Gonna Bake Pie...Gonna Bake a Pie...Gonna Bake a Pie With a heart in the Middle..

Hello there! I have been so busy these last couple of weeks. School is winding up and there is so much going on...I am sure you can relate. But busy or not, I have some great recipes in store for you in coming weeks. I just finished a fabulous class on pies, one of which is the following beauty. Key lime pie is such a classic summertime dessert. I have made far more complicated Key Lime pie recipes, but I love the classic flavor offered by this easy recipe. Honestly, you can whip it up in 20 minutes! (of course that does not include baking time) So if you are not familiar with the Key Lime, it is smaller, seedier, has a higher acidity, a stronger aroma, and a thinner rind than the typical Persian Lime. Now, I am going to commit some sort of sin I think by sharing this little secret.....if you can't find any fresh key limes...Nellie and Joe's Key Lime Juice is pretty darn good. I have been known to use it...and when I do, I just grate the zest from a typical lime into the custard. It looks like this:

Oh, and did I tell you the crust has pretzels in it? Salty with the sweet and tart...ooooh yea baby! So here you go, one of my favorite, and easiest recipes posted yet. Please enjoy!

KEY LIME PIE

Crust
10 graham crackers, crushed
¾ cup pretzels, crushed
¼ cup sugar
6 tablespoons butter, melted
Custard
2 cans sweet and condensed milk
Zest of two limes
1 cup key lime juice
4 egg yolks
1 vanilla bean
Pinch of salt

In a food processor, pulse together the crackers, pretzels, sugar, and butter.

Pulse together all of the ingredients until they just come together. Press into a 9 or 10 inch pie dish and bake in a 350 degree oven for 8-10 minutes. Remove from oven when golden brown and let cool completely.

Combine the sweet and condensed, zest, juice, eggs, vanilla, and salt.
Pour into crust and bake for 20- 25 minutes at 350 degrees. Remove from oven and cool completely.
How easy was that?! I used to add a meringue to this...but I have found my favorite way to serve Key Lime pie is with just a dollop of lightly sweetened whipped cream.
Deeeelish!