Holy hiatus! I realize it has been a while since I last posted a recipe. My excuse is that I had projects and exams due, I was working, and friends and family were visiting (which was sooo nice). However, I would like to say that I have tried to prove my dedication to this project by making this key lime pie twice! I got the recipe from 200 Delicious Desserts by Sarah Lewis. The book was a gift from my friend Hilda who visited back in February. It is compact with lots of great recipes and suggestions for alterations. The citrus notes of this particular pie really complemented the current transition into spring and summer. It was really popular with my house mates the first time I made it and there were a couple of tiny tweaks I wanted to experiment with the second time around.
The thing that bothered me the most about my first attempt was that I over whipped the double cream that goes on the top. It looked a bit lumpy and porous and I thought that for presentation it would be nicer if it was smoother. If I were to make it again, I would probably whip the cream for even less time. As long as it is not liquid, it is probably good to go. The other difference is that the first time I did not have any lemons so I just put in extra lime juice. Adding a bit of lemon juice the second time helped balance out the flavours and I think it was a nice subtle touch (that was the general consensus from the flat mates).
The pie needs a minimum of three hours to chill before adding the cream topping. Both times I made the main part of the pie the night before, let it chill overnight, and then added the topping the following morning. It is probably one of my favourite recipes I have made on Alphabake so far. It is quite easy to execute so if you get a chance to, definitely try it out!
Ingredients:
200g (7 oz) digestive biscuits (grahm crackers), crushed
4 Tbls caster sugar
6 Tbls unsalted butter, melted
3 eggs, separated
400g (13 oz) can full-fat condensed milk
125 ml (4 fl oz) freshly squeezed lime juice
1 Tbls lemon juice
2 tsp grated lime rind
Topping:
250 ml (8 fl oz) double cream
1 Tbls icing sugar
1 Tbls vanilla extract
Mix together the biscuit crumbs, half the sugar and the melted butter and press over the bottom and up the sides of a greased 23 cm (9 inch) spring-form tin. Refrigerate while making the filling.
Beat the egg yolks lightly together until creamy. Add the condensed milk, lime and lemon juice and lime rind and beat until well mixed and slightly thickened. In another bowl, beat the egg whites until stiff. Add the remainder of the sugar and continue beating until the meringue holds soft peaks. Use a large metal spoon to fold the meringue mixture gently but thoroughly into the lime mixture.
Spoon the filling into the crumb crust and smooth the top. Bake in a preheated oven, 160C (325F) for 15-20 minutes or until the filling is just firm and lightly browned on top. When cool, refrigerate the pie for at least 3 hours, until it is well chilled.
Whip the cream until it begins to thicken. Add the icing sugar and vanilla extract and continue whipping until it forms thick swirls. Spread the cream over the top of the chilled pie. Decorate with twisted lime slices, if liked. Remove the side of the pan just before serving and serve well chilled.
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| This is a picture of Pie #1 -- Note the slightly lumpier topping |
I made this for my family and they loved it! A couple things went wrong of course...I didn't have enough graham crackers for the crust so I ground up some oats hoping it would pass! And it did! Then my mom lives at a higher altitude (1 mile high) SO the pie had to cook for twice as long! Something to keep in mind- high altitude cooking can be very irritating! Anyway, thank you for the recipe it was a great hit! Because you had the lumpy cream warning, I stayed away from it by whipping it by hand, old fashioned style- also made me feel like I had really earned my piece of pie!- Greetings from Albuquerque, New Mexico!
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