The indulgent, pleasantly mouth-puckering Floridian dessert in nine easy steps
Beautiful as the Florida Keys are, with average August temperatures topping 30C and with hurricane season looming, I think I’d rather enjoy their most famous culinary export in the calm of our own more temperate isles (well, usually, at least). Cool and creamy, with a refreshingly sharp, citrus tang, this is the perfect make-ahead dessert for any bank holiday festivities.
Prep 20 min
Cook 15 min
Chill 3 hr+
Serves 6
For the base75g butter, or coconut oil, plus extra for greasing200g digestive biscuits (about 13)1 pinch salt
For the filling4-5 limes
4 egg yolks400g tin condensed milk
For the topping (optional – see steps 8 and 9)300ml whipping or double cream
1 tbsp icing sugar
In the States, this would involve graham crackers, which are sweeter and more crisp than our digestive biscuits. The latter do make a decent substitute, but feel free to swap in any other biscuits you like the idea of with lime (I suspect ginger nuts would be rather good).
Heat the oven to 180C (160C fan)/350F/gas 4 and lightly grease a 20cm tart tin – not too shallow a one, ideally, and preferably loose-bottomed if you’re planning on taking the pie out of the tin to serve. Crush the biscuits to a fine crumb, either using a food processor or by wrapping them in a clean tea towel and whacking with a rolling pin.
Melt the fat in a microwave or a small saucepan – butter is the classic choice, but I like the flavour of coconut oil here – then stir into the crumbs with a pinch of salt. Tip into the tin, use your hands to press down the mix into an even crust across the base and up the sides, then press down again with the base of a glass.
Bake the crust for about 15 minutes, until it’s dry to the touch, then take out of the oven and leave to cool (though not mandatory, this step will give a crisper crust that holds together much better upon slicing, so it’s worth turning on the oven for).
Key limes are a distinct variety of thin-skinned, aromatic citrus that are hard to get outside the Americas. Happily, though not an exact match, this recipe works just as well with standard limes, especially if you use the zest as well as the juice. Scrub the fruit under hot water, then finely grate the zest into a large bowl.
Squeeze the juice from the zested limes into a jug until you have about 120ml, straining out any pips as you go. Add the egg yolks to the zest bowl (the whites make a lovely meringue topping, if you’re looking for a way to use them up: see step 9 for a suggested recipe to replace the cream).
Beat the yolks and zest for a couple of minutes with a whisk, electric beaters or a food mixer until the mixture thickens and turns pale green, then stir in the condensed milk. Beat in the lime juice – the mix should be shockingly tangy and sweet; chilling will mute the lime flavour, so add more juice, if you like – then pour the filling into the cooled biscuit shell.
Chill for at least three hours, until set. If you’re planning on topping your pie with cream, whisk this and the sugar in a large bowl until the mix holds soft peaks, then dollop on top of the set filling. Garnish with extra slices of lime, if you have them, or some grated lime zest, and serve.
If you prefer a meringue topping (and to use up some excess egg whites into the bargain) – for the sweet toothed only! – whisk two of the egg whites to soft peaks, then beat in 115g sugar a tablespoon at a time, until the mix is glossy and holds its shape. Beat in half a teaspoon of vinegar or lime/lemon juice, then spoon on top the pie. Brown briefly with a blowtorch or under a hot grill before serving.
