This post may contain affiliate links. Please read our disclosure policy.
Ever fancied a quick, delicious dessert just for yourself? This Mini Key Lime Pie recipe is your perfect answer. Imagine a buttery graham cracker crust filled with a smooth, creamy lime custard, striking the right balance between tart and sweet. Ideal for those moments when you crave something sweet but don’t want leftovers, this mini key lime pie is baked in a small ramekin, making it just the right size.
Are you on the hunt for more delicious mini pie recipes? Check out our tangy Lemon Meringue Pie, creamy Coconut Cream Pie, indulgent Peanut Butter Pie, and rich Chocolate Pie. They’re each uniquely flavored and perfectly portioned to hit the spot when you’re craving a slice of pie.
Why You’ll Love This Mini Key Lime Pie Recipe
- Single Serving Perfection: No leftovers, just pure citrusy joy in a portion perfect for one!
- Easy as Pie (Literally!): This mini pie recipe couldn’t be simpler, with minimal ingredients and fuss-free steps.
- Quick Craving Crusher: Ready in under 30 minutes, perfect for satisfying sudden pie desires.
- Buttery and Creamy Texture: The combination of a buttery crust and creamy filling creates a delightful texture.
- Budget-Friendly: Uses pantry staples and avoids expensive specialty ingredients.
Ingredients
If you have any ingredients leftover from this single serve key lime pie recipe, check out our Leftover Ingredients Recipe Finder.
- Graham Cracker Crumbs: These sweet, whole-wheat cookies are the base of the classic mini graham cracker pie crust. Find them in the cookie aisle of most US grocery stores. Other options include gingersnaps, vanilla wafers, digestive biscuits (UK), or Arnott’s Granita biscuits (Australia). Consider using leftover graham crackers in a No-Bake Cheesecake, S’mores Dip, or Peanut Butter Pie.
- Butter: Salted or unsalted works! Butter gives the crust richness and holds it together.
- Egg Yolks: The key to that rich, creamy filling! Save the egg whites and use them in any of our egg white recipes like Coconut Macaroons or a Pavlova.
- Lime Juice: Regular limes are a great option, but bottled lime juice is also suitable. For a more authentic taste, consider using key lime juice.
- Sweetened Condensed Milk: This magic ingredient sweetens and thickens the filling for a smooth, decadent texture. You can freeze any leftover sweetened condensed milk in an airtight container for up to 3 months. You can also use any remaining sweetened condensed milk in Chocolate Ice Cream, a Tres Leches Cake, Mint Chocolate Chip Ice Cream, or Microwave Fudge.
RELATED: 15 Easy Dessert Recipes For One
How To Make A Mini Key Lime Pie
These step-by-step photos and instructions are here to help you visualize how to make an individual key lime pie. See the recipe box below for ingredient amounts and full recipe instructions.
Making the Mini Graham Cracker Pie Crust
- Start by heating your oven to 350°F (177°C). For the crust, take 2 sheets of graham crackers, place them in a ziplock bag, and seal it. Crush the crackers into fine crumbs using a rolling pin or a heavy can. This should give you about ¼ cup of crumbs. Alternatively, for a quicker method, put the crackers in a food processor and pulse until they become fine crumbs.
- Transfer the crushed crackers to a small bowl. Add melted butter and mix well.
- Press the graham cracker pie crust mixture into the bottom of a 10-ounce ramekin, using your fingers or the back of a spoon to form an even crust.
- Bake the crust for 15 minutes. After baking, take it out of the oven and let it cool.
Make the Filling
- In a small mixing bowl, combine 2 large egg yolks with 2 ½ tablespoons of lime juice.
- Stir in ¼ cup of sweetened condensed milk, whisking until the mixture becomes smooth and thickens.
- Pour this filling into the cooled crust and return it to the oven. Bake for another 15 minutes.
- Once done, remove the pie from the oven. Let it cool for about 20 minutes, and then place it in the refrigerator to chill for at least 3 hours.
When you’re ready to enjoy, take the pie out of the refrigerator. You can either cover the entire top with whipped cream or simply add a dollop on top. Enjoy your Key Lime Pie cold for the best taste experience!
Expert Tips
- Crust Consistency: Mix the crumbs and butter until the mixture resembles wet sand for the perfect crust.
- Whisk it vigorously: Combining the filling ingredients well prevents lumps and ensures a creamy texture
- Watch the Oven: Keep an eye on the pie while baking to prevent over-browning.
- Chill Before Serving: Let the pie cool and set in the fridge for at least an hour.
Frequently Asked Questions
This one’s important! For ideal results, use a 10-ounce ramekin measuring 4″ in diameter and roughly 1¾” tall. Not sure about yours? Fill it with water and pour it into a measuring cup – boom, instant size check! If you have smaller ramekins, simply divide the recipe and bake separately.
P.S., check our Store page for all the baking tools we use!
Absolutely! It saves time and works just as well.
Absolutely. Adding about 1/4 teaspoon of fresh lime zest to the pie filling before baking can enhance the tartness and lime flavor of your pie.
Yes, you can definitely create a meringue topping for your single serving Key Lime Pie. If you prefer meringue over whipped cream, simply use the leftover egg whites. Follow our Lemon Meringue Pie recipe using 1 egg white, or double the recipe for both whites and a cloud-like topping.
Knowing when your Key Lime Pie is perfectly baked can be tricky. The key is to bake it until the filling is just slightly jiggly in the center, which usually takes about 15 minutes in my oven. The filling should feel firm to the touch but not be completely liquid or fully solid. Remember, the pie will continue to set and solidify as it cools.
Stored in the fridge, it’ll be delicious for up to 3 days.
Ways To Use Leftover Ingredients
If you have any ingredients leftover from this recipe, check out our Leftover Ingredients Recipe Finder or you might like to consider using them in any of these single serving and small batch recipes:
If you’ve tried this “key lime pie for one” or any recipe on One Dish Kitchen please let me know how you liked it by rating the recipe and telling me about it in the comment section below.
If you take a picture please tag us on Instagram (@onedishkitchen) we’d love to see it!
Mini Key Lime Pie
Equipment
Ingredients
For the crust
- ¼ cup graham cracker crumbs (about 2 standard sheets of graham crackers)
- 1 tablespoon salted butter , melted
For the filling
- 2 large egg yolks
- 2 ½ tablespoons lime juice
- ¼ cup sweetened condensed milk
For the whipped cream topping (optional)
- ¼ cup heavy cream
- 1 teaspoon granulated sugar
- ¼ teaspoon vanilla extract
Instructions
Make the crust
- Start by heating your oven to 350°F (177°C).
- Transfer the crushed crackers to a small bowl. Add melted butter and mix well.
- Press the mixture into the bottom of a 10-ounce ramekin, using your fingers or the back of a spoon to form an even crust.
- Bake the crust for 15 minutes. After baking, take it out of the oven and let it cool.
Make the filling
- In a small mixing bowl, combine the egg yolks with the lime juice.
- Stir in the sweetened condensed milk, whisking until the mixture becomes smooth and thickens.
- Pour this filling into the cooled crust and return it to the oven. Bake for another 15 minutes.
- Once done, remove the pie from the oven. Let it cool for about 20 minutes, and then place it in the refrigerator to chill for at least 3 hours.
Make the whipped cream topping
- Using an electric hand mixer or a balloon whisk, whip the heavy cream, sugar, and vanilla extract on medium speed until soft peaks form.As you whip the cream and sugar together, you'll start to see the mixture increasing in volume. The cream will begin to thicken, become smooth, and leave trails in the mixture. When you lift the beaters or take the whisk out of the cream, the peaks are soft and will curl downwards and melt back into themselves almost immediately.Recipe yields about ½ cup of fresh whipped cream.
Notes
- Crust Consistency: Mix the crumbs and butter until the mixture resembles wet sand for the perfect crust.
- Whisk it vigorously: Combining the filling ingredients well prevents lumps and ensures a creamy texture
- Watch the Oven: Keep an eye on the pie while baking to prevent over-browning.
- Chill Before Serving: Let the pie cool and set in the fridge for at least an hour.
Nutrition
The information shown is an estimate provided by an online nutrition calculator. It should not be considered a substitute for a professional nutritionist’s advice.
I love your recipes, and enjoy your posts. This recipe is delicious!! However, if made with regular limes it is a LIME pie, not a KEY LIME. It needs to be made with key limes to be considered a key lime pie.
Thanks so much for your kind words about the recipes and posts! We’re thrilled you enjoyed the key lime pie recipe. You’re absolutely right, traditionally, key lime pie is made with key limes, which have a distinct flavor profile compared to regular limes.
We understand that finding fresh key limes can be tricky depending on location and season. In the ingredient notes section of the recipe, we actually recommend regular limes as a perfectly acceptable substitute! They will still deliver a delicious and refreshing lime pie. For those who can’t find fresh limes at all, bottled key lime juice (like Nellie & Joe’s) is another option to achieve a similar flavor.
So, whether you use key limes, regular limes, or bottled juice, the most important thing is to enjoy a delicious homemade pie!
I think I would try to add a bit more lime juice or some zest since I really didn’t taste any lime. Also more crust since I love Graham cracker crusts. Overall a good recipe and great to be able to make small desserts for myself!
Easy to make for a single-serve! Next time I make it I might:
– add some lime zest as I wished it had just a bit more zing.
– use vegetable shortening with the graham crackers for the crust, as I do with my cheesecake. This graham cracker crust with melted butter was perfectly fine, but I could’ve used another crunch element (or maybe just more crust!)
All in all, it’s an easy recipe and I’ll definitely make it again! lastly, I froze the leftover condensed milk in 1/4 cup increments.
This recipe makes the best Keto Key Lime Pie. I substituted the crust with sugar free homemade graham crackers and used sugar free condensed milk. This tastes just like the pies we sell at the bakery. My in-laws thought I bought it from the bakery! Thank you so much!
Great recipe. If you use the same amount of either lemon juice or orange juice, instead of lime juice, and keep the amounts of the rest of the ingredients the same, you can have a great and tasty lemon or orange pie.
I love the idea of using orange juice in this recipe – I can’t wait to try that version. Thank you for the suggestion.
Thank you, Ms. Zisk. I LOVE your website.
I love the idea of an orange pie! I have all the ingredients so as soon as I demolish the key lime pie, I will try an orange pie! Yum!
Great recipe.
Can’t wait to make this but without the crust for less calories. Thanks for posting.
Really like this idea to cook or bake for one person.