Recipe for key lime pie: a homemade graham cracker crust filled with a creamy, tart and sweet key lime filling topped with vanilla bean whipped cream.
About Key Lime Pie
I'm so excited to share this recipe! This key lime pie recipe has been in my family for a long time. It's so delicious and super easy to make. It's creamy, tangy, and not too sweet. It is a perfect summer dessert!
Most key lime pie recipes I've come across just call for key lime juice and sweetened condensed milk for the filling. What makes this pie recipe different is that it calls for cream cheese and heavy whipping cream which work together to give it a silky smooth texture. It's absolutely perfect! Follow the steps below to make the perfect key lime pie.
Ingredients for Key Lime Pie
- Graham crackers- used to make the crust
- Butter- gets melted and used to hold the crust together
- Granulated sugar- sweetens the crust just a little
- Sweetened condensed milk- works in conjunction with the cream cheese and heavy whipping cream to make the filling extra creamy. It also adds a touch of sweetness to the tart key lime juice.
- Cream cheese- makes the filling extra creamy- make sure it's room temperature
- Key lime juice- freshly squeezed or bottled key lime juice work just the same in this recipe, just make sure you are using actual key lime juice, not regular lime juice as there is a huge difference in flavor
- Egg yolks- get whipped into the filling to give it a silky texture
- Heavy whipping cream- used in the filling and to make the vanilla bean whipped cream
- Vanilla- as always I recommend vanilla bean paste for the best flavor
How to Make Key Lime Pie:
For the Graham Cracker Crust:
Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
Pulse 12 graham crackers in a food processor until finely ground.
Next melt 7 tablespoon of butter and add it to the graham cracker crumbs along with ¼ cup of granulated white sugar. Pulse until combined.
Press the crumbs evenly on the bottom and up the sides of a pie pan. It helps to use a ¼ cup measuring cup or a spoon to do this. Bake the crust at 350 degrees for 8 minutes and then let cool completely while making the filling.
Note: you can also just use a store bought graham cracker pie crust.
For the Key Lime Filling:
The key to making the perfect filling is making sure to mix the cream cheese until it's completely smooth. Then when adding each ingredient to mix until each is fully combined.
In a medium sized bowl mix 4 oz. of softened cream cheese with an electric mixer until it is completely smooth. Then mix in 3 egg yolks.
Next add in 14 oz. of sweetened condensed milk and combine. Then add in ½ cup of heavy cream and ½ cup of key lime juice and mix until completely combined.
Pour the filling into the prepared pie crust. Bake the pie for 22-24 minutes at 350 degrees. The center will be slightly jiggly still.
Let the pie chill on the counter for 15 minutes and then in the fridge uncovered for at least 6 hours or overnight before serving.
Note, if you are using fresh key lime juice you will need about a pound of key limes to get ½ cup of juice. They are super small and juicing a pound of them is no easy task! You can easily just use store bought juice as well.
For the Vanilla Bean Whipped Cream
When ready to serve the pie, make the whipped cream.
Add ¾ cup of cold heavy whipping cream to a large bowl. Whip the cream with an electric mixer on high until stiff peaks form.
Sift in ½ cup of powdered sugar and mix just until combined.
Lastly add in ½ teaspoon of vanilla bean paste and combine.
Top the pie with the whipped cream and enjoy!
If you make this pie tag me on Instagram @inbloombakery_ so I can see! Follow me on Pinterest for other dessert recipes!
Other Desserts to Try
📖 Recipe
Key Lime Pie
Ingredients
For the Graham Cracker Crust
- 12 graham crackers
- 7 tablespoon melted butter
- ¼ cup granulated sugar
For the Key Lime Filling
- 4 oz softened cream cheese
- 3 egg yolks
- 14 oz sweetened condensed milk
- ½ cup heavy whipping cream
- ½ cup key lime juice
For the Vanilla Bean Whipped Cream
- ¾ cup heavy whipping cream
- ½ cup powdered sugar
- ½ teaspoon vanilla bean paste
Instructions
For the Graham Cracker Crust
- Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.
- Pulse 12 graham crackers in a food processor until finely ground.
- Next melt 7 tablespoon of butter and add it to the graham cracker crumbs along with ¼ cup of granulated white sugar. Pulse until combined.
- Press the crumbs evenly on the bottom and up the sides of a pie pan. It helps to use a ¼ cup measuring cup or a spoon to do this.
- Bake the crust at 350 degrees for 8 minutes and then let cool completely while making the filling.
For the Key Lime Filling
- Keep oven preheated to 350 degrees.
- In a medium sized bowl mix 4 oz. of softened cream cheese with an electric mixer until it is completely smooth.
- Then mix in 3 egg yolks.
- Next add in 14 oz. of sweetened condensed milk and combine.
- Then add in ½ cup of heavy cream and ½ cup of key lime juice and mix until completely combined.
- Pour the filling into the prepared pie crust.
- Bake the pie for 22-24 minutes at 350 degrees. The center will be slightly jiggly still.
- Let the pie chill on the counter for 15 minutes and then in the fridge uncovered for at least 6 hours or overnight before serving.
For the Vanilla Bean Whipped Cream
- When ready to serve the pie, make the whipped cream.
- Add ¾ cup of cold heavy whipping cream to a large bowl. Whip the cream with an electric mixer on high until stiff peaks form.
- Sift in ½ cup of powdered sugar and mix just until combined.
- Lastly add in ½ teaspoon of vanilla bean paste and combine.
- Top the pie with the whipped cream and enjoy!
Easy to make and so delicious! It is going to be a staple in my home.
Awesome!!!
I made it with fresh key lime juice from our tree. It was delicious. I actually used Splenda in place of the sugar in the crust and powder sugar in the whipped cream. It was excellent!