Tag Archives: key lime pie

Quick Tip: How to Juice a Key Lime

13 Jun

I set upon the task of making a key lime pie recently. I have a recipe that I really enjoyed last time, and was thankful that Fresh Direct now stocks key lime.

But then I realized that I needed to squeeze roughly 30 individual limes… and that seemed like quite the undertaking. So I went browsing through the tips to find some way to make this easier. Someone mentioned a genius solution… juice the limes with a garlic press.

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It worked perfectly!

I cut all the key limes in half and then pressed them to juice them. It also meant that there were no seeds in the juice.  It could not have been easier.

And the pie?

Perfection.

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“What do I make for my Cookie Exchange?” (AKA The Big Dessert Post) – 2011 Update

12 Dec

#1 question that is coming up right now:

“What should I make for my cookie exchange?”

(Funny story… I have never been to a cookie exchange. I do love the concept… trading recipes and eating cookies does sound particularly awesome.  Perhaps I shall host one next year!)

In honor of the holidays… here is a selection of options that I have blogged about in the past that are great for a cookie exchange (with some 2011 updates):


Pumpkin Whoopie Pies

Chocolate Peanut Butter Bars/Cups (cups recipe at bottom of post)

Black and White Cookies

“O” Cookies

Peanut Butter Chocolate Chip Cookies

Cake Balls (they’re almost a cookie)

Homemade Crunchie Bars AKA Chocolate Covered Honeycomb (also not quite a cookie, but I think candy can count for an Exchange)

Chocolate Coffered Toffee with Salt (Candies for Cookies)

 

2011 Update:

White Chocolate Macadamia Nut Cookies

 

Chestnut Cookies

 

Homemade Salted Caramels (this photo was done in a mold and topped with chocolate)

 

Faux Fudge:

 

Meringue Mini Pies

 

Not into cookies/candies but still need a good dessert?


Peach and Pear Crumble

Key Lime Pie

Pie Variation #1 (Apple, with detailed instructions on making pie crust)

Pie Variation #2 (Cranberry Apple Pie- Prepared Crust)

Berry Belt Cake

 

2011 additions:

Grandma’s Plum Torte

Pumpkin Cheesecake: (and how to water-bathe it)

Drunk ‘N Nutty Pie

Strawberry Shortcake

Confetti Cupcakes with Bailey’s Frosting

 

If anyone does use any of these recipes for an Exchange, just give them this blog URL and ask them to tell all their friends!  K? 🙂

I will continue to add to this post as I post more dessert recipes.  So bookmark it or find it in the “Best of the Best” tab on the title bar.

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Easy as Key Lime Pie

13 Oct

Another birthday… another baked good.  This time it was a new adventure with Key Lime Pie.

I wanted to make sure I had a good graham cracker crust, and after much searching, I opted for one that sounded a bit different on my favorite recipe site, AllRecipes.com.

I happen to love that they sell Graham Cracker Crumbs already all crumbled in a box.  I never can get the consistency exactly right when I chop it myself.  I’ll pay a little more for that (and the convenience).  Unfortunately, it’s very hard to find (when stores have it, it’s by the bread crumbs usually).  I haven’t yet found myself ordering a CASE on Amazon… but I wouldn’t put it past me.

So first you mix together the 1.5 cups of graham cracker crumbs, 1/3 cup melted butter, and 3 Tablespoons of granulated sugar.

Then you press it into the bottom of a pie pan and spread egg yolk on it.  After reading the feedback on the recipe, I soon realized this was the tough part… and they were right.  First of all, I used more like 3 yolks to have enough to go around.  And second, it was NOT easy to spread.  I wound up kind of dolloping it on and pressing it down with the back of a spoon until it was coated.  No real spreading involved.  But it wasn’t too bad.

I then baked it for 10 minutes at 350 to brown it a little.

After that, I was ready to add the key lime pie filling.  I got the recipe, again, from AllRecipes.com.  This was also as easy as… pie.

Mix 3 cups sweetened condensed milk with 1/2 cup sour cream, 3/4 cup key lime juice (I couldn’t find key limes so I used regular limes… much to my hesitation… but it worked out just fine), and 1 Tablespoon of grated lime zest.  Mixed it well and poured it on in.

As I baked the pie for about 8 minutes at 350 degrees, I realized that it looked kinda… boring.  So I had some limes left and decided to candy them.

I sliced them thin and put them in some sugar and water to soften and sweeten.

They did soften, but BOY were these tart!  Not for the faint of heart by any means.  I actually scooped these off my piece…

But they sure added a touch of flair to the pie itself.

I let it bake until I saw tiny bubbles come up the surface (the key is not to brown it).

I then chilled it overnight and brought it in the next day.

It was DELICIOUS!  I’m not sure if I would add this to my repertoire, but for a first time key lime pie, I think it was damn good.

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