(through treacherous coral reefs!), until 1912. This was the year that the millionaire Henry Flagler completed a railroad line extending all the way to Key West.
"Aunt Sally" - One of the stories that is commonly believed to be true involves the cook of a man name William Curry. He was known locally as "Rich Bill", having made a fortune from "wrecking", (recovering and assisting boats stranded on the coral reefs surrounding the islands). Sally reportedly perfected a recipe known locally as simply "lime pie". - Some versions of this story claim that it was a version of the Borden company's lemon pie. Others say that Sally submitted that recipe to Borden using fresh key lime juice as the main ingredient, and Borden just changed it to lemons.
Sponge Fishermen - Fishing for natural sponges was a major industry in the early history of Key West, as well as Key Largo. As it was a subsistence based job, the provisions on the boats were very simple. It was believed that fresh key limes would help prevent scurvy, (not true, unfortunately). The boats would stock the limes, some condensed milk, and graham crackers. These are the basic ingredients needed for the traditional key lime pie! It's even possible that this was communicated to "Aunt Sally".
Those are just a few of the stories and theories surrounding the recipe for authentic key lime pie. This little two by four mile island created a culinary legend. The tale may be shrouded in mystery, but is a sweet one for certain.
Storage & Helpful Hints
The baked and garnished pie will store for 4-5 days loosely covered with plastic wrap, in the refrigerator. This recipe calls for using just the egg yolks. I know separating eggs can seem a little daunting. One very simple tip for success is using very cold eggs. I use the shells of the eggs to separate the yolks out; however you can crack them into a bowl and carefully use your hands to fish out the yolks!
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FAQ
You definitely can! However, I would hold back on garnishing it until you are ready to serve. It will last in the refrigerator for 4 days.
Jason Miller says
All time classic.