Thursday, January 20, 2011

Key Lime Pie

No shortcuts here! The best graham cracker crust, home made and so easy! :)

Graham Cracker Crust (enough for 1 9 inch pie plate)
2.5 tablespoons sugar
1.5 cups graham crackers, crushed
6.5 tablespoons butter, melted

Preheat the oven to 350. Combine sugar and crushed graham crackers in a medium bowl and mix. Pour melted butter on the top and mix together until the texture resembles sand. Press into the bottom and up the sides of a 9 inch pie pan. Bake at 350 for 10 minutes.

What to put in the graham cracker crust? So many options... but we'll try out the oh-so -summery (I miss summer!) key lime pie. This recipe is also unbelievably quick and easy, short of pressing the juice out of the itty bitty Key limes. If you have the patience, buy the Key limes and press the juice out yourself, using a strainer to strain out the seeds and any pulp. Jarred Key lime juice also works just fine.

Key Lime Pie Filling:

1 cup Key lime juice (fresh or bottled)
1 tsp grated key lime zest (you can use regular limes too)
2 14oz cans of sweetened, condensed milk
4 egg yolks, beaten

In a large bowl, combine sweetened, condensed milk with lime juice and mix (a wooden spoon works well for this) well. Add the egg yolks and lime zest and mix until homogenous and smooth. Pour into the pre-baked graham cracker crust and bake at 350 for about 20 minutes. Take out of the oven, let cool to room temperature, then put in the refridgerator until ready to serve. Garnish with lime slices and whipped cream or meringue.