No Bake Key Mousse Lime Pie with White Chocolate

At the end of a savory meal, there’s nothing better than a slice of key lime pie. When it’s a no-bake key lime pie, even better! My version uses real limes, cream cheese, and white chocolate to make a dreamy filling that tastes as creamy as a cheesecake – no oven required.

 

Create a Light and Airy Key Lime Pie

This make ahead dessert has all the richness of cheesecake but is light as can be from whipped cream folded in. Fresh lime juice adds a tartness to offset the rich white chocolate and cream cheese creating a show stopper dessert that that’s easy to prepare.

Key lime pie is almost as popular as Atlantic beach pie in my neck of the woods. Every restaurant and home cook has their favorite version. Most use sweetened condensed milk which makes them pretty sweet. My version skips the condensed milk and instead is a cross between a mousse and a cheesecake.

It’s light and airy and so rich with cream cheese, and white chocolate. (when I say light, I mean light in texture, not calories!) This just melts in your mouth it’s so creamy. It makes a very large pie that can easily be cut into 12 large slices. It’s so rich, you can easily cut it into even smaller slices which is great when you’re feeding a crowd. While not in taste, the technique is similar to my recipe for peanut butter pie.

Since it freezes so well, I’ll cut it into slices and freeze the leftover slices so that I can remove just the number of slices I need.

I start with a buttery graham cracker crust, which I always think looks so pretty against the pale green filling. Plus, the sweetness tastes divine when blended with the tart and tangy lime filling. It’s the perfect dessert for when you’re having friends for dinner or having a large family gathering. It’s the type of dessert that looks difficult but it’s so easy to make.

This pie has to be frozen to let it set up, so make sure you leave enough time for it to freeze and thaw before serving. If you like an ice cream pie, serve it partially frozen, it’s awesome.

Will you need key limes?

A key lime is a type of lime that’s smaller and more yellow than the more commonly used Persian limes (those bright green limes you find in the produce section). Key limes have a distinctive flavor that is more tart than the commonly found limes and they’re pretty hard to find in my neck of the woods.

So for this recipe, while it’s called “Key Lime pie”, it’s really just “lime pie”. You can use key limes if they’re available and get more flavor but you’ll need about double the amount of limes to get ⅓ cup of juice.

I adore this no-bake version using regular limes. I skip the sweetened condensed milk, and instead, use whipped cream, and real white chocolate along with cream cheese. It’s got the best ever rich and creamy filling.

Why You’ll Love a White Chocolate Key Lime Pie

• It’s No Bake, Of Course! Don’t we all love it when we can make a dreamy dessert without using the oven?! Yes, we do!
• From-Scratch Filling: No pudding mixes or Jello packets. This filling is made of real ingredients.
• Light and Creamy: My no-bake pie filling comes together in a snap and has all the light, creamy goodness you’ll love.

No Bake Key Lime Pie Recipe Ingredients

For the Pie Crust

• Graham cracker crumbs – You can make your own by crushing about 1 ½ sleeves of graham crackers or running them through a food processor. This pie also tastes lovely with a gingersnap cookie crust or try Biscoff cookies.
• Granulated sugar – If you want to reduce the sweetness, you can remove the sugar from the crust altogether.
• Butter – Melted butter holds everything together and once it’s refrigerated and the butter hardens the crust will stay in place.

For the Pie Filling

• Fresh lime zest and juice – You’ll want 3-4 fresh limes to make enough juice for this pie. If you can find key limes at your grocery store, they’ll give you that punchy authentic taste, but if not, regular limes will do.
• Unflavored gelatin – This holds the pie filling together and works as a setting agent so the filling doesn’t get loose and runny when the pie is sliced. You can find this in the baking aisle.
• Heavy cream – The heavy cream is pretty important to this recipe, there’s no substitute for this recipe, it is whipped and folded in which gives it the light and airty texture.
• White chocolate – I prefer the bars of white chocolate, but you can use white chocolate chips.
• Cream cheese – You’ll need 3 packages of full fat cream cheese at room temperature. Leave them out on the counter for about 30 minutes before you make the filling.
• Sugar – it is dessert after all!

How To Make This Creamy No Bake Key Lime Pie Recipe

Step 1: Make your crust.

Slowly melt the butter in the microwave. Measure the graham crackers and sugar into a small bowl and pour the melted butter overtop. Use a fork to stir until the graham crumbs are all wet from the butter. Press the graham cracker mixture into a 10-inch springform pan, making sure the crumbs go up the sides about an inch. Use a flat-bottomed glass cup to flatten the crust. Set the springform pan in the fridge while you make the filling.

Step 2: Prepare the lime zest and lime juice.

Zest the limes before you cut them, make sure you use only the green outside of the lime peel and not the white area underneath. Then, squeeze your limes and pour ⅓ cup of lime juice into a small mixing bowl. Sprinkle the unflavored gelatin over the juice and set aside for now.

Step 3: Melt the chocolate.

Chop the white chocolate bar. Scrape the chunks into a microwave-safe bowl. Meanwhile, heat ½ cup of heavy cream in the microwave. Microwave for about 1 minute, stirring at 30 seconds. If it’s still not good and hot, microwave for another 30 seconds as needed. Pour the cream over the chocolate and stir. The chocolate will start to melt. Stir until the mixture is smooth, then stir in the lime juice mixture and zest.

Step 4: Make the filling.

Use a stand mixer (or a hand mixer) to beat the softened cream cheese until it’s light and smooth. Then, add in the white chocolate mixture. Continue to beat until the mixture is fully incorporated. 

In a separate large mixing bowl, beat the remaining heavy cream until soft peaks form. Gently fold the whipped cream into the cream cheese mixture. Then, slowly pour the entire key lime pie filling over the crust in the springform pan. 

Cover with plastic wrap and freeze overnight or for at least 8 hours. When you’re ready to serve, Remove the outside of the springform pan and let the pie thaw in the fridge for about 2 hours. Slice and serve.

Tips for Making the Best Key Lime Pie Recipe

• When you mix the whipped cream and cream cheese together, fold it gently with a spatula. The whipped cream has lots of air in it to make it fluffy, and you don’t want to deflate it or your filling won’t be as light.
• If your limes feel hard or are difficult to squeeze, gently roll them on the counter and microwave for about 30 seconds. This will loosen the membranes and make it easier to extract the juice.
• Check out this post on how to quickly soften cream cheese, it needs to be at room temperature for this recipe.

How to Garnish Key Lime Pie

Most key lime pies are garnished with whipped cream but this mousse like pie does not need any additional cream. Try adding some simple lime slices and a sprinkle of lime zest for color.

More Easy No-Bake Pies You Should Try

If you loved this recipe, give it a star ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ rating! Also, snap a picture of your finished dish and share it with me on Instagram using the hashtag #butterandbaggage and tagging me @butterandbaggage.