All the flavors you love in a key lime pie can be found in this Key Lime Pie For One! Smooth and creamy with the perfect balance of tart and sweet. Baked in a ramekin or small baking dish, this classic pie is made with "regular limes" and comes complete with a buttery graham cracker crust. So easy to make!
I use regular limes to make my "key lime" pie. Key limes are often difficult to find and they're so tiny that you'll need to juice quite a few to even make a mini key lime pie. Ordinary limes make a wonderful key lime pie but you can also use bottled lime juice too.
Why This Recipe Works
- Made with just 3 filling ingredients: This exceptional pie is made with sweetened condensed milk, egg yolks, and lime juice for the filling.
- It's got a key lime pie's signature crust: We've created a buttery graham cracker crust which we top with the smooth and creamy lime filling.
- The perfect size for one: Baked in a ramekin or small baking dish, this single serving dessert is perfect for anyone cooking for one.
Ingredients
Ingredient Notes
- Graham cracker crumbs: Graham crackers are sweet whole wheat cookies made from graham flour. They are commonly found in the US in the cookie aisle of the grocery store. You can also use ginger snaps or vanilla wafers. In the UK, you can use digestive biscuits and in Australia, Arnott’s Granita biscuit is a good substitute.
- Butter: I use salted butter in this recipe but you can use unsalted if you'd like.
- Egg yolks: Egg yolks are a key ingredient in a key lime pie. See below for ways to use up the leftover egg whites.
- Lime juice: A traditional key lime pie is made with key limes but you can use the juice from regular limes or bottled lime juice instead.
- Sweetened condensed milk: Used to sweeten and thicken the filling.
See below for ways to use leftover ingredients.
RELATED: 15 Easy Dessert Recipes For One
How To Make Key Lime Pie For One Person
See the recipe box below for ingredient amounts and full recipe instructions.
- Make the crust: Preheat the oven to 350° F (177°C). Place 2 sheets of graham crackers in a ziplock bag, seal, and roll with a rolling pin or heavy can to crush. This yields about ¼ cup of crushed graham crackers. Alternatively, you can add the cookies to a food processor and pulse until the cookies turn to crumbs.
- Pour the cookie crumbs into a small bowl and stir in melted butter.
- Pour the crumbs into a 10-ounce ramekin. Using your fingers or the back of a spoon, press the crumbs gently so they form a crust on the bottom.
- Bake the crust for 15 minutes. Then, remove from the oven and set it aside to cool.
- Make the filling: Mix 2 large egg yolks and 2 ½ tablespoons of lime juice in a small mixing bowl.
Pro Tip: Save the egg whites to use in other egg white recipes. The link to egg white recipes can be found below.
- Add ¼ cup of sweetened condensed milk and whisk until smooth and thick.
Pro Tip: Leftover sweetened condensed milk can be stored in the freezer in an airtight container for up to 3 months or see below for other recipes using sweetened condensed milk.
- Pour mixture into the crust and bake for 15 minutes.
- Remove from the oven. Allow to cool for about 20 minutes, then refrigerate for at least 3 hours. When you are ready, take it out of the refrigerator, top either the entire pie with whipped cream, or add just a dollop to the top, and enjoy.
Pro Tip: A key lime pie is best enjoyed cold.
Frequently Asked Questions
Absolutely! Although I like to top my single key lime pie with whipped cream, you can save the egg whites and make a light and airy meringue topping. Use the meringue recipe from our lemon meringue pie using 1 egg white or use both egg whites and double the other ingredients to make a fluffier meringue.
Sure. If you'd like to intensify the tart lime flavor, add about ¼ teaspoon of fresh lime zest to the filling ingredients before baking.
I'm mentioning it again because it is SO IMPORTANT.
For best results, use a 10-ounce ramekin that measures 4-inches in diameter and is approximately 1 ¾-inches tall. Many ramekins don’t have the size printed on them. Because of this, it can be hard to know exactly how large (or small) yours is. The best way to measure the size of your ramekin is to fill it with water and pour the water into a measuring cup.
If you happen to have much smaller ramekins, use those and divide the crust and the filling between both ramekins.
Be sure to check out our Store page where we feature all of the baking dishes we use in our recipes.
It can sometimes be hard to know when a key lime pie is done but here's how I tell: bake the pie until the filling is slightly jiggly in the center, this takes about 15 minutes in my oven. The filling should be firm to the touch, but not completely liquidy or totally solid. A key lime pie will continue to solidify as it cools.
Expert Tips
- Make ahead: The filling can be made several hours in advance. If making this pie ahead of time, keep the filling in the refrigerator until you are ready to use it. You can make the crust a day ahead of time, but the filling should be added on the day you are planning to enjoy the pie, otherwise, the crust will get soggy.
- Key Lime Pie Toppings: You can top your key lime pie with whipped cream or meringue. The pie is also exceptional without either, especially if you like tart desserts.
- Cool the crust: Be sure to let the crust cool completely before pouring in the filling.
- Chill the pie before eating: In order for the pie to properly set up, it needs to cool in the refrigerator for at least 3 hours before eating.
- Storing a key lime pie: This pie will keep for 2-3 days in the fridge, covered loosely with plastic wrap or foil. I recommend topping your pie with whipped cream when you are ready to enjoy it. Although there are frozen key lime pie recipes, I do not recommend freezing this version of the pie.
A word about calories...
The nutrition information calculated in the recipe box is an estimate based on an online nutrition calculator.
Keep in mind that this recipe yields one VERY LARGE "slice" of key lime pie. It is not a typical slice of pie. The pie is baked in a 10-ounce ramekin and can be enjoyed in one sitting or over a couple of days.
If you'd like to reduce the calorie count, do not spread whipped cream over the entire pie. Either add a dollop to the top as shown in the photos or leave it off altogether.
Ways To Use Leftover Ingredients
If you have any ingredients leftover from this mini key lime pie recipe, you might like to consider using them in any of these single serving and small batch recipes:
- Graham crackers: Peanut Butter Pie, Icebox Cake, No-Bake Cheesecake, Mini S'mores Dip
- Lime juice: Lime Posset, Key Lime Pie Ice Cream, Margarita, Guacamole, Pickled Onions, Ranch Water
- Egg whites: Meringues, Coconut Macaroons, Flourless Chocolate Pecan Cookies, Two Vanilla Cupcakes, Texas Sheet Cake
- Sweetened condensed milk: Tres Leches Cake, Microwave Fudge, Mint Chocolate Chip Ice Cream, Vanilla Ice Cream
Other Mini Pie Recipes
- Cherry Pie
- Blueberry Pie
- Dutch Apple Pie
- Sweet Potato Pie
- Pecan Pie
- Pumpkin Pie
- French Silk Pie
- Lemon Meringue Pie
- Coconut Cream Pie
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!
Key Lime Pie For One
See the post above for expert tips,
FAQs and ways to use leftover ingredients.
Equipment
Ingredients
For the crust
- ¼ cup graham cracker crumbs
- 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
- Preheat the oven to 350° F (177°C). Place 2 sheets of graham crackers in a ziplock bag, seal, and roll with a rolling pin or heavy can to crush. This yields about ¼ cup of crushed graham crackers. Alternatively, you can add the cookies to a food processor and pulse until the cookies turn to crumbs.
- Pour the cookie crumbs into a small bowl and stir in the melted butter.
- Pour the crumbs into a 10-ounce ramekin. Using your fingers or the back of a spoon, press the crumbs gently so they form a crust on the bottom.
- Bake the crust for 15 minutes. Then, remove from the oven and set it aside to cool.
Make the filling
- Mix egg yolks and lime juice in a small mixing bowl.
- Add sweetened condensed milk and whisk until smooth and thick.
- Pour mixture into the crust and bake for 15 minutes.
- Remove from the oven. Allow to cool for about 20 minutes, then refrigerate for at least 3 hours. When you are ready, take it out of the refrigerator, top either the entire pie with whipped cream, or add just a dollop to the top, and enjoy.
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
- Make ahead: The filling can be made several hours in advance. If making this pie ahead of time, keep the filling in the refrigerator until you are ready to use it. You can make the crust a day ahead of time, but the filling should be added on the day you are planning to enjoy the pie, otherwise, the crust will get soggy.
- Key Lime Pie Toppings: You can top your key lime pie with whipped cream or meringue. The pie is also exceptional without either, especially if you like tart desserts.
- Cool the crust: Be sure to let the crust cool completely before pouring in the filling.
- Chill the pie before eating: In order for the pie to properly set up, it needs to cool in the refrigerator for at least 3 hours before eating.
- Storing a key lime pie: This pie will keep for 2-3 days in the fridge, covered loosely with plastic wrap or foil. I recommend topping your pie with whipped cream when you are ready to enjoy it. Although there are frozen key lime pie recipes, I do not recommend freezing this version of the pie.
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.
Leslie says
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.
jenn says
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!
J. Hegyi says
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.
Joanie Zisk says
I love the idea of using orange juice in this recipe - I can't wait to try that version. Thank you for the suggestion.
J. Hegyi says
Thank you, Ms. Zisk. I LOVE your website.
J. Hegyi says
Great recipe.
Kathi says
Can't wait to make this but without the crust for less calories. Thanks for posting.
Norma Sheridan says
Really like this idea to cook or bake for one person.