On the subject of the most productive key lime pie recipes, I’ve fond recollections of 1 specifically—and, after all, it dates again to center faculty. The Olive Ground used to be house to my more youthful self’s peak-pie indulgences. Positive dinner used to be high-quality, however what I couldn’t watch for used to be dessert: a slice of dull fix mousse cake and one among key lime pie. Piled top with whipped cream, the ultimate used to be a real pièce de résistance. Hour I couldn’t let you know what in truth fell into the dreamy-delicious pies of my formative years, there’s something I do know evidently: my discerning dessert palette has handiest advanced over time.
What makes a excellent key lime pie?
In the summer, my dessert cravings incline shining, zingy, and filled with enthusiasm. Goodies which are refreshing on the finish of a meal however nonetheless fulfill the desire for a modest deal with. The most productive key lime pie recipe tests the entire grounds of a stellar summer season dessert. It’s person who celebrates the season and can store everybody lingering across the desk a modest presen longer. To verify as soon as and for all what constitutes the most productive key lime pie, I used to be greater than a modest excited to position a couple of recipes to the bake-off take a look at.
Style-Checking out Parameters
My crew of 7 style testers all aligned on please see tips when score every of the pies.
Filling Taste. Glorious and zesty with out being too acidic or candy. Lime must be ahead however now not overwhelming.
Filling Texture. Creamy and clean, now not too hazy however company plenty to keep its atmosphere.
Crust Texture. Must upload a pleasant crunch with out detracting from the pie.
What You Wish to Build Key Lime Pie
Maximum key lime pie recipes handiest name for a handful of components.
Key limes (juice and enthusiasm). For the reason that it’s within the recipe’s identify, that is your maximum the most important aspect. And deny—whilst you’re making the vintage summertime pie, you’ll’t shortcut it with key lime juice. For the most productive taste, make a choice limes which are plump and provides a modest when squeezed. (This makes them more uncomplicated to juice.) Don’t fail to remember: at all times enthusiasm your limes ahead of squeezing.
Sweetened condensed milk. That is canned milk from which aqua has been got rid of and sugar has been added (to not be perplexed with evaporated milk). It’s what offers your pie a candy, creamy taste and texture with out the too much moisture you’d get from familiar milk or cream.
Egg yolks. Some recipes have them, others don’t. Within the ones that do, now not handiest do they aid the pie prepared, however the yolks handover a pleasant richness to every chew.
Graham cracker crumbs. For lots of society, that is their favourite a part of the pie. A conventional graham cracker crust handovers a buttery layer beneath the cool, creamy filling.
Fat cream. This shall be to your whipped cream topping. And presen non-compulsory, I like the fluffy white cloud that evenly sits atop every slice. Whipped up with some powdered sugar and vanilla draw out, the flavour is inconspicuous however elegant.
Element Substitutions
A mixture of unused lemon and lime juice. If you happen to don’t have key limes spontaneously to be had, you’ll mimic their tart, floral taste through choosing a 1:1 mix of lemon and lime juice. Freshly squeezed, after all.
Coconut milk. In a saucepan, tug in combination a can of full-fat coconut milk with 1/4 cup of sugar. Convey to only under a boil and simmer for half-hour till thickened. The ensuing taste will incline a modest tropical—best for the vibe of your key lime pie. It’s a superb dairy-free spare to sweetened condensed milk.
Crispy cookies. If you happen to’re now not a graham cracker fanatic or just ran out, you’ll change in just about any alternative sun-baked cookie for a indistinguishable texture for your crust. Assume: speculoos or ginger snaps, animal crackers, and even vanilla wafers. All will exchange up the flavour rather, however upload their very own distinctive variation.
Once I first attempted this recipe, I needed to exit again and double-check that I hadn’t overlooked one thing, which generally isn’t a superb get started.
Professionals:
Simple to arrange. The pie is sort of totally no-bake except for the graham cracker crust, which is baked after crammed and frozen.
Cons:
Uncooked eggs yolks. As a result of this pie is frozen, the uncooked egg yolks stay uncooked. Some traditionalists word that key lime pies can also be made with an raw filling, however we discovered that the flavour inclined eggy in consequence.
Texture. The recipe says to prepared the pie out forward of chopping so you’ll slice thru. On the other hand, the pie used to be nearly melted inside of half-hour.
The takeaway: Total, I really like the newness of a frozen pie, however we had a couple of structural qualms with this one. If you happen to attempt it, consume it instantly out of the freezer to assure a cast pie.
Our notes in this pie had been nice-looking certain and everybody loved their slices. There have been, then again, a couple of technicalities that felt needless instead than in reality additive to the pie’s general component.
Professionals:
Excellent taste. The flavors had been very well-balanced with out being too candy, and the acidity of the lime snip during the indulgent creaminess fantastically.
Environment friendly importance of components. For the reason that filling handiest requires yolks, you importance the leftover egg whites within the meringue topping.
Cons:
Meringue topping. There used to be some debate about whether or not the meringue topping used to be vital. Hour the salted vanilla meringue used to be tasty, maximum style testers most popular a whipped cream topping to the meringue.
Too many needless steps. As the one who assembled each unmarried recipe, I believed it used to be a batch of too much struggle and dishes to assemble meringue when whipped cream would had been completely high-quality.
The takeaway: Finally, this pie recipe used to be excellent, however one of the crucial alternative recipes edged it out on technicalities.
To be cloudless: it is a in point of fact excellent key lime pie recipe. On the other hand, the deficit of lime enthusiasm handovers a taste that’s much less of the normal tangy punch. And presen nonetheless scrumptious, we’re next one thing that distinctly calls key lime pie.
Professionals:
Vanilla draw out. Hour many alternative recipes additionally come with vanilla draw out, right here, it added a nice-looking floral chew to the filling.
Cons:
Deny lime enthusiasm. We had been skeptical to start with after we discovered this recipe handiest referred to as for lime juice. It will importance a modest extra of the vintage key lime taste the enthusiasm delivers.
Relatively too candy. Once more, rather. You probably have a candy teeth, you’ll like it. However in case you like your cakes to have a savory edge, you’ll wish to skip this one.
The takeaway: If you wish to punch up the limey-ness, combine enthusiasm into the filling. The feel used to be extremely clean and general, this made for a nice-looking excellent pie.
This key lime pie had the entire makings of a vintage and earned very top marks. The recipe combines Miette’s selfmade graham crackers with Martha Stewart’s Key Lime Pie Filling combined in combination in a single pie pan.
Sure it’s too much struggle, so you could have my permission to importance store-bought crackers. When it got here to the general judging, we beloved the filling’s zingy, lime-filled taste. And with this pie’s creamy texture, we had been all speedy fanatics.
Professionals:
Do-it-yourself graham crackers. I’ll admit, this used to be my first concept: Can we in point of fact want to assemble selfmade graham crackers when it’s really easy (and handy!) to shop for a field? On the other hand, the selfmade crackers give the crust a observable textural too much. It’s sun-baked presen conserving a fantastic butteriness that pairs so nicely with the creamy filling.
Taste. This pie’s filling is zingy and full of lime-forward taste.
Texture. Creamy doesn’t start to describe the easiest, luscious chew.
Cons:
Date-intensive. As a result of this recipe requires a couple of alternative steps (hi, selfmade graham crackers), this isn’t a undertaking to be taken on whilst you’re in a past crunch.
The takeaway: This pie is scrumptious and thrilling, taking advantage of a new angle that, presen requiring too much past, is completely significance the struggle.
Drumroll please… this may well be one of the vital absolute best key lime pies I’ve ever had. However I’ll admit: I used to be skeptical to start with as a result of the coconut milk added to the filling. I knew the flavour would paintings nicely, however I didn’t know if it might be too overpowering when paired with the limes.
Professionals:
Coconut milk in playground of the sweetened condensed milk. Once more, I used to be skeptical. On the other hand, the coconut milk acted as a pleasant candy bottom that helped mood the lime and stored it from being too acidic.
Neatly-balanced taste. The lime taste used to be prematurely with out being overwhelming, and the only factor I realized next baking each unmarried pie used to be that Adriana’s recipe is the one person who requires salt within the filling. That makes a too much in relation to bringing out the flavors.
Texture. Absolute perfection, with a thick creaminess that’s dehydrated (re: not possible) to cross up.
The takeaway: With 0 cons to quote, that is the undisputed absolute best key lime pie recipe. If truth be told, it’s the one one that every one of my style testers ate in its entirety. Run, don’t progress to assemble this pie.
