Key Lime Pie

On a recent Saturday morning, we took the kids to the Fernbank Science Center for the first time. By the time we got to the vicinity, it was close to lunch time, so we opted to get lunch at Mellow Mushroom before heading to the center. After finishing a pizza, we shared an order of key lime pie. Everyone agreed that was quite good. Somewhere during the conversation, it was hinted that such pie would be a welcomed item at home (*wink wink*). As I was trying to expand my recipe repertoire, I did an online search to see how complicated to make a key lime pie, for I was not about to take on any dessert recipe with more than 8 steps. It turned out the complexity level was acceptable to my simple mind. Once that was settled, I set out to buy the ingredients that I hadn't had in my inventory. From my past experience on many recipes I came across, I adjusted on the sweetness to my family's preference. Here is my take on key lime pie.

For crust

1 1/4 cups graham cracker crumbs*

2 tablespoons sugar

5 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted

For filling

1 1/2 can (14 ounce can) sweetened condensed milk

4 egg yolks

1/2 cup plus 2 tablespoons key lime juice*

For topping

Whipped cream

Make crust:

Preheat oven to 350F.

Stir together graham cracker crumbs, sugar and butter in a bowl with a fork until combined well, the press mixture evenly onto the bottom and up side of a 9-inch pie plate. Bake crust in middle of oven for 10 minutes and cool it on a rack.

* I used Back To Nature honey graham crackers as the regular graham crackers contain partially hydrogenated oil. I apologize I didn't count how many sticks of honey graham I used (maybe next time when I make the pie, I'll count it and update this post), but I think to start with 1/3 of the package is a good bet; then you can add a little more if needed. Or you could use 9 (2 1/4" x 4 3/4") regular graham crackers if you choose to.

As usual, I have extra cracker crumbs left, so I used two 3/4" tart/quiche pans to make 2 small crusts. I baked those for about 6 minutes.

Buttercup and Bubbles were good sports.

My kids helped me ground the crackers with their Powerpuff Girls characters, Buttercup and Bubbles. As you can see in the picture, the back of their heads don't seem to have any apparent damage from the repeated pounding. The insides, I can't say the same;-).

Make filling and bake:

This is one of the two tarts. By the time I took this picture,
the other one had already been consumed.

Whisk together the condensed milk and yolks in a bowl until combined well. Add juice and whisk until well combined and the mixture thickens slightly.

* I used the regular bottled lime juice out of convenience. Some suggest using Manhattan brand bottled key lime juice if you are picky about this kind of thing.

Pour filling into crust and bake in oven at 350F for 15 minutes. Cool pie completely on rack, then chill, covered, at least 8 hours.

I just used the store bought whipped cream for the topping as I didn't feel like making my own whipped cream. Or you could beat heavy cream until it just holds stiff peaks.

The result was excellent. The pie is plenty sweet and you can still taste the tartness from the lime juice. Some of the reviews from recipes with 1 can of sweetened condensed milk suggest 2 cans of milk, I suspected it would be too too sweet for my taste and it turned out I was correct. One and a half cans was just the right amount. The pie doesn't have a fancy look (my food usually don't anyway), but it sure is scrumptious! As my kids put it: "the best ever, mommy!"

Uh, once again I forgot to take a picture before the pie was sliced (*sigh*), but at least I remembered after a small serving was served.