Almost everyone loves desserts and it is true to say that you can enjoy it in any way you want, either directly after your meal or could be taken as snacks or any other way you prefer. Key lime pie is an excellent pie that has a perfect tarty sweetness mixture that allows it to be very irresistible even for those that are not fans of limes.
What we want to find out is whether or not it can be frozen and the answer is that it can be frozen. You are recommended to first pre-freeze the pie to get the best possible results. Then you can use plastic to wrap your pie after you have pre-frozen it. This will preserve your pie for up to two or three months inside the freezer and within this period is also the best time to use it.
What we want to check out in this article is to see the processes and tips that can be followed for it to successfully get frozen. It is an easy process and we have the confidence that there won’t be an issue when you follow the process. There are lots of information we want to share with you about this pie and you are advised to continue reading to get everything you need to know.
The Complete Guide to Freezing Key Lime Pie
You can make your pie in various ways and it will still follow the same concept. You can make the pie with condensed milk (sweetened), key lime juice, and egg yolks. Recipes can vary and pies that will contain real limes could be seen. A graham cracker-type crust is a typical crust for our pie but it could also vary. Creamy toppings swirled around the pie’s edge or layers of whipped creams are used to finish off this pie which is another factor you may find to vary in different ways.
Key limes are used to make key lime pies and it is different from the everyday lime. The key lime is a hybrid of citrus and when it fully ripens, the color given is yellow though it is usually harvested when it still has a green color. The lime is much smaller than the traditional limes and the content of the acid is higher with a much stronger aroma and a peel that is thinner.
How Key Lime Pie is Made
It will be an excellent idea to show you how you can make a basic key lime pie in order to get a brilliant reference point to understand what we are trying to work with. It will help you to also understand the kind of ingredients found in the pie and how they will react to freezing. When you understand the ingredients, you will get to understand the process of freezing and the reasons behind how it works in the way it works.
You need to know that a pre-made variety of pie filling can be bought if that is your choice. You may also decide to purchase the one that has been frozen from your grocery stores and this is a brilliant indication that they can be frozen nicely. Check below for how you can make your no-bake recipe of key lime pie:
- The recipe has three types and they are; graham cracker crust, your key lime filling, and then your whipped cream for topping.
- The ingredients needed include vanilla extract, powdered sugar, heavy whipping cream, lime zest, key lime juice, melted butter, granulated sugar, and graham cracker crumbs.
- Begin with your crust
- Proceed to mix the melted butter, graham cracker crumbs, and sugar in your bowl
- Continue by pressing your crumb mixture inside the pie pan
- Proceed to bake it for up to 7 minutes at a temperature of 375°F for the crust to become set. Then allow it to become cool for about 30 (thirty) minutes before proceeding to add your filling.
- When you want to make the filling, whisk your lime zest, lime juice, sugar, and eggs.
- Once your pie crust becomes cool, put your mixed whisked filling into your pie crust.
- Proceed to cook the sugar and egg mixture over your double boiler for a while before you add other ingredients.
- You can then chill your pie for at least three hours.
- You can then proceed to make the whipped toppings
- The first thing to do in this category is to use a mixer to beat the powdered sugar and the heavy cream until you see stiff peaks beginning to form. After then, you can beat it in vanilla.
- You can then add your whipped toppings on top of your pie in any way you prefer and you are recommended to use it in small dollops manner on the edges, just near your crust for best result.
Freezing and Properly Storing Key Lime Pie
You can best serve your pie chilled so it should be stored inside the refrigerator or your freezer except you want to serve. You need to somehow cover the pie when you are storing it so that you will have the best result. When stored inside the refrigerator, use aluminum foil or plastic wrap to loosely cover the pie where it can stay kept for about 5 days as long as you follow the right procedure of keeping it properly covered and then chilled.
Your pie can be frozen straight away if that is what you prefer and this is a nice thing about it. People will probably not notice when you serve it frozen because the freezer will not turn it to become too hard to cut or chew.
How to Freeze Key Lime Pie
Check below for how you can freeze your key lime pie:
- First, pre-freeze your pie by putting it uncovered in your freezer for up to 2 to 4 hours. You must ensure it does not touch anything inside your freezer at the top or the sides.
- When your pie becomes frozen, remove it and use plastic wrap to wrap it. The turn your pie and use another one to two plastic wrap layers to wrap the pie. You should use two to four plastic wrap layers around the pie for proper protection.
- Write the date on the wrap and label the pie.
- Put it inside your freezer for about three months to get the better results.
It is very easy to use once the pie has become frozen and you can use it excellently only that the integrity associated with the whipped toppings might get tampered with if the pie is left inside your freezer longer than it should. Whenever you want to remove your pie from your freezer, there is no special step needed.
You could allow your pie to become thawed or you may serve it frozen. For it to become slightly softened, allow it to defrost inside the fridge for some hours but note that the ingredients will not be difficult to chew or cut when used from frozen, only that the ingredients will become firm. The pie can also be removed from your freezer and allowed to defrost for up to 30 minutes at room temperature so that it can become slightly softened.
You don’t need to put yourself into worry about the textures or if any ingredient will fall apart or look funny after you have frozen the pie with the only exception being when using your meringue topping which should only be added when you want to serve. If the pie is kept chilled, you may return it to the freezer but it is not recommended to thaw and then refreeze multiple times if you want the quality to be the best.
Related Questions
Some questions may be lingering in your mind and that is why we are trying to provide answers to some of them, check below for some of them that will help enhance your knowledge:
Can You Get Salmonella from Key Lime Pie?
You need to ensure you follow all the instructions for cooking the recipe where egg yolks are used for the pie because if you undercook it, you run the risk of it getting salmonella. If you appropriately followed everything or if another ingredient is substituted for the egg yolks, you should not have any problem.
Can I Just Use Regular Limes?
Using regular limes instead of key lime will not give the same flavor. In case you don’t have key lime juice or key limes or you cannot seem to find them anywhere, the best you can do is to mix lemon juice and lime juice in the same proportion to get your needed lime juice (key).
How Many Key Limes Do You Need for Squeezing Your Juice?
About 1/2 cup key lime juice is needed to be gotten. You will need six to eight key limes to get this. Ensure some zest is taken from a minimum of one lime before you proceed to juice the limes.
