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This keto key lime pie recipe features a buttery crust, creamy key lime filling, and a delicate whip topping. I love how there’s no baking required! 4 grams of net carbs.
Craving more keto pie recipes? Try my keto pecan pie, keto Boston cream pie, and keto cherry pie.
When we’re hosting, I’m always on dessert duty. I have a few tried-and-true favorites (hello keto pound cake!), but when I want to impress and make something no one’s expecting, I make this sugar-free key lime pie.
Table of Contents
Why I love this recipe
- Perfect texture and flavor. Flaky, buttery pie crust, thick and creamy filling, and whipped cream on top– what’s not to love?!
- A no-bake recipe. All you need are a few kitchen utensils and a dash of patience.
- Loved by everyone. I’ve made this recipe for my non-keto friends, and let me tell you, they were none the wiser!
- Customize the lime flavor. Add as much or as little lime as you want, or swap it for different citrus altogether.
Ingredients needed
Crust:
- Keto cookie crumbs. Any mild-tasting low carb cookie will work. I tested using keto shortbread cookies, keto peanut butter cookies, and keto sugar cookies, and they each worked wonderfully.
- Sugar-free sweetener. I used alluose, but any sweetener you prefer will certainly work.
- Unsalted butter. Melted. To hold the crust together.
For the filling:
- Softened cream cheese. Room temperature and full fat. I tried using reduced-fat cream cheese and the texture just wasn’t the same, so I prefer full-fat cream cheese.
- Keto sweetened condensed milk. I like to make my own sugar free condensed milk. If you’re not strictly keto, coconut condensed milk or traditional condensed milk will work.
- Lime juice. A must for key lime pie! If you can find bottled key lime juice, get that. If not, use fresh limes instead.
- Heavy cream. To lighten up the filling.
For the topping:
- Heavy cream. Heavy whipping cream also works.
- Powdered sweetener. To add sweetness to the whipped cream.
- Fresh limes. For some extra citrus kick and to decorate.
Key limes versus regular limes
Key limes are a special variety of limes found in the Florida Keys. They’re smaller, sweeter, and slightly less tart than regular limes, making them a great addition to lime desserts.
If you can get fresh key limes or bottled key lime juice, definitely do so. If not, regular fresh limes will work just fine.
How to make keto key lime pie
I’ve included step-by-step photos below to make this recipe easy to follow at home. For the full printable recipe instructions and ingredient quantities, scroll to the recipe card at the bottom of this post.
Step 1- Make the crust. In a large bowl, combine the cookie crumbs, sweetener, and melted butter. Stir until crumbly. Transfer to a 9-inch pie pan, press into place, and refrigerate.
Step 2- Make the filling. In a large bowl, whip the cream cheese until smooth. Add the condensed milk and lime juice and whisk to combine. Add heavy cream and beat until smooth.
Step 3- Chill. Pour the mixture into the pie crust and refrigerate overnight.
Step 4- Add topping and serve. Once set, make the whipped topping. Beat together the heavy cream and powdered sugar until fluffy. Spread over top of the pie and decorate with sliced limes.
Arman’s recipe tips
- Use a stand mixer. While optional, I like using a stand mixer to mix the lime filling and the whipped cream. It saves quite a bit of time.
- Don’t skip the chill time. I know overnight seems like a long time, but since we’re not baking this pie, it needs that extra time to firm up and develop flavor. If you’re in a time pinch, 6 hours should be sufficient.
- Add more lime. If you’re craving more tartness, add an extra tablespoon of lime juice and reduce the heavy cream by the same amount. You can also fold in a few tablespoons of lime zest too.
Variations
- Make it dairy-free. Swap the butter in the crust for coconut oil, use dairy-free cream cheese, coconut condensed milk, and coconut cream in place of heavy cream.
- Swap the citrus. I’ve tested this recipe with lemon and orange, and while the flavor is definitely different, both were delicious!
- Make mini key lime pies. Rather than making one big pie, sometimes I like to layer everything in individual jars. I find they make an easy grab-and-go dessert at parties.
Storage instructions
To store: This key lime pie should always be stored in the refrigerator, covered in an airtight container, for up to 2 weeks.
To freeze: Place slices of the pie in a shallow container and store them in the freezer for up to 6 months.
More keto dessert recipes to try
- Keto blueberry pie
- Keto flourless chocolate cake
- Keto donuts
- Keto lemon meringue pie
- Or any of these keto desserts
Keto Key Lime Pie
Ingredients
For the crust
For the filling
- 1 cup cream cheese softened
- 1 cup keto condensed milk
- 1/2 cup lime juice
- 1 cup heavy cream
For the topping
- 1 cup heavy cream
- 2 tablespoon sugar free powdered sugar
- 1 large lime sliced
Instructions
- In a large mixing bowl, combine your cookie crumbs, sweetener, and melted butter and mix together, until combined. Transfer into a 9-inch pie dish and refrigerate.
- In a large mixing bowl, beat together the cream cheese until smooth. Add the condensed milk and lime juice and beat until combined. Add the heavy cream and beat everything together until thick and creamy.
- Transfer the filling onto the chilled pie crust and refrigerate overnight, to thicken.
- Once set, prepare the topping. Beat together the heavy cream with the powdered sweetener until light and fluffy. Spread over the top of the pie and add sliced limes, to decorate.
I made this deconstructed. Used the filling, then everyone took sugar free shortbread cookies and crumbled on top, then homemade sugar free whip cream. Big hit!!
Love that, Laurie!
I made this pie last week. It is absolutely wonderful! Everyone loved it! Thanks for your recipes.
I made this pie the other day to take with us while visiting with some friends. Since I’ve lost smell and taste, I couldn’t tell what I was tasting, but could discern sweet and tart. I tested it out on some of my neighbors and my hubs and they all said it was amazing!
I added 1/4 t lemon juice powder to the whipped cream topping along with some gelatin to stabilize it for the 1 hour ride, plus some extra sweetener. Piped it on and have to admit it looked really good! I used an almond flour crust and it was a hit. I totally forgot to slice up the lime for decoration, but it didn’t matter a bit. Everyone went back for seconds! Thank you so much for sharing this wonderful recipe with us! You are a gift! Be well,
Nancy
I cut the recipe and made 2 servings for hubby and I. We both loved it and he has asked for me to make it for Easter. The only tweak I made (because I don’t have keto cookies), is to make a crust with almond flour, flax seed, monkfruit and butter. Came out great! Thank you for a fab recipe. Also love the sweetened condensed milk recipe!!
This is a good base recipe, but needs some tweaking. With 1/2 cup of lime juice and a full cup of heavy whipping cream, the sweetness from the sweetened condensed milk is not sufficient. I followed the comments of another person who had made this and added a full 3/4 c. of additional powdered Swerve.
I love this but did have a few issues. First I overcooked the condensed milk so it crystallized. Solved that by blending with a stick blender before adding the other ingredients. I also added a few drops of liquid stevia as I found it not sweet enough. I didn’t have cookies so made a crust out of coconut, pecans, almond flour, granular monk fruit and softened butter that I ran through the food processor. I used Key limes because I like their flavor. Excellent recipe!!
To further lower the carb count use a processor to finely grind up either Walnuts or pecans and pour unsalted melted butter over them just as you would if they were cookies. Then follow the rest of the recipe given. Delicious and lower carb content. Enjoy!
I had to tweak a few things but this pie is fabulous. The condensed milk was runny and not enough to make filling sweet so I had to add more swerve….probably 3/4 of a cup, to the filling. I also omitted the 1 cup heavy cream for filling cuz my pie wouldn’t have held the filling if I’d added it. It is soooooo good. Kids love it.
Hands down the best keto desert I’ve ever made or tasted. Wowza. The keto condensed milk: a revelation. Took a lot longer than the recipe to reduce, but that could be my intensely low flame burner. Thank you. The limes came from a potted tree I grew; I added zest. I skipped the whipped cream too because it truly didn’t need it. Thank you a million times😘
Aw thank you, Suzanne xx
Nice Keto Lime Pie but you need key limes or key lime juice for a key lime pie. Just one of those things that annoy Floridians who know. 😊
How do you store the keto condensed milk when making it day before
Refrigerator is fine, and then let it sit at room temperature before using it
I made this today for fathers’s day. Key Lime pie is my husband’s favorite but I wanted a low carb option. I followed the recipe up until the crust. I didn’t have any low carb cookies (nor did I want to make them) so I substituted Catalina crunch maple flavored cereal. I put them in a blender and grounded them up until they looked like cookie crumbs. I didn’t add any sugar since they are already sweet but did add melted butter. It worked out great. My husband said it was the best key lime pie he’s ever had! Thank you so much for the recipe! We will definitely be making this again!!
Thanks for the feedback, Denise!
Whaaaaaat? No sweetener in the filling??? Every key lime pie I have ever had (including in Florida) had sweetener in the filling. How does everyone like it with no sweetener? Thanks for your time!!!
Keto condensed milk is sweet.
READ THE POST PEOPLE! He’s not trying to kill your dog! “Puppy Chow” is a peanut butter, powdered sugar coated (I think maybe some chocolate) Chex Mix! Good Grief!
You are a gem, Stephanie 🙂
Yum
Can’t wait to try this.. I have seen other of your recipes and can’t wait to try those also. Thanks for sharing!
Was an amazing recipe and my dad AND the whole family loved it for his birthday. I used the keto condensed milk recipe and cut it in half and it was the perfect sweetener. For the crust I baked some crushed and mixed up keto lemon protein bars and butter for the crust . Would recommend to anyone!
Made these today and absolutely fell in love! They are now my family’s favorite. They were so creamy and delicious.They were too good! I can’t stop making your recipes, everything is amazing. Thank you so much for sharing. Can’t wait for the next recipe you are going to share. Best wishes to you! You are doing such a great job. This is very very appetizing!
Thanks so much for the feedback!