Key Lime Pie
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Bright, tangy, and ultra-creamy, this key lime pie has just the right balance of sweet and tart—perfect for warm days and easy entertaining.
I’ve been making this Key lime pie for years, and it’s one of my favorite desserts to serve when the weather warms up. Inspired by the classic pie made famous in the Florida Keys, it has a buttery graham cracker crust and a cool, creamy filling that’s the perfect balance of sweet and tart. Best of all, it’s easy to make with just a handful of ingredients—you can use regular limes from the grocery store, and Greek yogurt stands in for the usual egg yolks (trust me, it works). I’ve served this pie everywhere from summer barbecues to holiday dinners, and it’s always a crowd-pleaser.
“The best key lime pie I’ve ever had!! Tart, sweet, fresh but rich.”
Do You Really Need Key Limes?
Despite the name, you don’t need Key limes to make an outstanding Key lime pie. Over the years, I’ve made this pie with bottled Key lime juice (such as Nellie & Joe’s), fresh Key limes, and regular limes (also called Persian limes), and I actually prefer regular limes. They’re easy to find year-round and have a bright, fresh flavor that makes an exceptional pie. If you have access to fresh Key limes, though, they’re delicious too, lending the pie a slightly more floral, aromatic flavor.
What You’ll Need To Make Key Lime Pie
For the crust, you’ll need finely crushed graham cracker crumbs, light brown sugar, and melted butter. For the filling, you’ll need sweetened condensed milk, Greek yogurt, fresh lime juice and lime zest. For the topping, you’ll need heavy cream and confectioners’ sugar.
You’ll notice this recipe doesn’t call for egg yolks, like many traditional Key lime pie recipes. After testing it both ways, I found they simply weren’t necessary. The pie sets beautifully because the lime juice’s acidity reacts with the proteins in the yogurt and sweetened condensed milk, thickening the filling as it bakes (the same basic reaction that turns milk into cheese). And from a taste standpoint, I actually prefer the cleaner, brighter lime flavor that comes from leaving the yolks out. As a bonus, there’s no separating eggs, making the recipe even easier to prepare.
“Outstanding! Sets up beautifully and has the most perfect lime flavor.”
Step-by-Step Instructions
Step 1: Mix the crust. Combine the graham cracker crumbs, brown sugar, and melted butter, stirring first with a fork, then finishing with your hands until the mixture looks like damp sand and holds together when you squeeze a bit in your palm.
Step 2: Press the crust into the pan. Work the crumbs up the sides of the pan first, then press the bottom—it’s easier this way. Press firmly; a loosely packed crust tends to crumble when you slice the pie later.
Step 3: Blind bake. Bake just until the edges turn a shade darker and it smells toasty. This short bake deepens the flavor of the crust and keeps the crust from turning soggy once the filling goes in, but it doesn’t need to brown deeply.
Step 4: Zest, then juice. Zest every lime you plan to juice before you cut into them—it’s nearly impossible to zest a lime once it’s been squeezed. A rasp grater makes this fast; a reamer or your hands work fine for juicing.
Step 5: Whisk the filling. Whisk the condensed milk, yogurt, zest, and juice together until completely smooth. The mixture will look thick, almost like a pudding.
Step 6: Bake and chill. Pour the filling into the warm crust and bake until the center looks just set. Let it cool for a bit on the counter, then pop it in the fridge for at least 3 hours to set completely. It’ll firm up further as it cools and chills.
Step 7: Whip the cream. Beat the heavy cream until it just starts to hold soft peaks, then add the confectioners’ sugar and continue beating until it’s thick enough to hold its shape when you lift the whisk. Don’t take it too far past this point—overwhipped cream turns grainy and starts to look more like butter than a topping.
Pro Tip: A hand whisk works fine here too if you don’t feel like pulling out the mixer—it just takes a bit more elbow grease.
Step 8: Top and serve. Top with the whipped cream shortly before serving rather than hours ahead, since cream loses its shape sitting on a cold pie for too long. A knife wiped clean between cuts will give you the neatest slices.
Key Lime Pie Video Tutorial
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Key Lime Pie
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
- Make the Crust: Preheat oven to 375°F (190°C) 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 1½-in (23 x 4-cm) pie pan. The crust should be about ¼-in (6-mm) thick. (Tip: do the sides first.)
- Bake for 10 minutes, until just slightly browned. Let the crust cool on a wire rack.
- Make the Filling: Lower the oven temperature to 350°F (180°C). 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.
- Make 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.
Notes
- 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.
- The nutritional information was calculated using 2% Greek yogurt.
Nutrition Information
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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I just made this pie for Easter and it was sooooo good and such a big hit. Super easy to follow hence the fact that I’m only 15. Totally recommend as a nice spring/summer party staple.
Ok. I have never made Key Lime Pie, even though my husband loves it. To my credit, a good friend of ours, claimed it as her specialty, so I never had to try. LOL! All things change during a year when you can get together with others, so why not? I made it Easter (actually the day before and refrigerated overnight) exactly as the recipe states and it was PHENOMENAL!! My husband said it was the best he ever tasted. The texture was fabulous and it was beautiful and super easy to make. Everyone loved it. Thank you so very much for sharing your wonderful recipes.
PS- I used regular limes, Whole Milk Greek Yogurt and stored in fridge with filling in pie shell overnight. 🙂
I’ve always wanted to try making a key lime pie and this recipe was a hit!! I used 2 – 300ml. Canadian size condensed milk which was fine. Thankyou for this crowd pleasing recipe 👍🏻😋
Wish I could add the picture!!
I want to make this in mini pie tins to take on an outing. Do you have a temperature and baking time suggestion? Also, do you know if this freezes well? I like to bake a creamy lemon pie and freeze wedges so I don’t get tempted to consume the whole thing! LOL
Hi Melissa, I’d keep the temperature the same; bake time is likely to be less but not sure by how much so just keep a close eye on them. And while I think you can get away with freezing leftovers if you have them, I’m not sure this would be a recipe I’d make ahead to intentionally freeze. Hope that helps!
I made this pie for Easter and it came out so amazingly delicious! Really easy too! I switched out the Greek yogurt for whole fat sour cream and it was perfect. I also added a bit more lime juice than the recipe recommend I highly recommend this and will be making it again
This pie is so delicious and so easy to make! I made it today for Easter Sunday lunch at my parents.’ Do NOT change anything. Thank you for sharing your expertise with us!
Simple and delicious. We all loved it!
I just make this today. I followed the instructions to the t. Instant success. Gone in 10 minutes! Next time will double the recipe to another one for the next day.
How do I store the crust overnight before making the pie filling? Refrigerator? Covered at room temp? Thank you!
I’d store it in the fridge. Hope you enjoy!
I’m looking forward to trying this recipe for Easter. I’ve heard a suggestion to top a key lime pie with a thin layer of sour cream before adding the whipped cream. Do you think that would be good… I’m afraid to try and ruin it.
Honestly, this is so good as is, I wouldn’t mess with it! 🙂
I am about to make this pie for Easter. I found key limes would I still use the same amount of lime juice or will it be too tart with key limes?
Hi Jo, Key limes will be fine here with no modifications. Hope you enjoy! 🙂
So tasty! I got lazy and made this with a pre made crust. The filling and topping were delicious. Next time I will make my own crust too. Thinking of trying a lower sugar option– Have you ever made it with unsweetened condensed milk?
Glad you liked it! I’ve never tried it with unsweetened condensed milk and not sure I’d recommend it. If you want to make it less sweet, you could use a tad more lime juice, omit the sugar from the whipped cream topping, and reduce the sugar a bit in the crust. Hope that helps!