Kickin' Key Lime Pie

The key lime is a wonderful thing.  Small and aromatic, with a thin rind and unique flavor, it makes an excellent filling for pie. During the warm summer months, this is one dessert that I crave, so I'm always happy to have a bag of key limes from Melissa's Produce. I have found, over the years, that squeezing a bag of key limes, without fail, yields 3/4 cup of juice. My pie recipe calls for 1 cup of juice. In the past I have made up the difference with bottled juice (Horrors!  But true.), but this time I was determined to stay off of the bottle and use something else. 

While squeezing the limes I kept asking myself just what pairs well with lime? The answer came almost immediately (and I'm not quite sure just exactly what this says about me) - Tequila!  Of course!  So when the bag of limes yielded the expected 3/4 cup of juice, I made up the difference with 1/4 cup of Tequila. Ho, boy, this is what I call pie! Tart and sweet, with a slight kick of Tequila that made for a unique and delicious dessert. You will love this!

Kickin' Key Lime Pie

2 cans Sweetened Condensed Milk

3/4 cup freshly squeezed key lime juice

1/4 cup Tequila

1 tablespoon lime zest (zest before squeezing)

4 yolks from extra-large eggs

1 graham cracker crust (to which you may or may not add 1 teaspoon of lime zest)

1 cup heavy cream

2 tablespoons granulated sugar

Lime zest for garnish

Preheat oven to 350°F.

In a large stainless steel mixing bowl, whisk together the condensed milk, lime juice, tequila, zest, and egg yolks. Pour into the pre-baked graham cracker shell. Bake for 30 minutes. Remove to wire rack to cool. Once cool, cover loosely and refrigerate for 12-24 hours. Just before serving, whip cream to stiff peaks, slowly adding the sugar. Pipe decoratively onto pie and garnish with lime zest.

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