This easy key lime pie recipe tastes so fresh and tangy, bursting with flavor and just sweet enough! Keep it simple with 4 ingredients for a delicious summertime treat!
What are your top three favorite fruits of spring and summer?
I’m going to take a wild guess and say most of you chose some kind of berries, cherries, or grapes. Maybe you picked peaches or apricots.
There is another fruit that makes a very short appearance during the spring and summer months that deserves some love and attention.
Introducing the key lime – the “key” ingredient in my delicious easy key lime pie recipe!
BEST KEY LIME PIE RECIPE
Aside from the fact that this key lime pie recipe is incredibly easy to make, it is also:
- Simple. Made using only 4 ingredients.
- Homemade. You get to decide how homemade it is – there are options to make both the crust and the sweetened condensed milk from scratch or grab them from the store for a quick shortcut.
- Versatile. For a more tropical flair, use coconut oil instead of melted butter in the pie crust.
- Dairy-free optional. Use full-fat coconut milk instead of sweetened condensed milk for a dairy free key lime pie instead.
- Perfect summertime treat! The combination of the tangy, fresh citrus flavor in the creamy filling with the buttery crust? I’ll take a second slice of that!
INGREDIENTS FOR KEY LIME PIE:
Here’s what you’ll need to make this authentic key lime pie recipe:
- Fresh Key West lime juice with lots of fresh key lime zest. This is the best way to go vs. using bottled regular lime juice. Regular limes will work fine, although key limes have an extra tangy flavor.
- Egg yolks. Save the leftover egg whites to brush the top of your Shepherd’s Pie or add to Tex-Mex Migas for breakfast.
- One 15oz can of sweetened condensed milk. Or use my homemade version.
- Plus 1 batch of my homemade pie crust. Some key lime pie recipes call for homemade Graham Cracker Crusts, but I think a buttery Homemade Pie Crust tastes much better combined with the sweet tartness of the key limes. Make either crust from scratch or grab one from the store.
LIMES FOR KEY LIME PIE
Key limes are small, yellow citrus fruits that are extremely tart, and “extremely” is putting it mildly. Lemons and limes have got nothing on these babies!
The key limes you see in grocery stores are usually green and tend to be sold in 2-pound bags or so… but unfortunately, those aren’t really key limes. They’re a different breed called Persian limes, and they’re tart too, just to a lesser degree.
For all intents and (most recipe) purposes, Persian limes will work just fine unless you’re baking for someone who is a key lime fanatic. Then you may want to seek out the real ones.
Since Persian lime just isn’t as catchy as key lime, I’m calling the green ones key limes anyway (plus the bag says so 😉).
HOW TO MAKE KEY LIME PIE
This is such an easy key lime recipe that you’ll never eat another grocery store key lime pie again!
Step 1. Preheat the oven to 325F. (If you are making a homemade pie crust, bake that first in a 9-inch pie pan, and then lower the oven temperature to 325F – you want to start this recipe with a baked pie crust.)
Step 2. In a large bowl, combine the lime juice, zest, egg yolks, and milk and whisk well. The mixture will thicken as the citrus reacts with the milk.
Step 3. Pour the key lime filling into a baked pie crust and bake for 15-17 minutes, or until the center is set but still jiggly (think thick Jell-o).
Step 4. Allow the pie to cool on a rack for 1-2 hours to room temperature, then serve or store covered in the refrigerator. You can also chill before serving if you make it ahead.
Top your key lime pie with Homemade Whipped Cream! Yum!
KEY LIME PIE RECIPE TIPS
Use a citrus squeezer. The first time we made this easy lime pie, we quartered the limes and tried squeezing the juice out of 5 limes with our bare hands.
Big mistake. HUGE!
We’ve since splurged on a citrus squeezer, which we found at a local Hispanic supermarket for about $5 (you can find a similar one here). Hands down, the absolute coolest little gadget we’ve ever randomly purchased. Instead of investing two hours into squeezing key limes, we now have all the juice needed in 5 minutes.
If you have extra limes, go ahead and zest them and squeeze the juice out of them. Freeze the juice and zest in ice cube trays. Store in a resealable bag for a super-fast pie later on.
The more zest the better, in my opinion. Zest 4-5 limes at a time and then squeeze for juice. Continue until you reach ½ cup and toss in all the zest! (FYI this zester is amazing!)
Use a glass pie plate. The acid in the lime juice can react with metal, like disposable aluminum pie plates, giving the pie an unpleasant metallic flavor. If you’re using a storebought crust, keep this in mind for making key lime pie recipes.
FAQS FOR KEY LIME PIE RECIPES
What is in store-bought key lime pie?
Key limes are most famous for their flavor in key lime pies, a sweet and tangy dessert option. As for the storebought version? Any key lime pie that is actually green has artificial color added. Remember that key limes are yellow, so lime pies should be more yellow than green, kind of like the crayon color yellow-green. Add in the other additives and extra sweeteners, plus the fact that this easy key lime recipe tastes WAY better, and you’ll switch to the homemade version too!
How many key limes does it take to make a key lime pie?
You’ll need ½ cup of lime juice and 4 teaspoons of lime zest for this key lime pie recipe. For me, that’s generally about 5-6 limes, but it will depend on the size and juiciness of your limes. They usually come in a bag, so zest and juice as many as you need!
MORE EASY AND DELICIOUS PIES
- Healthy Homemade Chocolate Pie
- Healthy Homemade Pumpkin Pie
- Apple Slab Pie
- Berry Pie
- No Bake Coconut Cream Pie
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This easy key lime pie recipe tastes so fresh and tangy, bursting with flavor and just sweet enough! Keep it simple with 4 ingredients for a delicious summertime treat!
- Prep Time: 5 minutes
- Cook Time: 15 minutes
- Total Time: 20 minutes
- Yield: 8 slices 1x
- Category: Dessert
- Method: Oven
- Cuisine: American
Ingredients
- One batch of homemade pie crust, baked
- ½ cup strained key lime juice
- 4 tsp grated key lime zest
- 4 large egg yolks
- 1 (15oz) can of sweetened condensed milk (or use this homemade sweetened condensed milk)
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 325F.
- In a large bowl, combine lime juice, zest, egg yolks, and milk and whisk well (or use an electric mixer). The mixture will thicken as the citrus reacts with the milk.
- Pour into a baked pie crust and bake for 15-17 minutes, or until the center is set but still jiggly (think thick Jell-o).
- Allow to cool on a rack for 1-2 hours, to room temperature, then store covered in the refrigerator.
- Serve with homemade whipped cream.
Notes
- To make this recipe dairy free, substitute canned coconut milk for sweetened condensed milk. Or make this non-dairy sweetened condensed milk.
Nutrition
- Serving Size: 1
- Calories: 276
Andrea
You’re absolutely right, the homemade stuff is always sooo much better than a frozen version. I’m so glad you shared this post on Natural Living Monday, although I am a little sad that I can’t immediately make a key lime pie, since I am at work.
The juicer looks very cool — I can attest to how much time is required to juice those tiny limes, so I may have to invest in one of those… especially now that I know of a really great recipe to make key lime pie 🙂
Off to go drool over your asparagus now, and to add it to my grocery list 😉
Joani
Tiffany,
This pie looks amazing! I think some of the recipe instructions are missing. What temperature and for how long to bake?? Thanks and love your blog.
Tiffany
Oh goodness! Thanks for pointing that out Joani! That would most certainly help, lol. 🙂
Mary Katherine
Looks delicious !!