As all you long-time readers know, we absolutely love limes around here. You’ll also probably know that Brazilian Lemonade is my favorite drink in the whole world. So yeah, this key lime pie (and tarts, if you prefer)? It’s pretty much Brazilian Lemonade as a pie. The pie itself only has 4 ingredients and is truly one of the easiest desserts I know how to make.
This recipe can either be made as a pie or as tarts. And it’s awesome both ways. However, I like making them as tarts because of the following reasons: They’re cute, you get more out of the recipe (10 tarts as opposed to 8 slices of pie), it’s easy to make a bunch at once for an event, and they are easy to serve.
Ingredients Needed
This is just a preview of ingredients and method, keep scrolling for full printable recipe.
- 10 mini graham cracker crusts – Or 1 8-serving prepared graham cracker crust. You can always make your own Graham Cracker Crust if you’d like as well.
- Egg yolks
- Sweetened condensed milk – I’m all for generics most of the time, but most generic sweetened condensed milks I’ve found are a little gritty, so I always spring for the name brand Eagle Brand.
- Lime juice – Freshly squeezed. Do not use bottled lime juice! Look for smaller limes with thinner skin for the best tasting juice.
How to Make Key Lime Tarts
- First you’ll mix up a can of sweetened condensed milk with some egg yolks and fresh lime juice.
- Place your prepared graham crusts on a baking sheet and distribute the filling mixture evenly among them.
- Bake, cool, and then chill in the fridge until ready to serve. Immediately before serving, add a dollop of sweetened whipped cream.
Storing and Other Tips
- Store cooled pies, tightly covered, in the refrigerator and enjoy within 3-5 days for best results.
- If you plan on making these ahead of time, use stabilized whipped cream–regular whipped cream will not last more than a few hours before it starts to deflate).
- Single pie instructions: If you want to bake this as a single large pie, just use a standard 9″ (8-serving) graham cracker pie crust and bake for 15 minutes. Top each slice with whipped cream before serving.
Frequently Asked Questions
Of course! Make these tarts a day ahead of time. Use stabilized whipped cream, or whip your sweetened whipped cream up immediately before serving for best results.
Yes. Cool your tarts or pie completely and wrap tightly in plastic wrap. Then wrap tightly in foil or place in a zip-top bag with the date. Thaw overnight in the refrigerator and top with freshly whipped sweetened whipped cream before serving. Enjoy your frozen key lime pie within 3 month of freezing and within 3 days of thawing for best results.
Key Lime Pie & Tarts
Ingredients
Instructions
Tarts
- Preheat oven to 350℉.
- In a medium bowl, combine egg yolks, sweetened condensed milk, and lime juice. Distribute evenly among graham cracker crusts (I used my cookie scoop to make sure things were equal).
- Place tart pans on a baking sheet and bake in preheated oven 10-11 minutes. Remove from oven and allow to cool to room temperature, then chill in fridge until ready to serve (4+ hours).
- Before serving, add a dollop of sweetened whipped cream.
Whole Pie
- To bake this as a single large pie, just use a standard 9″ graham cracker pie crust and bake for 15 minutes. Chill in fridge until ready to serve (4+ hours). Top each slice with whipped cream before serving.
Notes
- Store cooled pies, tightly covered, in the refrigerator and enjoy within 3-5 days for best results.
- If you plan on making these ahead of time, use stabilized whipped cream–regular whipped cream will not last more than a few hours before it starts to deflate.
- To make sweetened whipped cream: Combine 1 cup whipping cream with 1/3 cup powdered sugar and 1 teaspoon vanilla extract in a bowl. Whip until soft peaks form. Top your pies and serve immediately.
- Nutrition facts were calculated without whipped cream.
Questions & Reviews
Can this be made ahead and frozen and then thawed before serving? I want to take it on a vacation and it would be so much easier if I could make them in advance and freeze them.
Yes! You can definitely freeze them, but I would wait to top with whipped cream until right before serving.
I have made this recipe as a regular pie several times, it’s completely delicious. I would just note that the pie takes closer to 30 minutes to bake in 9 inch pie form. I know most traditional key lime pie recipes say 15-17 minutes but this one is totally liquid at that amount of time. (And I know it’s not my oven, as I make a lot of your recipes and the times are spot on).
I’ve made this recipe several times and it’s one of my favorites! It’s time, I saw a big bag of those cute key limes on special for a dollar. They are actually pretty easy to juice. I let them sit in hot water for a few minutes to warm them up, then cut in half and squeezed each half with my hands. It took 10 minutes tops to squeeze 40 of them, and I only needed 15 to make half a cup.
I usually use the big limes, but I was feeling adventurous today 🙂
I love these! I’m making them for our YW activity this week! 🙂
Can these be frozen for later use?
Never mind, I just read through the other comments and you already answered that! Sorry1
I don’t know if anyone has mentioned this but if you add a tsp of vanilla it makes them super yummy. Just thought I’d throw that little tidbit in there. (:
What should the consistency for these be when they’re fished cooking?
They should be slightly jiggly, but firmed up.
These are so cute! I pinned these last night on Pinterest and just had the chance to really read through the recipe. I guess my husband pulled up the link since he went grocery shopping to get all the ingredients we didn’t have 🙂
I made these for St. Pats Day and my family loved them! So easy too…seriously, 3 ingredients?! I’m going to have to put other pies into those cute little crusts because they are so appealing and ahem, help with portion control.