Without a doubt, The Best Key Lime Pie is also the easiest dessert to make. It's sweet, tangy, smooth, and creamy all at the same time. This recipe is made with key lime juice, condensed milk, sour cream, and egg yolks and poured into the perfect light brown sugar graham cracker crust!
I sort of forgot about one of my favorite desserts until my daughter discovered her love for key lime pie. For years, I never really made it home, but I loved ordering it at restaurants. It was always especially delicious when we vacationed in Florida. They're definitely doing something right over there... Eventually, I decided to find the perfect key lime pie recipe so that we could have it at home whenever we wanted. It was a journey, but here we are.
Now that I have created and recipe-tested so many key lime pie recipes and have found the winner, it might be hard to order from a restaurant when making it homemade is the best way to go! Another great variation of this is Key Lime Pie Trifle. You should try out both - I don't see the harm in double the amount of key lime treats!
Ingredients
- Graham Crackers- The main ingredient in the pie crust
- Butter- Unsalted and melted
- Egg Yolks- 5 egg yolks to make the filling rich
- Sweetened Condensed Milk- For sweetness and creaminess
- Key Lime Juice- I recommend using a high quality key lime juice (Nelly and Joe Key Lime Juice)
- Lime Zest- To add extra flavor and to garnish the finished pie with
- Sour Cream- Another creamy ingredient that will also make the filling more tangy
- Heavy Whipping Cream- For the whipped cream topping
- Sugar- Light brown sugar for the crust, and powdered for the whipped cream
Directions
Graham Cracker Crust
- In a large mixing bowl, mix together the graham cracker crumbs, light brown sugar and melted butter until combined
- Press the mixture into the bottom and sides of a pie pan, pre bake the crust and allow it to cool while you are preparing the key lime filing
Filling
- In a large mixing bowl, whisk together the egg yolks, sweetened condensed milk, key lime juice, sour cream and lime zest until fully combined
Bake the Key Lime Pie
- Pour the Key Lime Pie Filling in the pre baked graham cracker crust and bake until the filling is mostly firm but could jiggle a little in the center
- Once the pie is baked, allow it to sit at room temperature until is cools and then refrigerate it for several hours or overnight.
Garnish and Serve
- Once the pie has chilled for several hours, whisk the whip cream, powdered sugar and vanilla extract until stiff peaks have formed
- Use a pastry bag for a more decorative look or you can spoon the whip cream topping for a more rustic style. Then it will be ready to be served!
Tips and FAQs for The Best Key Lime Pie
- Make sure the graham cracker crumbs are very fine and if you have second pie plate, spread the crust around the pie plate and then press another pie plate on top of the crust to shape the pie shell
- The very best key lime juice is Nelly and Joe Key Lime Juice. Real key limes are very small and do not produce a lot of juice to make an entire pie.
- Make sure the heavy whipping cream is very cold to ensure that it will whip and be smooth and fluffy.
- For an extra pop of flavor, garnish the whipped cream topping with fresh lime zest!
Some say it's okay to use regular (Persian) limes that you can find at the grocery store, but then technically it's not a key lime pie. Key limes have their own perfect flavor for this pie, so I would personally recommend using key lime juice if you can.
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The Best Key Lime Pie
Ingredients
Graham Cracker Crust
- 2 Cups Graham Cracker Crumbs
- ⅓ Cup Light Brown Sugar
- 8 Tablespoons Unsalted Butter Melted
Key Lime Pie Filling
- 5 Egg Yolks
- 2 14 ounce Cans Sweetened Condensed Milk
- 1 Cup Key Lime Juice
- ¼ Cup Sour Cream
- 2 Teaspoons Lime Zest
Fresh Whipped Cream
- 2 Cups Heavy Whipping Cream
- ½ Cup Powdered Sugar
- ½ Teaspoon Vanilla Extract
- ½ Teaspoon Lime Zest
Instructions
Prepare The Graham Cracker Crust
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees F
- In a large mixing bowl, mix together the graham cracker crumbs, light brown sugar and melted butter until combined
- Press the mixture into the bottom and sides of a 9-10 inch pie pan; make sure that it is tightly pressed
- Prebake the crust for 8 minutes
- Remove the crust from the oven and allow it to cool while you are preparing the key lime filing
Prepare The Key Lime Pie Filling
- In a large mixing bowl, whisk together the egg yolks, sweetened condensed milk, key lime juice, sour cream and lime zest until fully combined
- Pour the Key Lime Pie Filling in the pre-baked graham cracker crust and bake for 10 minutes (the filling will be firm)
- Remove the pie from the oven and allow it to cool for 10 minutes and then place in the refrigerator to chill for 2-3 hours or overnight
Prepare The Fresh Whipped Cream
- In a large electric mixing bowl with whisk attachment, whisk the heavy cream, powdered sugar and vanilla extract until stiff peaks form
- Transfer the whipped cream to a piping bag and pipe the whipped cream around the edge of the key lime pie or spread the whipped cream to cover the top of the pie
- Garnish the pie with lime zest
- Refrigerate until ready to serve.
Nutrition
Mimi says
Hi. The pie looks absolutely beautiful! The texture looks perfect. But how did you make it so that the zest pieces aren't visible? Did you use powdered zest or something? I don't see any flecks of green in the filling, and would love to accomplish that if it can be done without compromising on flavor.
Kristen Massad says
Hi Mimi, There is zest in this pie, but if you prefer to have it without you can strain the curd while it is still hot. I love the addition of the zest for a little pop of flavor.
Thanks
Kristen