Description
What’s better than key lime pie? Little mini key lime pies!
Ingredients
Crust
- 1 and 1/2 cups (180g) graham cracker crumbs (about 12 full sheet graham crackers)
- 6 Tablespoons (85g) unsalted butter, melted
- 1/4 cup (50g) granulated sugar
Filling
- 4 ounces (113g) full-fat brick cream cheese, softened to room temperature
- 4 large egg yolks
- one 14-ounce can (396g) full-fat sweetened condensed milk
- 1/2 cup (120ml) key lime juice*
- optional: lime slices and whipped cream for garnish
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350°F (177°C). Line a 12-count muffin pan with liners and a second 12-count muffin pan with only 4 (since this recipe makes only around 16). Set pans aside.
- Make the crust: Before you begin, here are all of my tips for a perfect graham cracker crust. If you’re starting out with full-sheet graham crackers, you can use a food processor or blender to grind them up. Or crush them in a zipped top bag with a rolling pin. Mix the graham cracker crumbs, melted butter, and granulated sugar together with a rubber spatula in a medium bowl until combined. The mixture will be thick, coarse, and sandy. Press a heaping Tablespoon of mixture down into each liner, making sure the crust is tight and compact. You might have a little crust leftover. If so, press a little more into each liner—if desired! Pre-bake the crusts for 5 minutes. Remove from the oven.
- Make the filling: In a large bowl using a handheld or stand mixer fitted with a whisk attachment, beat the cream cheese on high speed until smooth, about 1 minute. On medium-high speed, beat in the egg yolks, scraping down the sides as needed. On high speed, beat in the sweetened condensed milk and lime juice until combined.
- Pour the filling evenly into each crust. Bake for 15–16 minutes or until the centers of the pies only slightly jiggle (I check this by wiggling the muffin pan—with an oven mitt on!—while it’s still in the oven). Allow the pies to cool at room temperature in the pan set on a wire rack. Once completely cool, place the pan in the refrigerator for at least 2 hours and up to 1 day.
- Once chilled, serve the key lime pies cold with whipped cream and a lime slice if desired. Store leftover pies in the refrigerator (covered) for up to 1 week. If they last that long!
Notes
- Make Ahead & Freezing Instructions: Up to 1 day in advance, you can prepare the crust ingredients and the filling ingredients separately. Store each covered tightly in the refrigerator until ready to assemble and bake. Likewise, as noted in set 4, you can bake the key lime pies and store in the refrigerator for 1 day before serving. Key lime pies freeze well, up to 2–3 months. Thaw overnight in the refrigerator before serving.
- Special Tools (affiliate links): 12-count Muffin Pan | Muffin Liners | Food Processor or Blender | Glass Mixing Bowl | Rubber Spatula | Electric Mixer (Handheld or Stand)
- Key Lime Juice: For the best flavor, make sure you use key lime juice. You can juice your own key limes or buy it from the store. It is usually with the regular lime and lemon juice in the juice aisle. I buy Nellie & Joe’s brand. In a pinch, you can use regular lime juice.
- For a Full-Size Key Lime Pie: To make these as a pie, simply use this crust and filling recipe. Press crust into a 9-inch pie dish. Pre-bake for 12 minutes at 350°F (177°C). Pour in filling. Bake for 18 minutes, and then allow to cool at room temperature before chilling in the refrigerator for at least 4 hours or overnight.
- Adapted from Key Lime Pie Bars.
- Non-US Readers: Don’t have graham crackers where you live? Use 2 cups (200g) ground digestive biscuits instead (about 13–14 biscuits), the same amount of butter, and add a bit more sugar (about 1/3 cup, or 67g). You may need to add a few extra minutes to the pre-baking time, as digestive biscuits are not quite as crispy-crunchy as graham crackers.
Keywords: mini key lime pies