Summer’s favorite citrus pie made mini! These key lime pies bring the classic creamy sweet tang with a dairy-free filling and crumbly gluten-free oat crust.
SPONSORED BY SUNBUTTER
We might be on the tail end of summer but summer it still technically is, and there is no more summery dessert in my mind than key lime pie (ice cream doesn’t count because ice cream is not a dessert its a food group). Never mind the fact that I am from Florida and it’s taken me six years of blogging to bring you a key lime pie recipe…details, embarrassing details. But I tested these muffin cup pie minis four times to make absolutely sure they are worth the wait!
Limes vs. Key Limes
There is one more small detail I need to disclose up top – I did not use key limes for this recipe. *GASP* But that’s because:
- They are small and yield little juice so you will need 278 of them
- They are very seasonal, so not around long
- Also not easy to find everywhere
- And more expensive
- And the flavor difference is slight
So what I’m trying to say is REGULAR LIMES WORK TOO. We are not five-star pastry chefs, we are just average everyday humans who enjoy an occasional lime dessert in the summertime and aren’t too bothered if our limes are a smidge less aromatic.
I’m not denying there is a difference. But once you mix it with the cream and bake it with the crust and eat it with your hands because mini individual pies allow for that, it’s hardly noticeable. And please for the love of all things citrus, do not use bottled juice. I will cry and it will be awkward for all of us.
Key Lime Crust
The creaminess of key lime is best complimented by a crumbly salty-sweet crust, of course the traditional being graham cracker based. But in the name of gluten-free and healthier options, we are using oats instead of crackers and SunButter instead of butter butter. A little sugar and salt boost the flavor, and processing the oats before mixing makes for the perfect not-flour-but-not-oatmeal crumble consistency.
Key Lime Filling
In the name of keeping these nut-free, I opted to not use raw cashews like so many vegan key lime recipes do. So coconut was the best creamy alternative. I experimented quite a bit here, and ended up with a coconut cream + nondairy yogurt filling combination that I love. You can use all coconut cream if you prefer, but I like the added tang from the yogurt. If you want to try it with all yogurt, I recommend Greek yogurt (dairy or nondairy) for the best rich texture.
How To Make Mini Key Lime Pies
- Make the crust, and par-bake for 15 minutes. This gives it time to get a little toasty on its own and prevents sogginess later.
- Make the filling. I tested a stovetop version of the filling, but I preferred the consistency with baking the filling as well. Plus less cleanup and arm work.
- Bake both together, another 20 minutes or so but at a lower temperature.
- Chill overnight. Or you can freeze them to speed this up, but they need to be completely cold to set properly.
Mini Key Lime Pies Step-by-Step
Whipped cream would be delicious on top, but as you can see I didn’t have any and I also didn’t have any trouble devouring them without.
So in the name of embracing the remainder of summer and making fall treats wait their turn, I hope you make these Mini Key Lime Pies your end-of-August own!
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Mini Key Lime Pies
- Prep Time: 30 minutes
- Cook Time: 35 minutes
- Total Time: 1 hour 5 minutes
- Yield: 6 pies 1x
- Category: pie
- Method: baking
- Cuisine: american
Description
Summer’s favorite citrus pie made mini! These key lime pies bring the classic creamy sweet tang with a dairy-free filling and crumbly gluten-free oat crust.
Ingredients
Crust
- 1 cups (80g) rolled oats
- 1/4 cup (35g) coconut sugar
- 1/2 tsp salt
- 1/2 cup (125g) SunButter (I used the natural variety)
Filling
- 1/2 cup (120g) coconut cream*
- 1/2 cup (120g) nondairy yogurt
- 1/4 cup (80g) maple syrup or agave
- 1/4 cup (60g) key lime juice**
- 1/4 cup (30g) arrowroot (or corn starch)
- 1 tbsp key lime zest
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 375ºF.
- Grind the oats with the coconut sugar and salt in a food processor.
- Add SunButter, and process to form a sticky crumbly dough.
- Press a couple spoonfuls into the bottom of each muffin (lined with paper liners), you will have enough for 6-8.
- Bake fro 15 minutes at 375ºF. Cool.
- Reduce the oven temperature to 325ºF.
- Blend all the filling ingredients. Don’t over blend.
- Pour on top of the crusts, filling almost to the top. Tap on the counter to release any air bubbles.
- Bake for 18-20 minutes at 325ºF. The edges should be just starting to darken and the middles no longer jiggly.
- Cool for 30 minutes, then chill overnight.
- Serve straight from the fridge, they are delicious with coconut whipped cream on top!
Notes
*Just the solid part from a can of full fat coconut milk that has been chilled overnight.
**Regular lime juice works just as well!
Nutrition
- Serving Size: 1 pie
- Calories: 315
- Sugar: 17g
- Sodium: 211mg
- Fat: 15g
- Saturated Fat: 4g
- Carbohydrates: 36g
- Fiber: 3g
- Protein: 8g
Keywords: summer, citrus, pie, tart, key lime, dairy free, egg free, gluten free, vegan, dessert, easy, healthy
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your dad is even more proud of you now that you have key lime pie you can make for him. btw your dad’s friend is proud of you too.
From what I have heard it is quite a favorite amidst y’alls dinner/musical watching group😀 Appreciate your support Denny!
Hi Natalie,
I am not familiar with Sun Butter, is there an alternative that I can use?
Thanks Kim. 🙂
Sure, almond butter or cashew will work instead!
Thanks Natalie, I can’t wait to try it! They look delicious…..Cheers! x
Hello Natalie, this is the first time i’ve been back on your site since its renovation and it looks AMAZING. Anyways, I was wondering if almond flour might work for the crust? Thanks!!
Appreciate the kind words! And almond flour won’t work 1-for-1, you could try replacing the oats with 1.5-2 cups almond flour but that’s just a rough guesstimate so you may have to add a little more/little less to get a good sticky/crumbly consistency. Or you could use this crust recipe instead: https://nataliejo.co/pumpkin-pie-cups/
Doni use plain unsweetened non dairy yogurt or sweetened? Is there one you recommend?
What can I substitute Yogurt with to make it vegan?
I used vegan yogurt! But if you can’t find that, coconut cream will work 🙂
Do you know how this would work as a full size pie instead? I am assuming it’d work just as well, but I figured I’d ask before jumping in to make it. Thanks so much!
It will work but you will probably need to double the amounts to fill a normal pie pan, and adjust the cook time and cook it for longer so the middle doesn’t turn out soupy. I’d try 20-25 minutes but that is a very rough guess, its hard for me to estimate exactly without testing it. Good luck!
Hi there! What would happen if you used the watery bit from the coconut cream? Could you add more arrowroot to fix the consistency so that none of the coconut cream goes to waste? Thanks x
The watery part will make the filing too runny. You can try adding more arrowroot to help, but too much starch can make the filling rather Jello-y as opposed to smooth and creamy. Hope that helps!
Could this be made into bars? If so, what
dimensions of a pan would work?
That will work! I would try it in a standard size loaf pan👌
I followed your recipe to the letter and it was a complete fail. I have a really greasy looking thing with floating coconut oil on top. the filling was so liquidy that it went down into the crust when i poured it in for the bake. Such a disappointment, but so thankful that i have tonight to go purchase something for the luncheon tomorrow. What went wrong?
I’m so sorry to hear that Rachel! Hmm there is no actual oil in the filling, so was your coconut milk quite separated or funky in consistency? What brand did you use and did you chill it ahead of time and use just the solid parts?