Easy Key Lime Pie Recipe

This easy Key Lime Pie recipe requires just a few ingredients and minimal effort, making it the perfect dessert for any occasion. With a delicious tangy lime filling and a crunchy graham cracker crust, this dessert is sure to impress your guests.

A classic contrast between sweet and sour, creamy and crunchy, fluffy and thick, this key lime pie tastes heavenly and provides the perfect ending to any meal or special occasion. I love how the soft pillowy whipping cream on top plays off of the thick, rich, smooth lime filling.

Why You’ll Love This Easy Key Lime Pie Recipe

• Deceptively Easy. It tastes amazing, looks amazing, and takes only minutes to prepare. Our easy key lime pie recipe has no complicated steps, just mixing and baking.
• An American Classic. The traditional sweet and tart combination of this pie brings back memories, makes smiles, and stirs up conversation.
• Bursting with Flavor. Not too sour, not too sweet but plenty intense, the flavor of this pie is going to knock your socks off and bring you back for more. Are leftovers even a thing? Not with this pie.

Ingredients You’ll Need for This Recipe

Ingredients for the Graham Cracker Crust

• Graham Cracker Crumbs. You can buy graham cracker crumbs, but it’s more cost-effective if you purchase regular graham crackers and process them in a food processor or crush them in a sealed plastic baggy using the back of a heavy measuring cup or rolling pin. It’s also a fun kitchen chore for kids!
• Light Brown Sugar. Dark brown sugar can also be used.
• Butter. You can use a butter substitute if you only have margarine on hand.

Key Lime Pie Filling Ingredients

• Sweetened Condensed Milk.
• Plain Greek Yogurt. Use sour cream if you need a substitute.
• Grated Lime Zest. Use your regular cheese grater with the smallest holes, and be very careful you only end up with green flakes of lime skin and not the bitter white part also known as the pith.
• Fresh Lime Juice. Freshly squeezed or bottled juice.

Whipped Topping Ingredients

• Heavy Cream. If you can find heavy whipping cream, it has even more fat content than heavy cream and can also be used.
• Powdered Sugar. This is also called confectioners sugar or icing sugar and can be made from granulated sugar if you have a food processor.
• Grated Lime Zest. Do not grate any of the white part or it will make your pie very bitter. You only want the green skin for zest.
• Lime Slices. These are optional for garnish.

INSTRUCTIONS

How To Make Easy Key Lime Pie Recipe

Please note, that the printable recipe card has ingredient quantities, complete instructions, and nutritional information. The following is a quick overview of the recipe.

Step One: Get ready to make this easy recipe for key lime pie.

Preheat the oven and move your rack to the middle. Crush your graham crackers if needed, and juice and zest your limes.

Step Two: Make the key lime pie crust.

Mix graham cracker crust ingredients

Graham cracker crust Pressed into a pie plate

Combine the graham cracker crumbs, brown sugar, and melted butter. Press this into a pie plate. Bake the crust for ten minutes and then cool.

Step Three: Make the key lime pie filling.

Lower the oven temperature to 350ºF while the crust is cooling and let the oven come down in temperature. Whisk together the sweetened condensed milk, yogurt, lime zest, and lime juice. Pour it into the crust and smooth it out. Bake for fifteen minutes.

Step Four: Make the whipped topping.

While the pie is cooling for thirty minutes at room temperature, you can make the whipped topping. Beat the heavy cream until soft peaks form. Add the powdered sugar and beat until medium peaks form. Top the pie with the whipped cream topping mixture. Place it in the refrigerator for three hours. Add lime zest and lime slices for garnish before serving.

Variations to the Recipe for Key Lime Pie

• You can buy a graham cracker crust for convenience.
• Make individual tarts. This recipe will make 4 to 6 tarts You can use any size, but these tart pans are the ones I use.
• Sour cream or cream cheese can be substituted for yogurt.

Frequently asked questions.

Are there any significant differences between regular lime juice and key lime juice?

In this recipe, I use Persian limes which are the common limes you find in the grocery store. They’re larger than key limes, and with the addition of sugar, they provide a sweet-tart profile. They’re also available all year long. Key limes are much smaller and come from the Florida Keys. They’re tedious to squeeze and can be expensive. They’re seasonal, and not available all year long.

How much lime juice is in one lime?

It really depends on the size of the lime. Choose plump limes that give a little when pressed. I also roll them across a hard surface before I cut them. I buy 10 limes and measure as I go. Each lime will give you approximately two tablespoons.

Buy fresh limes. As they get old, they become hard and less juicy.

Is bottled key lime juice an acceptable substitute for freshly squeezed limes?

Yes, you can. However, for this pie, I recommend squeezing fresh limes. The flavor is so much better.

Is it necessary to let my cooled pie chill overnight before serving it, or is this optional step unnecessary?

The texture and density is improved when you chill this pie. 3 hours is recommended. However, you can make it ahead of time and chill it overnight.

How To Store Key Lime Pie

Best Way to Store this Easy Key Lime Pie Recipe

Your leftover pie, if there is such a thing, should be refrigerated. You can lightly cover it lightly with plastic wrap I wouldn’t place it in an airtight container because the condensation can break down the creamy topping.

Can I freeze Key Lime Pie?

Yes. Freeze the whole pie and thaw it later or freeze individual slices in airtight containers to take to work, school, or use whenever you need a little pick me up. Pies can even be eaten partially frozen, which is delicious in the summer!

Tips for the Perfect Easy Key Lie Pie Recipe

• In order for the graham cracker crust to bake properly, you want all of the crumbs mixed with the butter and sugar. Any dry pockets will cause your crust to crumble.
• Use the bottom of a measuring cup to press the graham cracker crumbs into the pie plate. Be mindful not to leave the crumbs thicker in the corners where the sides meet the bottom of the pie plate.
• Use good quality butter when making the crust. Good butter enriches the flavor of the crust. Lower quality butter has more water whipped into it and less butter fat.
• Allow the ingredients to come to room temperature. However, you don’t want them warm otherwise they will not cream together correctly. Our Basic Baking post discusses this.

If you enjoyed this recipe, check out these Summer Dessert recipes!

• No-Bake Chocolate Cheesecake
• Lemon Icebox Pie
• Fresh Peach Pie
• Marshmallow Cheesecake

I hope you enjoyed this delicious recipe as much as we do. Drop me a comment below, and don’t forget to give it a star rating. ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐. Your comments and ratings help others decide if this recipe is for them too.

Just like our Keylime Pound Cake and Key Lime Cheesecake, nothing says summer like a creamy dessert made with Key lime.

Easy Key Lime Pie Recipe

Author: Julie Menghini

Easy Key Lime Pie Recipe combines delicious tangy lime filling and a crunchy graham cracker crust. It's the perfect dessert for any occasion.

5 from 4 votes

Print Recipe CollectSaved! Pin Recipe

Prep Time 20 minutes mins

Cook Time 25 minutes mins

Chill time 3 hours hrs

Total Time 3 hours hrs 45 minutes mins

Course Dessert

Cuisine American

Keyword: Key Lime, Key Lime Pie, Key Lime Recipe

Servings: 8

Equipment

• Pie Plate
• Microplane (zester)
• Citrus Juicer

Ingredients

 

US CustomaryMetric

 

1x2x3x

Crust

• 1½ cup finely crushed graham cracker crumbs
• ⅓ cup packed light brown sugar
• 4 tbsp butter melted

Filling

• 28 oz sweetened condensed milk (2 cans)
• 1 cup plain Greek yogurt
• 1 tbsp grated lime zest
• ¾ cup fresh lime juice

Topping

• 1 cup heavy cream
• 2 tbsp powdered sugar
• 1 tsp grated lime zest
• 8 to 10 thin lime slices garnish, optional

Instructions

 

• For the crust, preheat oven to 375 °F and set an oven rack in the middle position.
• In a medium bowl, combine the graham cracker crumbs, brown sugar, and melted butter. Use your hands to mix until well combined. Using your fingers and the bottom of a glass, press the crumbs firmly into the bottom and up the sides of a 9 x 1 ½ inch (deep-dish) pie pan. The crust should be about ¼ inch thick.
• Bake for 10 minutes, until just slightly browned. Let the crust cool on a wire rack.

Filling

• For the filling, lower the oven temperature to 350 °F.
• In a large bowl, whisk together the sweetened condensed milk, yogurt, lime zest, and lime juice. Pour the thick mixture into the warm graham cracker crust.

  Bake for 15 minutes, until the filling is almost set, it should wobble a bit. Let cool at room temperature for 30 minutes, then place in the refrigerator to chill thoroughly, about 3 hours.

Topping

• For the topping, beat the heavy cream in a bowl of an electric mixer until soft peaks form. Add the powdered sugar and beat until medium peaks form. Top the pie with the whipped cream.

  Decorate with lime zest and lime slices. Store the pie in the refrigerator until ready to serve. Slice the pie into wedges, wiping your knife clean between slices, and serve cold.

Nutrition

Calories: 600kcalCarbohydrates: 81gProtein: 13gFat: 27gSaturated Fat: 16gPolyunsaturated Fat: 1gMonounsaturated Fat: 7gTrans Fat: 0.2gCholesterol: 84mgSodium: 295mgPotassium: 501mgFiber: 1gSugar: 71gVitamin A: 890IUVitamin C: 10mgCalcium: 354mgIron: 1mg

Nutritional Disclaimer

This recipe was calculated using the exact brands and measurements I used to make this recipe. If you are following a strict diet please note changing anything will cause the nutritional info to change. My calculations are intended as a guide only.

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