Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350°F (177°C). Lightly grease four 6 ounce ramekins with butter or nonstick spray. See recipe note about other ramekin sizes. Place in a baking pan or small casserole dish. Four 6-ounce ramekins fit nicely into a 9-inch square bake pan. The pies will bake in a water bath inside the pan.
- For the filling: In a medium bowl using a handheld or stand mixer fitted with a whisk attachment, beat the egg yolks on medium-high high speed until pale and slightly thickened, about 3-4 minutes. Add the lime juice, sweetened condensed milk, and lime zest. Beat on medium speed until combined. You’ll have about 2 cups of filling. Pour evenly into prepared ramekins.
- Add water for water bath: Without splashing into the ramekins, slowly pour hot water into the casserole dish around the ramekins, about halfway up the sides of the ramekins. If it’s easier, you can transfer the casserole dish to the oven first, then carefully pour in the hot water.
- Carefully place the casserole dish/baking pan in the oven. Bake until the top of each is mostly set, about 17-20 minutes. When lightly tapped, the very center should only slightly jiggle. Though not necessary, you can also check the internal temperature. These are safe to eat when an instant read thermometer reads 160°F (71°C).
- Using tongs or an oven mitt, remove the pies from the water bath and place on a wire rack set over a baking sheet or kitchen towel to catch any dripping water. Cool pies for about 1 hour at room temperature, then chill in the refrigerator for 1 hour before assembling and serving. You can enjoy at room temperature, but they taste better if you chill in the refrigerator.
- Meanwhile, make the crust: As the pies cool, crush up the graham crackers with your hands or place in a zipped-top bag and crush with a rolling pin. Place butter in a skillet on the stove over low-medium heat. Add graham cracker crumbs and brown sugar. Stirring constantly, toast/cook for 4 minutes. Remove from heat and allow to cool.
- Assemble & serve: Sprinkle a couple spoonfuls of crust topping on each cooled pie. Before serving, top with whipped cream, meringue, or any desired topping. I used Wilton 8B piping tip to pipe whipped cream in these photos.
- Cover leftover pies tightly and refrigerate for up to 3 days.
Notes
- Make Ahead Instructions: Prepare the individual pies 1-2 days in advance. Bake and cool as directed. Cover each and chill in the refrigerator until ready to garnish and serve. I don’t recommend topping with whipped cream or meringue more than 6-8 hours in advance. (Refrigerate uncovered after topping.) Baked & cooled pies freeze well up to 3 months. Thaw overnight in the refrigerator.
- Lime Juice: Key limes are hard to find in certain regions this time of year. You can buy bottled key lime juice in most major grocery stores (I like Nellie & Joe’s brand) or you can just use regular lime juice, bottled or fresh-squeezed. You need about 5 regular limes to yield 2/3 cup juice. In this recipe, you won’t really taste a difference between key lime juice and regular lime juice.
- Ramekin Size & Bake Time: You need oven-safe ramekins to make this recipe. This recipe yields 2 cups filling, which is perfect for four 1/2 cup servings in (affiliate link) 6 ounce oven-safe pyrex bowls or six 1/3 cup servings in 4 ounce oven-safe bowls/ramekins with enough room for toppings. If using 8 ounce bowls/ramekins, only fill with 1/2 cup or 1/3 cup of filling. No matter if each is 1/3 cup or 1/2 cup, the bake time is between 17-20 minutes.
- Graham Crackers/Note on the crust: Want to skip the brown sugar and butter in the “crust” topping? Go ahead! Skip the toasting in step 6 and simply crumble graham crackers over each pie. You need about 1/2 cup (50g) graham cracker crumbs. If you don’t have graham crackers, use any similar cookie. Outside of the US? Use digestive biscuits.
- Whipped Cream or Meringue Topping: Halve my whipped cream to make just enough. Mixing time remains the same. Instead of whipped cream, try marshmallow meringue. How convenient because you can use your 3 leftover egg whites to make it. Though I have a separate post for marshmallow meringue, follow the marshmallow meringue recipe and instructions in my s’mores brownie cupcakes. That recipe uses 3 egg whites and makes the perfect amount for 4-6 individual key lime pies.
