Lime Pie: A Refreshing Summer Treat

I’m originally from FL and after a recent trip there for the 4th of July holiday, I was inspired to make my take on key lime pie for a cookout with friends. I call this a lime pie recipe because I only had regular limes on hand but I found that you could make a good approximation of key lime by mixing lime juice with lemon juice (some recipes say 50:50, I went closer to 75% lime juice, 25% lemon juice). The basic recipe I used for my lime pie consisted of egg yolks, sweetened condensed milk, lime juice (for which I used lemon-lime juice to approximate key lime), and a graham cracker crust. I started by making the graham cracker crust using crushed up graham crackers, sugar, and melted butter. I crushed the graham crackers the way my mom always did growing up, by first crumbling it in the packaging, then butting it in a ziploc baggie and crushing it more (I did this by banging on it with a measuring cup), and finally by giving it an additional crumble when adding it to the mixing bowl. I used Kerrygold unsalted butter, my favorite butter for baking because of it’s high butter fat and rich taste, to melt and mix in with the graham crackers and sugar to form the crust. I formed the crust in my pie plate by first pressing it in with my fingers and then using a measuring cup to press it in further.

Graham cracker crust with Kerrygold butter.

For the filling, I used the first comment in the recipe (made by Shrae W) instead of the recipe itself and was very happy with the result. I used 4 egg yolks (you can use the whites to make something else like an egg white omelette or meringue cookies), 1 cup of lemon-lime juice, and 2 cans of sweetened condensed milk. I first whisked the egg yolks, then mixed everything together by whisking. I added green food coloring because I wanted to my pie to look lime and not lemon but realized afterwords that key lime pie is supposed to look pretty yellow (embarrassed to have not noticed that from eating key lime pie in FL!) so I recommend letting your pie be it’s natural yellow-green color. I baked the pie for 28 minutes after setting a timer for 30 minutes because the crust had just started to go beyond golden brown at that point.

Unbaked pie (left) and pie fresh out of the oven (right).

To top off the pie I made homemade whipped cream using heavy whipping cream, vanilla, and confectioner’s sugar. Although I used the basic linked recipe, I never really measure vanilla or powdered sugar for whipped cream, I add a little and if it needs more add more (I once read a quote I agree with: “Garlic and vanilla should be measured with the heart.”). I start by whipping the cream on high until it forms peaks (if you over whip it will become butter so stop if it starts to separate and don’t over whip a single spot, make sure you’re hitting the whole bowl). Then I add about a teaspoon of vanilla (a dash, if you will) and some powdered sugar, whip, and taste it to see if it needs more sugar. I try to err on the creamy side instead of the sweet side since the pie itself is sweet. I then piped on the whipped cream using a piping bag and tip.

Finally, I garnished the pie with fresh limes in a pretty circular pattern with a small lime in the middle. Although I intended the lime slices as garnish, when eating the pie, I actually enjoyed sucking on the limes to add an extra punch of sourness and lime flavor. And voila! A fresh, homemade, key-ish lime pie!