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This small batch key lime pie ice cream is tart and creamy, made with fresh lime and graham crackers. It’s churned smooth and tastes like the pie in frozen form.
Quick Look
- Prep Time: 10 minutes
- Churn Time: 25 to 30 minutes
- Freeze Time: 4 hours
- Total Time: about 4 hours 40 minutes
- Equipment: 1½-quart electric ice cream maker and a freezer-safe container or loaf pan
- Cook Method: Churned
- Servings: 6
- Difficulty: Easy
- Flavor Profile: It’s bright, tart, and sweet, with the rich lime taste of key lime pie filling.
This homemade key lime pie ice cream has a soft, creamy texture, with crunchy bits of graham cracker throughout.
Why I Love This Key Lime Pie Ice Cream
This key lime pie ice cream started with the pie itself, which I fell for years ago on trips to Florida. Cooking for one, I rarely want a whole pie sitting in the fridge, so I made the flavor into a small batch of ice cream I can keep in the freezer and scoop a little at a time.
It comes together easily, because key lime pie is already built on sweetened condensed milk and lime, so that filling flavor carries straight into a churned base.
I fold the graham crackers in at the end, once the ice cream is thick, so they stay in distinct pieces instead of dissolving into the cream.
Each spoonful is cold and creamy, with a sharp lime tang and the honeyed taste of graham running through it. On a warm afternoon, that’s all I want.
If you like this one, try more of our small batch ice cream recipes, like our coconut ice cream, vanilla ice cream for one, or my single serving key lime pie if you’d rather have the classic.
Ingredient Notes
If you have any ingredients leftover from this key lime ice cream recipe with condensed milk, check out our Leftover Ingredients Recipe Finder.
Lime juice: This is where the tart, bright flavor comes from. I use fresh lime juice most of the time since limes are easy to find and cheaper than a bottle, but bottled key lime juice is the more authentic route if you want the true key lime tang. Either works. Use any extra lime in a skinny margarita or a small batch of cowboy caviar.
Sweetened condensed milk: This sweetens the ice cream and keeps it smooth and scoopable, since the sugar keeps it from freezing rock-hard. You’ll use one full 14-ounce can.
Heavy cream: This is what makes the base rich and creamy. Leftover cream works well in single serving vanilla pudding, single serving lemon posset, or a small white cake.
Lime zest: A little zest sharpens the lime flavor and adds the fragrant oils you only get from the peel.
Graham crackers: These bring the pie-crust flavor and texture. Toss them in at the end so they stay in pieces. Extras go into small batch peanut butter bars or a single serving lemon meringue pie.
Recipe Variations
Here are a few ways to change up this key lime pie ice cream recipe.
Buttered graham cracker crust: For graham crackers that stay crisp and taste more like a real crust, toast them first. Stir the crushed graham crackers with a tablespoon of melted butter, spread on a sheet pan, and toast at 350°F for about 5 minutes until golden, then cool before folding in.
Key lime soft serve: For soft serve, skip the freezing step. Once the ice cream is churned to a thick, soft-serve consistency, scoop and eat it straight from the machine.
Coconut or white chocolate: Fold in ½ cup of toasted coconut or white chocolate chips along with the graham crackers. Lime pairs well with both, and either one nudges this toward a tropical, candy-shop flavor.
No-churn key lime pie ice cream (without an ice cream maker)
To make this without a machine, whip 2 cups of cold heavy cream to stiff peaks. In a separate bowl, stir together the sweetened condensed milk, lime juice, and zest, then fold the whipped cream in. Pour half into a freezer-safe container, sprinkle with the graham crackers, then add the rest. Run a knife through the layers to swirl the graham crackers, then cover and freeze for at least 6 hours.
How To Make Key Lime Pie Ice Cream
Here’s how to make key lime ice cream in your ice cream maker, step by step. For exact amounts, see the recipe card below.
- Mix the base: In a large bowl, whisk together the sweetened condensed milk, heavy cream, lime juice, and lime zest until smooth and fully blended.
- Churn: Pour the base into a 1½-quart ice cream maker and churn for 25 to 30 minutes, until it’s thick and looks like soft serve. At this point you can eat it right away as soft serve, or keep going to freeze it firm.
- Add the graham crackers: Once the ice cream is thick, fold in the chopped graham crackers, mixing just until they’re spread evenly through.
- Freeze: Transfer to a freezer-safe container and freeze until firm enough to scoop, about 4 to 6 hours.
- Serving Your Ice Cream: Once it’s reached the perfect consistency, your Key Lime Pie Ice Cream is ready to enjoy. Serve it up as a refreshing treat any time!
Expert Tips
Freeze the ice cream maker bowl solid: Put the bowl in the freezer for at least 24 hours before you churn, until you can shake it and hear no liquid sloshing inside. A bowl that isn’t frozen all the way through can’t freeze the base as it churns.
Zest the lime before you juice it: Grate the zest off the whole lime first, since it’s hard to zest a lime once it’s been cut and squeezed. Take only the green outer layer and stop at the white pith, which tastes bitter.
Use full-fat dairy: Heavy cream is what keeps this smooth and scoopable, so don’t swap in a lower-fat milk or cream, which freeze harder and icier.
Store it airtight with wrap on the surface: Press a piece of plastic wrap right against the top of the ice cream before you cover it. That keeps air off the surface so ice crystals and freezer burn don’t form.
Troubleshooting
If your homemade key lime ice cream isn’t turning out quite right, here’s how to fix common issues like a base that won’t thicken, an icy texture, or graham crackers that turn soft.
Why won’t my key lime ice cream thicken in the ice cream maker?
The freezer bowl most likely wasn’t frozen solid, and there’s no saving this batch in the moment. A bowl with any liquid left inside can’t get cold enough to churn the base, so refrigerate the base, refreeze the bowl completely, which can take a full day, then churn again.
Why is my key lime ice cream too hard to scoop?
Let it sit on the counter for 5 to 10 minutes before scooping. Homemade ice cream freezes harder than store-bought, and a few minutes at room temperature softens it enough to scoop cleanly.
Why is my key lime ice cream icy instead of creamy?
It usually means the base was under-churned, or the ice cream partly melted and refroze. Churn until it reaches a thick, soft-serve consistency before freezing, and once it’s in the freezer, scoop only what you’ll eat so the rest doesn’t soften and refreeze into larger ice crystals.
Why did my graham crackers turn soft?
Plain graham crackers absorb moisture from the ice cream, so they soften the longer they sit. Fold them in at the end and eat the ice cream within a few days for the most crunch, or use the buttered, toasted graham from the variations above, which holds its texture far longer.
Frequently Asked Questions
For this recipe, yes, it’s churned in a machine for the smoothest, creamiest texture. If you don’t have one, use the no-churn version above, which whips the cream by hand instead.
Yes. Regular Persian limes work in place of key limes. Key limes are a little more tart and floral, but the recipe turns out well with either, and regular limes are cheaper and easier to find.
Yes. Bottled key lime juice is a good shortcut, since fresh key limes are small and take a lot to juice. It gives the most authentic key lime flavor, which is why I reach for it, though fresh regular lime juice works too.
Yes. Straight out of the ice cream maker the churned base is already at soft-serve consistency, so you can scoop and eat it right away instead of freezing it firm.
About 4 to 6 hours. After churning, freeze it until firm enough to scoop. Overnight gives the firmest texture, and you can let it sit out a few minutes before scooping.
About 1 to 2 weeks, stored airtight with plastic wrap pressed against the surface. It’s best in the first few days, and after that it picks up ice crystals and freezer burn that dull the texture.
RELATED: 15 Easy Dessert Recipes For One
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 make this key lime pie ice cream, I’d love to hear how it turned out. Leave a star rating and a comment below to let me know, and if you snap a photo, tag us on Instagram at (@onedishkitchen).
Small Batch Key Lime Pie Ice Cream
Equipment
Ingredients
- 1 (14-ounce) can sweetened condensed milk
- 1 cup heavy cream
- ¾ cup lime juice (fresh, or bottled key lime juice)
- ¼ teaspoon lime zest
- 3 sheets graham crackers – rough chopped
Instructions
- In a large bowl, whisk together the sweetened condensed milk, heavy cream, lime juice, and lime zest until smooth and fully blended.
- Pour the base into a 1½-quart electric ice cream maker and churn until thick and the texture of soft serve, 25 to 30 minutes.
- Add the chopped graham crackers and churn or stir just until they're evenly distributed.
- Transfer to a freezer-safe container and freeze until firm enough to scoop, 4 to 6 hours.
Notes
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.
Just making sure – the whipping cream is doubled if not using an ice cream maker (2c vs 1c)? Thanks!
Yes.
one of my favorite flavors. yum!
Oh, mine too Dina. I’ve been mildly obsessed with key limes lately.