Key Lime Pie: A wonderful summer treat in the dead of winter

One of my favorite treats growing up in Florida was the redoubtable Key Lime Pie.  Originally an uncooked confection (the filling is "cooked" chemically by the highly acidic Key lime juice) using the fragrant juice of the 'Swingle'  (Citrus aurantifolia) lime as opposed to the more common Persian limes, and mixing with sweetened condensed milk (which required no refrigeration), it became a staple dessert in the early 20th century in the south.  It's also monstrously easy to make.  Let's give it a shot aboard ship:

You'll need:  1/2 cup of Key Lime Juice (available most places now in bottled form), three egg yolks (keep the whites for something else), a 14 oz. Can of Sweetened Condensed Milk, and a 9" graham cracker crust.  What makes this a great on board ship dessert is none of this really requires refrigeration prior to making the dessert.

Separate the eggs and use the yolks....you can always use the whites for something later.

Separate the eggs and blend in the sweetened condensed milk while you're heating your oven (350 Fahrenheit). 

Mix them well.  Remember, though, you're mixing, not whipping the mixture (which makes for some funky texture).  As soon as your oven hits temperature, thoroughly mix in the lime juice, pour into the pie shell, and cook.  Don't let the combined mixture sit around in the bowl before you pour into the pie shell.  You may have a bowl of cooked filler.

Add the juice, mix thoroughly

Don't dally.  Fill the pie crust and get it in the oven

There are, indeed, places with certified eggs that do not cook this pie.  If I knew for certain the health and province of my chickens, I might not either, but modern, commercial, factory laid eggs can't be trusted not to carry salmonella.  The brief cooking is enough to kill any nasties in the filling without changing it's nature. 

The smell is wonderful

Cook at 350 degrees for 15 minutes, then set the pie to rest (if you can keep your paws off of it that long) for about ten minutes before refrigerating it (if you can keep your paws off it for that long) for about half an hour.

REAL whipped cream, mind you.  Cream, a little sugar, drop of vanilla. 

Oh, Yum, even if I did nearly drop it.

Serve with a dollop of fresh whipped cream and perhaps a thin lime slice.  This would look prettier if I hadn't almost dropped the pie when taking it out of the oven....sigh.  But it's still wonderful.

The taste is a wonderful symphony of sweet and tart, with the crunch of the graham crust as a bonus.  I just love it.

Enjoy.

M