No bake key lime pie
This no bake key lime pie is a fuss free, easy dessert. It’s zesty lime cheesecake like filling sits on top of a simple biscuit base. It’s so easy to make, even kids could do it.
No bake key lime pie is a deliciously zingy dessert, perfect for any dinner party or celebration. Our easy no bake version of a key lime pie is so simple to make, even it’s perfect for kids, or anyone wanting a simple make ahead dessert to share with friends.
This recipe uses a simple biscuit base and tops it with a zesty lime cheesecake like filling. The filling is beautifully smooth and creamy, while the zestiness of the lime is perfectly balanced by the sweetened condensed milk. Best of all, as it’s no bake there are no hot ovens involved which makes it perfect for kids to want to make something. The only tricky part is having the patience to wait for it to set!
Like most cheesecakes, this no bake key lime pie is also a really good recipe to make if you’re entertaining as you can make it ahead of time. It’s really simple so won’t have you slaving in the kitchen for hours yet it’s still delicious enough for it to feel special for any occasion.
What is a key lime pie?
Key lime pie is a traditional American dessert – a bit like a lime-y cheesecake. It gets its name as it uses limes from the Florida Keys. Here in the UK Key limes would be hard to find so we’ve just used regular limes.
How can kids help to make this key lime pie cheesecake?
No bake desserts like this are great desserts for kids to help make because they are super simple to make.
There are lots of easy steps for even very young children to get involved in. Older children might be able to make the whole thing themselves.
The first step of making the biscuit base is a really simple one for children to do. They can help to measure out the biscuits before bashing them to a fine crumb. To make this step a bit quicker, easier and less messy try popping the biscuits in a freezer bag before you base them.
Once the biscuits have been crushed and coated in melted butter, your kids can help to form the base. It’s an easy job of pouring or spooning the biscuit crumbs in before pressing them down into the tin. Make sure your kids do this step thoroughly so it’s well compressed so that it doesn’t crumble apart later.
The key lime pie filling is also really easy for kids to make. The ingredients just need to be whisked together, and if like us, yours come in the right sized containers you don’t even need to measure any of them out.
And once the filling has been made its a simple job of pouring or spooning it on to the base before leaving to set.
How long does a key lime pie keep?
It will keep for a few days in the fridge. Cover it in cling film / glad wrap before you put it in the fridge. As it’s full of cream and and cream cheese you do need to refrigerate it. It won’t keep at room temperature.
What biscuits can you use to make the base?
Any plain biscuits work well in this recipe. We’ve used Digestive biscuits but you could use any other plain biscuit like a Rich Tea, or Malted Milks. In the USA Graham crackers are a good biscuit to use for the base.
What can I use instead of cream cheese?
Yes, if you don’t have any cream cheese you can swap it for an equal amount of mascarpone. Cream cheese can be a little stronger in flavour than mascarpone and adds a tanginess that mascarpone doesn’t have but it will still taste nice.
How do you stop it from sticking to the tin?
To stop your key lime pie from sticking to the tin, make sure you butter the base and sides of your tin well. You can also line the base of the tin with a circle of baking, greaseproof or parchment paper.
When you want to remove the cheesecake from the tin, set it on top of a glass or a bowl and very gently and carefully push down on the edges. The pie should just slowly pop out. Once you’ve done that, carefully remove the circle of baking parchment from the base before setting on your serving plate.
How long does the key lime pie take to set?
A no bake lime pie like this can take at least six hours to set properly. If you have time, it’s best to make it the day before and leave it in your fridge overnight to set.
Remove your cheesecake from the fridge about half an hour before you want to serve and decorate it.
If you find it’s not fully set after 6 hours or if you don’t have 6 hours to wait you can pop it in the freezer for around an hour to firm it up.
Other delicious dessert recipes you’ll love
If you enjoyed this key lime pie, you might like some of our other easy cheesecake and dessert recipes:
Baked chocolate ripple cheesecake
Summer berry pavlova
No bake lemon cheesecake
Chocolate swiss roll
Double chocolate cheesecake
Lemon tartlets
White chocolate and raspberry cheesecake
No bake orange cheesecake
Biscoff cheesecake
Mary Berry’s lemon meringue pie
No bake chocolate cheesecake
Eton mess ice cream
Millionaire’s cheesecake
No bake mini chocolate tarts
Banoffee cheesecake
Strawberry cheesecake
Cornflake tart
After Eight cheesecake
Malteser cheesecake
Lemon meringue cheesecake
Useful equipment
You might need the following baking tools/gadgets to make this key lime pie
Digital scales
Freestanding mixer
Mixing bowl
Measuring cups
Zester
Lime/lemon juicer
Cake tins
23cm loose bottomed tart tin
Serving plate
As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases.. You will not be charged anything extra for this. Please refer to my Privacy Policy Page for more details.
Ingredients
For the base
300g Digestive biscuits (or any other plain biscuits)
150g (2/3 cup) butter
For the filling
250g cream cheese
397g Can condensed milk
Juice of 4 limes
300ml (1 ¼ cup) double cream
To decorate
Zest of 4 limes or some lime slices
How to make a key lime pie
Grease and line the base of a loose bottomed tart tin
Get your kids to lightly butter the base and sides of an 23cm (9 inch) round loosed bottomed tart tin, making sure you get into all the fluted edge. Line the base of the tin with a circle of baking or parchment paper.
Make the biscuit base
Measure the biscuits out and put them in a large mixing bowl or a large freezer bag.
Get your kids to bash the biscuits with a rolling pin (or something similar), until it resembles a fine breadcrumb or is a sandy texture. Make sure you get rid of any large chunks of biscuit as if you leave them in it is more likely to crumble apart later.
If you put them in a freezer bag or zip-lock bag you can save a bit of mess. It’s also a bit quicker so can be a good option if your kids are in charge of this step. As well as bashing the biscuits, try rolling the rolling pin over the biscuits to crush them to a fine crumb.
One final option is to use a food processor if you have one. A food processor is an even easier and quicker way of crumbing the biscuits. It will blitz the biscuits into a fine crumb in no time.
While your kids are crushing the biscuits, measure the butter and put it in a saucepan or microwavable bowl. Gently heat it on your cooker or pop it in the microwave until it has melted.
Once the butter has melted and the biscuits crumbed, mix them together either in your bowl or saucepan.
Stir the biscuits and butter together until all the biscuit crumbs are well coated in the melted butter.
Form the cheesecake base
The last step in making the base is to pour or spoon the butter coated crushed biscuits into your prepared tart tin.
Get your kids to spoon or pour the biscuit crumbs into your prepared tin.
Using the back of a metal spoon, or a spatula press the biscuits firmly down into the tin until it is all nice and level and compressed and spread well into the edges. We find it easiest to start going round pressing down gently, then start pressing more and more firmly until it is well compressed.
If it’s not well pressed down, your base might not set firmly so keep keep pressing it down in the middle and at the sides until it is nice and flat and really firmly set in.
Put the base in the fridge to chill for at least 20 minutes while you make the filling.
Make the key lime pie filling
Beat the cream cheese
Start by adding the cream cheese to a large mixing bowl or free-standing mixer. Using a hand held whisk or the whisk attachment of your free-standing mixer beat the cream cheese until its nice and smooth.
Add the condensed milk and lime juice
Pour the condensed milk into your mixing bowl – there’s no need to measure it out, as we’re using the whole can, just get your kids to pour the whole thing in.
Get your kids to help zest and juice the limes. Before you juice them if you pop them in the microwave for ten seconds or so then roll them around on your worktop you should get more juice out of them.
Before you juice the limes, zest them with a fine zester and set the zest aside for now.
Juice the limes, then add the lime juice to your mixer.
Mix the condensed milk and lime juice in.
Add the double cream.
Finally, add the double cream to your mixing bowl. Again, if your carton is the exact size, you can pour it all straight in.
Whisk the mixture for a few minutes until it has thickened and is nice and smooth.
Make the key lime pie
Get your kids to help pour or spoon the key lime pie mixture on top of your prepared base. Spread it out with a spatula or a palette knife until it has spread nice and evenly over your base.
Chill the key lime pie in the fridge for at least 6 hours, but preferably overnight.
To serve, remove the key lime pie from the tin by setting it on top of a bowl and gently pushing the side of the tin down. Slide the pie off the base of the tin and onto a serving plate. Sprinkle the lime zest on top, or if you have any more limes, cut a few slices for decoration.
Serve and enjoy.
No bake key lime pie
Equipment
- Digital scales
- Freestanding mixer
- Mixing bowl
- Measuring cups
- Zester
- Lime/lemon juicer
- Cake tins
- 23cm loose bottomed tart tin
- Serving plate
Ingredients
For the base
- 300 g Digestive biscuits or any other plain biscuits
- 150 g (⅔ cup) butter
For the filling
- 250 g cream cheese
- 397 g Can condensed milk
- Juice of 4 limes
- 300 ml (1 ¼ cup) double cream
To decorate
- Zest of 4 limes
Instructions
Grease and line the base of a loose bottomed tart tin
- Lightly butter the base and sides of an 23cm (9 inch) round loosed bottomed tart tin, making sure you get into all the fluted edge. Line the base of the tin with a circle of baking or parchment paper.
Make the biscuit base
- Measure the biscuits out and put them in a large mixing bowl or a large freezer bag.Bash the biscuits with a rolling pin (or something similar), until it resembles a fine breadcrumb or is a sandy texture.Alternatively you can use a food processor if you have one. A food processor is an even easier and quicker way of crumbing the biscuits. It will blitz the biscuits into a fine crumb in no time.
- While you are crushing the biscuits, measure the butter and put it in a saucepan or microwavable bowl. Gently heat it on your cooker or pop it in the microwave until it has melted.
- Once the butter has melted and the biscuits crumbed, mix them together either in your bowl or saucepan.Stir the biscuits and butter together until all the biscuit crumbs are well coated in the melted butter.
Form the cheesecake base
- The last step in making the base is to pour or spoon the butter coated crushed biscuits into your prepared tart tin.Using the back of a metal spoon, or a spatula press the biscuits firmly down into the tin until it is all nice and level and compressed and spread well into the edges. We find it easiest to start going round pressing down gently, then start pressing more and more firmly until it is well compressed.
- Put the base in the fridge to chill for at least 20 minutes while you make the filling.
Make the key lime pie filling
Beat the cream cheese
- Start by adding the cream cheese to a large mixing bowl or free-standing mixer. Using a hand held whisk or the whisk attachment of your free-standing mixer beat the cream cheese until its nice and smooth.
Add the condensed milk and lime juice
- Pour the condensed milk into your mixing bowl – there's no need to measure it out, as we're using the whole can.
- Zest and juice the limes. Before you juice the limes, zest them with a fine zester and set the zest aside for now.Juice the limes, then add the lime juice to your mixer.
- Mix the condensed milk and lime juice in.
Add the double cream.
- Finally, add the double cream to your mixing bowl. Again, if your carton is the exact size, you can pour it all straight in.Whisk the mixture for a few minutes until it has thickened and is nice and smooth.
Make the key lime pie
- Pour or spoon the key lime pie mixture on top of your prepared base. Spread it out with a spatula or a palette knife until it has spread nice and evenly over your base.
- Chill the key lime pie in the fridge for at least 6 hours, but preferably overnight.
- To serve, remove the key lime pie from the tin by setting it on top of a bowl and gently pushing the side of the tin down. Slide the pie off the base of the tin and onto a serving plate. Sprinkle the lime zest on top, or if you have any more limes, cut a few slices for decoration.
Notes
Pin it for later
Similar recipes
If you liked this no bake key lime pie, you’ll love our other easy desserts as well as our favourite easy bakes for kids.
Leave a Reply