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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This was amazing, I live in South Florida so I was able to use key limes, and it definitely made a difference. Quick and easy, everyone loved it! Thank you so much.
Just a quick question, I just got all the ingredients, how well did the pie set without any eggs?
Hi Abel, the pie sets nicely – hope you enjoy!
Yummy and easy!
I did it again! For at least the 5th time, I made Jenn’s “Key Lime” pie recipe. This time it was for my son’s birthday – I offered to make a cake, but he requested this instead. And, as always, it was a huge hit! No doubt, I will be making it again in the future – easy to make, delicious to eat and wonderful to hear the appreciative comments.
Make it – Recipe is fabulous as written! first time making Key lime pie. The texture and flavor were amazing. Used jarred lime juice. Lime zest in the pie and sprinkled on top are essential -presentation is important. I used a springform pan and parchment paper on the bottom…Set beautifully and was much easier to cut than in a pie plate. Thickness was perfect for a springform pan. Don’t doubt this recipe – it’s a winner
What size springform did you use. I’m making this for the first time myself for my twins’ birthday dinner tomorrow and found your comments very encouraging. I have several springforms in varying sizes, but not sure which one to use. I will be using fresh limes and am following some other comments about using sour cream instead of the yogurt. I’m also going to whip fresh whipping cream and add some powdered sugar to sweeten and a bit of vanilla instant pudding for flavor and stabilization. Really excited to try this! Thanks for your help!
9 or 10” both work – obviously 9 is thicker! I’ve used both didn’t really need to adjust cook time. Both great!
Hi Jenn.
I recently made this recipe for Easter. It was a huge hit! I was wondering if I could make it as a lemon pie, replacing all lime ingredients with lemon. Have you ever tried this? If not, do you think it would work? What recipe adjustments would be needed?
Appreciate any guidance you can offer!
Hi Frances, so glad this was a hit! I’ve never tried it with lemon but some other people have commented that they have and have enjoyed it. I don’t think you’d need to make any modifications with the exception of using lemons instead of limes. Please LMK how how it turns out if you try it!
Hi Jenn. I’ll definitely let you know how the lemon version turns out. Will try it for Memorial Day weekend.
P.S. My family and friends continue to talk about the key lime pie I made last month for Easter. They’ve all said it’s the best key lime pie they’ve ever had.
Thank you for sharing that recipe and all your other recipes! I’m not much of a cook or baker, but I enjoy trying your recipes because they always turn out and taste great. 🙂
Hey Jenn,
This is a fantastic Recipe! I made this with my son last week and it was his first time having key lime pie. We videotaped the adventure for our new series and I Added to the link to this recipe. If anyone is interested in watching us make this fantastic recipe. My instagram is @chefdakotaco
Thank you for the great recipe, and I am sure I will try other recipes you have.
Just used this recipe to make my very first lime pie, everybody loved it.! Beautiful textures and taste will definitely make again. Thank you!
Since my wife is both gluten and milk intolerant id like to know if you have ever tried this with coconut yogurt and coconut condensed milk? I’ve got two in the oven right now in gluten-free crusts. they are still watery after 15 min. I wonder if the casein in milk is the thickener.
Hi Greg, I can’t say I’ve ever used either of those. I’d love it if you reported back to let me know how they come out. Fingers crossed!
I just tried it with gluten free crust and coconut cream because I couldn’t find coconut condensed milk at my local grocery. It was super watery, so I took it put it in the freezer…waiting to see if that helps.
The original recipe is perfect!
I think it would be better if you made your own condensed “milk”. I’ve made it using almond milk, coconut milk and soy milk. I’ve used it in place of canned condensed milk for the past 12 years, works really well.
What are the amounts used to make your own condesned milk?
This is my new “go to” dessert recipe! It is so easy to make and everyone loves it. I usually don’t like key lime pie because it is too sweet – but this one is perfect. I refrigerated some leftovers and was surprised at how well the crust held up.