Key Lime Pie
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Made with ordinary limes, this “Key lime” pie tastes every bit as authentic as the real deal — plus it’s easier to make.
I use Persian limes, otherwise known as ordinary supermarket limes, to make my “Key lime” pie. Unless you live in the Florida Keys, key limes are near impossible to find. Furthermore, they’re so tiny that you’d need to juice at least twenty of them for this recipe. No thank you! Ordinary limes make an exceptional Key lime pie, and they are a much better alternative to bracingly tart bottled Key lime juice. This pie tastes every bit as authentic as the real deal — plus it’s easier to make.
Similar to coconut cream pie and lemon meringue pie, key lime pie can be made with a graham cracker/cookie crust or a traditional pie crust. I always opt for a graham cracker crust because it’s quick to prepare. Plus, why fuss with finicky pie dough when a graham cracker crust tastes so good?
What You’ll Need To Make Key Lime Pie
- You’ll need 8 to 10 limes total for this recipe. Choose plump limes that give a little when you squeeze them; they will be easier to juice. You should get about 2 tablespoons of juice from each lime. Be sure to zest the limes before you squeeze the juice from them, as it’s near impossible to do afterward.
- Sweetened condensed milk is canned milk from which water has been removed, and sugar has been added. Be sure not to confuse it with evaporated milk, which is usually sold right alongside.
- With no eggs, it may be hard to believe that this pie will set, but have faith — it will.
How To Make Key Lime Pie
Step 1: Make The Crust
Combine the graham cracker crumbs, brown sugar and melted butter in a mixing bowl. Stir with a fork first, and then your hands until the mixture is well combined.
Using your fingers and the bottom of a measuring cup or glass, press the crumbs firmly into the bottom and up the sides of a 9-in deep-dish pie pan. The crust should be about 1/4-in thick. (Hint: do the sides first.)
Bake the crust for 10 minutes, or until lightly browned. Then let the crust cool a bit while you make the filling.
Step 2: Make the Filling
Begin by zesting the limes.
It’s best to use a rasp grater, which is a long, skinny tool that works well for grating hard cheeses and zesting citrus.
Juice the limes using a citrus reamer, then combine the juice with the sweetened condensed milk, yogurt, and lime zest.
Whisk to combine.
Pour the filling into the cooked graham cracker crust.
Bake for about 15 minutes, or until the filling is almost set.
Let the pie cool at room temperature for 30 minutes, then place in the refrigerator to chill thoroughly, about 3 hours.
Step 3: Make the Topping
In the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the whisk attachment (or beaters), beat the heavy cream until soft peaks form. Add the confectioners’ sugar and beat until medium peaks form. (Alternatively, the cream can be beaten by hand with a whisk.) Top the chilled pie with whipped cream and decorate with lime slices and zest.
Photo by Alexandra Grablewski (Chronicle Books, 2018)
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Key Lime Pie
Made with ordinary limes, this “Key lime” pie tastes every bit as authentic as the real deal — plus it’s easier to make.
Ingredients
For the Crust
- 1½ cups finely crushed graham cracker crumbs, from about 12 whole graham crackers
- ⅓ cup packed light brown sugar
- 4 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted
For the Filling
- Two 14-oz cans sweetened condensed milk
- 1 cup plain Greek yogurt (2% or whole milk)
- 1 tablespoon grated lime zest
- ¾ cup fresh lime juice
For the Topping
- 1 cup cold heavy cream
- 2 tablespoons confectioners' sugar
- 1 teaspoon grated lime zest
- 8 to 10 thin lime slices
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; stir with a fork first, and then your hands until the mixture is well combined. Using your fingers and the bottom of a glass or dry measuring cup, press the crumbs firmly into the bottom and up the sides of a 9 x 1.5-inch (deep-dish) pie pan. The crust should be about ¼-inch thick. (Tip: do the sides first.)
- Bake for 10 minutes, until just slightly browned. Let the crust cool on a wire rack.
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.
For the Topping
- In the bowl of an electric mixer, beat the heavy cream until soft peaks form. Add the confectioners’ sugar and beat until medium peaks form. Top the pie with the whipped cream. Decorate with the 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.
- Make-Ahead Instructions: You can make the crust a day ahead of time, but the filling should be added on the day of serving, otherwise the crust will get soggy.
- Note: The nutritional information was calculated using 2% Greek yogurt.
Nutrition Information
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- Per serving (10 servings)
- Calories: 481
- Fat: 24 g
- Saturated fat: 14 g
- Carbohydrates: 60 g
- Sugar: 54 g
- Fiber: 0 g
- Protein: 10 g
- Sodium: 183 mg
- Cholesterol: 76 mg
This website is written and produced for informational purposes only. I am not a certified nutritionist and the nutritional data on this site has not been evaluated or approved by a nutritionist or the Food and Drug Administration. Nutritional information is offered as a courtesy and should not be construed as a guarantee. The data is calculated through an online nutritional calculator, Edamam.com. Although I do my best to provide accurate nutritional information, these figures should be considered estimates only. Varying factors such as product types or brands purchased, natural fluctuations in fresh produce, and the way ingredients are processed change the effective nutritional information in any given recipe. Furthermore, different online calculators provide different results depending on their own nutrition fact sources and algorithms. To obtain the most accurate nutritional information in a given recipe, you should calculate the nutritional information with the actual ingredients used in your recipe, using your preferred nutrition calculator.
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This was made for me as a birthday gift. It is an incredibly delicious pie and my new favorite! I plan to make this for a dinner party soon. Thank you Jenn for an incredible recipe and inadvertently being part of my birthday! 🙂
Absolutely scrumptious
I love key lime pie and this recipe looks quick and easy. I would like to know if it can be made using low fat sweetened condensed milk and low fat greek yogurt.
Hi Margie, I think you could get away with using low-fat yogurt but don’t think I’d recommend low-fat sweetened condensed milk as I’m not sure how the filling will set up with that.
I made my first key lime pie a few weeks ago, and after reading through quite a few recipes, I settled on this one. I am SO glad I did! I followed the recipe exactly as written, and served it to family and friends and they all had rave reviews. Most said “Best pie ever!” It was devoured! I’ve made 4 more since then due to high demand, and working on another one now. The thin lime slices on top help to keep aluminum foil above the whipped cream topping. With a couple of these, I added an extra graham cracker to the crust mix and a tad more butter, reserving some mix to sprinkle over the topping when finished (upon request). This is a blue ribbon recipe! I tend to tweak most recipes after trying them once, but not this one!!! Thank you so much for sharing this Jenn!! (You were exactly right about not using the key limes.) 😉
Very yummy!! Just a little too sweet for me so I added a LOT more lime juice.
We love Jenn’s recipes, always receive compliments but today received the best. I gave a couple of pieces to our friends, and he asked his wife “Could I commission Mary to make me one of these pies each week?” I recommend this site to every foodie I know.
I made this and took some to my 84 year old mother. She loved it so much, I am making one again today. This time she wants the whole pie! Thank you for this perfect recipe!!!
Can the key lime pie filling be made a day ahead of time and then poured in pie crust next day and baked?
Sure!
I prefer the classic Key Lime pie with eggs. Trying to reinvent the wheel does not always improve a classic recipe. I felt this GREEK yogurt pie was too custardy / pudding like texture and flavor. Also, I prefer a slightly less sweet filling, more tart balance with the sweet. I will use 25% more lime juice.
If you like a key lime pie with a hint of lime, a crust that falls apart, and a topping that has virtually no taste at all, then this is your recipe. Awful!
With the positive reviews here… your assessment must be operator error. Meaning it’s you that didn’t bake the pie correctly. My crust stayed together, the flavor was amazing, not too sweet and not too tart. Easily the best key lime pie I have ever made. Maybe think before you leave such a rude review. It’s fine if you didn’t like it, but you obviously made mistakes on this one.
I agree with you 100% Marla!
This is easily one of the most refreshing pies I have tasted. I am adding this to my list of favourite desserts!
My dearest friend of 30 years has always told me her favorite pie is Key-lime. I decided to try from scratch and found your recipe. Donna’s birthday was January 3rd. My boyfriend, Randy helped me make it by zesting and juicing the limes. The hard part was waiting to taste it with Donna and her husband, JR. “This is the best Key-lime Pie I have ever tasted!” she said to me. Even won over my boyfriend who never cared for Key-lime pie before. He and I have a new thing going on in the kitchen now. It’s making the best Key-lime pie ever!!! It’s so smooth and creamy that you want to eat it slowly and enjoy all the decadent flavors. Got to go! On my way out again for more limes. It’s a 10 in my book!
I can’t rate this recipe, because I chose not to make it in favor of an “authentic” key lime pie recipe. Nearly two hours later, curious about what is so great about the tiny, green, hard-to-zest, hard-to-juice “key limes” I was able to get ahold of here in Wisconsin, I found this article from Serious Eats: https://www.seriouseats.com/are-key-limes-worth-the-price.
Next time I want to make a ‘Key Lime’ Pie and I’m not in south Florida, I’m going to save myself the time and money and make this version. It may not be truly authentic, but neither is the version that I’ve got in the oven right now. Sometimes we just need to do the best we can with what is available to us — thanks for the recipe!
I’ve made key lime pie before, but wanted to try a recipe without eggs for a family member with a dietary restriction. I was skeptical that the filling would set, but I was proven wrong! It set beautifully and the slices were picture perfect. I tasted the filling as I was mixing it and felt like it needed more lime flavor, so I added an extra teaspoon of zest and the juice of an additional “regular” lime. I used Pamela’s gluten-free graham crackers for the crust (using the recipe on the box…and the crust was just as good, if not better than when I’ve made it with regular graham crackers). This pie got rave reviews from everyone, even people who didn’t think they liked key lime pie!
This is the first Key lime pie I have ever made . I used to get it when I went diving in the Keys a long time ago . I cooked Christmas dinner ( Detroit style pizza ) and decided to take a shot at a key lime pie . I could not believe how good it was ! The compliments were endless . I did omit the topping so we could enjoy the taste of the limes . There is nothing I would change . Thanks for posting this recipe !
Loved this pie!! I made it for dessert after Christmas dinner and it was so good!! I’m trying to think of another reason to make it again!! Yummm!!!!!! ❤️❤️❤️
terrible recipe. The amount of condensed milk obliterated the tartness of the lime.
It’s no wonder heart disease and obesity are the number one banes for Americans. The amount of fat and sugar is truly egregious. The taste is so unpleasant it is not worth all the lard and
sugar!!!!!
Wow, was that necessary??
Accordingly to multiple people, this pie was perfect!
no lard
All year long we had the parents/grandparents talk about this pie! Best Key Lime Pie ever!
I’m gluten free and dairy free and I can not eat it.
But it is such a winner with everyone we are making again!
Wow was that necessary!?
Pie Was perfect.
Spot on! Wouldn’t change a thing. Turned out perfectly. Smooth, right amount of tartness and sweetness, and raving reviews at the table!
I have made this pie several times. It is hands down the best key lime recipe I have come across. Thank you so much!
Great recipe, made ahead of time and froze, was still great, did use ready crust. Make, you will love!!!
Oh Wow!! So amazingly delicious! I think the cup of plain yogurt gave it a great tangy taste. Everyone loved it and it came out beautifully. The pieces were firm and perfect. After reading the reviews I did bake it a bit longer (5-6 minutes) because my oven tends to run a bit slow.
Love this pie!!! Made one change – after baking the graham cracker crust, I spread sour cream over the bottom and dusted with powdered sugar, then poured the filling into the pie shell. This will be the “Key Lime” pie recipe I use from now on!
Jenn,
I absolutely love all your recipes. One of my many favorites is your key lime pie. My family requests it all the time. I need your advice. Every time I make it, I bake it the day before and refrigerate it over night. When I cut a piece of the pie, most often it’s soupy, not firm. I bake it according to your directions. Please advise. Thank you!
Hi Monica, glad you like this! Based on what you’re describing, it sounds like it may be just a bit underbaked. I’d leave it in the oven for a few more minutes next time.
Thank you so much for sharing this recipe! My husband is very picky about key lime pie and he LOVED it. He wanted it for his birthday instead of cake and I’m a terrible baker, so I was worried. And I’ve never liked key lime pie til I tried this! Sooo simple and so delicious and refreshing. This will be the recipe I use from now on.
Used 3/4 of a cup of actual key lime juice and it was incredible.
IMPORTANT POINT: 300ml is 14oz of weight (which is the can size the recipe calls for) and 10oz of liquid (ignore the volume). I feel some of the comments where they are complaining it is too sweet might have been that they thought two 300ml cans were not enough. A 300ml can is 10oz of liquid volume but it is 14 oz of weight. The recipe is calling for 28oz (2 cans of 14oz weight). This means that two 300ml cans are perfect for weight. Do not think you need more sweetened condensed milk. Again, 2 cans of 300ml sweetened condensed milk is perfect.
Wonderful recipe! It was easy to make and everyone loved it, I will make it again definitely!
3/4 c lime juice resulted from 5-1/2 limes. To be sure the pie was flavorful enough and not just sugary I added 1-1/2 limes, so 7 limes and 1 for the zest- the author says 8-10 limes needed.
This is a great recipe, try it if you love Key Lime Pie!
This was a blast at dessert time – every one had a piece – no leftover. Easy recipe. I made the crust with filling the night before – crust did not get soggy. This recipe is definitely a keeper!
I just made this pie for Thanksgiving and it turned out perfect and to rave reviews! This is an outstanding pie and so easy to make but so delicious. I’ll be making this again for sure. I used fresh key lime juice from our own tree here in Sacramento, CA, so you can have fresh key limes and not live in Florida.
Thanks again for this outstanding recipe.
Try putting the quotes around the ‘key lime’ in the title not the page since it’s *not* a key lime pie recipe. And how can you say key limes are near impossible to find unless you live in the Florida Keys? This is just a plain stupid statement. Try saying “if you live somewhere that you can’t find them…” Many supermarkets far away from the Florida Keys carry the fresh limes and even more carry the bottled juice (even Walmarts nationwide).
By your first paragraph, it’s clear your website isn’t worth visiting.
1. Did you make the recipe?
2. There is a difference between a regular lime and a key lime.
Are you having a bad day Kyle? It seems that you are a little too angry about a pie recipe that you didn’t even make.
Rude and unnecessary comment. Would you say this to someone in person? Shame on you.
What is your point Kyle ? That you are a rude person???
I found them here in Kentucky… I actually used real Key Lime juice in the bottle and regular lime zest and it was great!!
SOOO GOOD! Such a perfect balance of sweet and tarte!
I agree on your rating. I tried this in lieu of my traditional key lime pie. You can find key limes all other. The bottled key lime is not as good. This did not set up and turned out more like a pudding. I have never put yogurt or sour cream in my key lime pie. This was the worst tasting key lime pie. It just tasted like Eagle brand with lime juice. I have made key lime pies for 40 years.
True key limes are not available everywhere, all the time. I live in a major east coast metropolitan area with a very diverse assortment of markets and grocery stores. We get real key limes for about a month in mid-winter. Everyone I have served this pie to has nothing but good things to say about the flavor.
I cannot believe this key lime pie recipe!!! It is soooo good —I will share with my family this thanksgiving—of course when I tasted it I was a bit worried that it would not stand up to my taste buds but I was wrong—5 thumbs up on the tartness and taste—will keep this in my file of deserts-/thank you!
Love this recipe! Would it work to mix up the filling from the night before and bake the following day? Trying to do as much prep as I possibly can.
Sure!
First I would like to say that this is one of the best “Lime Pies” that we have ever had. Much better than any sort of “Lime Pie” that we have ever had here in the Continental United States whether frozen or fresh, supermarket or bakery (including most in Florida’s mainland who often use Persian limes). We did play with the sweetness level a bit as it was sweeter than we prefer & played with the yogurt (the first time I used Cabot’s whole milk yogurt which is 10% fat. After I usually used our own farm fresh yogurt from our own cows. Made with cream and probiotics as it is richer, thicker, creamier and has more tang.) Still something missing though compared to what we have eaten throughout the Caribbean & that was the more intense lime flavor that simply adding more lime juice won’t change.
So I ran up to my favorite Latin American market here in North East Ohio & bought Mexican Limóns (aka Key Limes or West Indies limes). I seem to remember that (it was a 3 pound bag but it may have been 2 1/2) for $2.99 USD. Boom Shakalaka !!! Here was the missing deep lime flavor that we know & love. Mexican Limóns make a huge difference in Mojitos, Margaritas. Pies, Marinades and as a condiment compared to Persian limes. I use an electric Proctor Silex Alex’s Lemonade Stand juicer which can handle quite a few pounds in a very short time. A Vitamix or Ninja blender work well too.
Most folks don’t know (or care) but Mexico is the largest grower of both Persian and Mexican Limóns (again aka: Key Limes, West Indies limes) on the planet (we grow over a third of Earth’s supply). We ship as many Persian limes out of the country as folks want but prefer to keep as many of the Mexican version as we desire (which is quite substantial).
Again I loved the recipe enough to give it 5 stars. Plus I will be making quite a few Key Lime Pies using Jenn’s recipe for Thanksgiving. As my youngest (and favorite daughter named Vickie Terasita Maria Bartlett-DeJesus) brought a boatload of Mexican Limóns from back home in Mexico.
Make this!
I have made this pie three times so far and it’s been loved every time. I’ve had friends request it for future events and my boyfriend requested I make it for Thanksgiving.
It’s been quite the hit for me! Simple and delicious. Sweet and tart, and that’s how we like it!
Its the first pie recipe I’ve ever tried and I hope to try others from your site!
I am so glad so many people love this. It was so sweet I could not eat it, the texture was great and the crust was yummy. I am glad I did a test pie before T-Day as I will not be making this.
Although the writer seems lovely, I am compelled to write a negative review. The amount of condensed milk to yogurt does not seem right at all. The pie turned out inedible. The custard was basically condensed milk with a little bit of lime in it. I dont understand how this got so many good reviews…P.S i am not a novice baker. I know my way around the kitchen and I triple checked the recipe and even had my partner look too. We were so perplexed.
I have to agree with you. it was so sweet I could not eat it. I did make another by Americans test kitchen and it was soooo good.
I added 3 egg yolks and used 1 1/2 condensed milk instead and it was perfect. I agree that 2 cans will make it too sweet.
I added 1-1/2 limes to the 3/4 c lime juice and it was perfect.
I was worried about the condensed milk but this recipe was easy to make and everyone loved it!
Easy, quick to assemble and delicious. The recipe was a bit too sweet for me, so I made it again with only 1 1/2 cans of condensed milk, and substituted a half cup of extra yogurt. Perfect!
Hi, great recipe! The pie tasted really good. Just need your help since it came out really runny. Wonder what I did wrong. I’m from Manila, so I’m wondering if our humid weather has anything to do with it.
Hi Eia, Sorry to hear the texture was a bit runny. Did you make any adjustments to the recipe?
Hi Jenn!! I love your recipes, you’re my go-to for all kids of things to make for friends and family!
My question is this: how do I make this recipe into mini tarts instead of a whole pie? What adjustments do you suggest I make?
Thank you for all you do!! You’re an inspiration!
So glad your friends and family like the recipes! I haven’t tried it but think you could make this into mini tarts. I’d keep the temperature the same; bake time is likely to be less but not sure by how much as it depends on the size of your tarts so just keep a close eye on them. Hope you enjoy!
Thank you so much!!
It’s super good frozen too! Used cinnamon sugar graham crackers and no extra sugar in the crust. It was a tiny bit bitter, but that could be the limes I used?
Hi Helene, I have not heard of it tasting bitter so the only assumption I can make is that maybe it was the limes. Hope you don’t experience that again the next time you make this!
This pie is a keeper. A friend made it for me, and I turned around and made it for my daughter’s birthday, and again for my mother and sister. My 8 year old grandson says that this will be his request for his birthday dinner next year.
I ended up with too much graham cracker crust, but it was likely the size of my pie dish. I didn’t change a thing otherwise. Absolutely stellar!
WOW! Easy and delicious. Our lime tree is now a source for wonderful Lime Pies!
Thanks!
Exquisite! Made this for a friend’s birthday who said it was better than the gourmet restaurant’s where they typically buy key lime pie. Thanks for making me a star…
I live in HI and I have lots of limes in my yard.. I stumbled on this recipe which has enormously good reviews. I will make my pie today using this recipe. But one thing worries me is the amount of sweetened condensed milk ( I don’t like my lime pie to be so sweet). Is this something to worry about? I do not plan to make a whip cream topping so I cannot cut on the sugar there. Let me know.thanks
Hi Mar, I don’t find this to be too sweet but some readers have commented that they have cut back on the sweetness by using a tad more lime juice and reducing the sugar a bit in the crust. Hope that helps!
There’s so many fabulous reviews to sift through that this question may have already been asked! I see you use the Persian lines but I have a key lime tree that is bursting with fruit and want to make good use of them. Do any of the lime measurements change if I use key limes? I’m not to knowledgeable in that area. Thanks!
Hi Christina, You can use the key limes without any adjustments to the recipe. Hope you enjoy!
This was absolutely diviiiiine!!! With Fall here, Trader Joes is not selling our favorite key lime pie anymore. I’m not much of a baker but I decided to give this recipe a go and it was 1. not very difficult 2. phenomenal. 11/10 recommend & we didnt modify a thing. Best key lime pie I’ve ever had.
Incredible! Better than the best bakery or restaurant can offer!
I have made key lime pies before and was skeptical that this recipe would taste like key lime pie. I did not do a side-by-side comparison, but regardless, this was excellent. We really liked the creaminess versus using sour cream. And using Persian limes made the recipe far easier to prepare. I use a garlic press to juice limes, and juicing Persian limes versus Key limes is significantly quicker. (I did not need the number of limes suggested in the recipe, but the extra ones I put to good use in cocktails.) I used a pre-made crust, which made preparation even easier. I have made graham cracker crusts before but always had trouble with the sides and evenness of the crust. Perhaps due to the premade crust, I did not find the crust to be soggy the next day(s), and the lime flavor became significantly more intense. On the day I made it, although the texture was good, I, and the rest of my family, wished the lime flavor was more intense. We liked it much better then next two days.
Just made this and it is really good. I am wondering if a meringue topping can be successfully put on top of this recipe?
Glad you like it! I wouldn’t recommend a meringue topping here as I’m afraid that the filling in the pie would get overbaked when the meringue gets baked. Sorry!
Tastes good and easy too. Made it for a dinner party and everyone commented positively. My only issue was with the number of limes the recipe stated would be needed for 3/4 C of lime juice. I thought it seemed excessive but I bought eight. I used four. The only thing I did was to roll each lime on my counter prior to juicing it to make it easier to extract the juice.