Key Lime Pie on a Stick

Way back in the spring of 2004, Boyfriend and I went on our first cruise. At this point in our lives, I was in Grad school in Madison, WI and he was working in Miami, FL. You can imagine that I spent as much time as I could get away with visiting him during the winter months. As we’ve discussed before, winter is not the best time to visit Wisconsin. It’s a little cold and frigid and blustery. For the entire month of February 2004, the temperature didn’t rise above 15° F (we’re talking -10 degrees Celsius here!). The trip to Miami was a welcome break from the ridiculous temperatures.

After arriving in the Miami airport I began to shed my layers of warmth. First, the Northface jacket (basically a down comforter with sleeves) was bundled into a ball and tossed into the back seat. My sneakers and socks were shed in favor of flip flops, allowing my pale feet their first bit of sunshine in months. Finally, I was warm enough to change from my lab uniform of jeans and a t-shirt to a cute sundress. I began to embrace the warm weather and slather on the SPF 50.

Our five-day cruise was sailing out of the port of Fort Lauderdale the next morning, so we enjoyed a seaside dinner on South Beach. If it’s still open, you should head to Rendevous, they have an amazing flatbread pizza. Boyfriend and I took a stroll on the beach and I got lots of sand in my shoes. Let it be known, I love the beach, I hate sand.

The next morning we waved goodbye to our car and sailed away into the bright blue ocean. Our first port of call, Key West. Although we were making other ports while on our cruise, this was the one that I was most excited about. Why? I love Key limes. If you ask my mom, I would ask for Key Lime pie for my birthday. Love that tangy-sweet flavor. My mission while on Key West was to eat some pie. And oh boy, did I.

While walking our miles and miles around Key West, Boyfriend and I stumbled upon Kermit’s Key Lime Shoppe. A haven for all things key lime and therefore my new favorite place in the world. I stocked up on key lime juice (oh the days before the 3 ounce rules), key lime taffy and cookies.

Something that caught my eye was sitting quietly in the freezer with a simple sign - Frozen Key Lime pie on a stick. Think of the combination of tart key lime pie and dark chocolate. The tangy, sweet and bitter flavors played off of each other so well that it was hard to keep myself from eating more than one slice. Years later I found myself wanting to reminisce on Key West. I leave you with an amazing recipe and a suggestion to head to Kermit’s and buy one of the original.

Key Lime pie on a Stick!

5 ¼ ounces graham crackers
¼ cup powdered sugar
6 tbsp butter, melted
3 egg yolks
1 14 ounce can sweetened condensed milk
½ cup key lime juice
3 tbsp water
8 oz Bittersweet chocolate
1-2 tbsp shortening

In the bowl of a food processor, pulse graham crackers to crumbs. Add powdered sugar and pulse to combine. Add butter and pulse to fully coat crumbs. Pour buttered crumbs into a 9-inch springform pan. Press down crumbs to form an even crust, use the bottom of a measuring cup or glass. Bake crust in a 350 degree oven for 15 minutes.

In a medium bowl, beat egg yolks with a whisk. Slowly add sweetened condensed milk, whisking the while time. Add juice and water, whisk until fully combined.

Pour key lime mixture onto graham cracker crust. Bake at 350 for 20 minutes or until the edges are set. You don’t want to brown the pie. Remove from the oven and allow to cool completely on a wire rack.

Remove outer ring from the springform pan. Insert 12 popsicle sticks, evenly around the pipe, and place pie in the freezer for at least 1 hour. Remove from the freezer and cut into 12 slices. Melt chocolate and shortening in the top of a double boiler. Dip pie slices in chocolate and completely cover. Place on parchment paper and stick in the fridge to set. Store in the freezer and enjoy a creamy treat!