Ice Box Key Lime Pie

It's hot and humid in Houston. It's so hot and humid that I sweat walking from the exit of the grocery story to my car and I have to blast my AC as soon as I get in. Also, if you've been driving around a while, you get swamp ass. Yes, swamp ass is real in Houston. Anyway, because it's so hot, I rarely use the oven and I'm always looking for a dessert recipe where I don't have to bake. So I was pleasantly surprised when I came across this Ice Box Key Lime Pie recipe. I know Dr. Sweetpea has been craving Key Lime Pie for a while, and I've been telling him he'll have to wait until October for me to bake up a batch for him. Thankfully, since the the crust is the only thing that needs to be baked, I decided to give this a try. Honestly, it's BETTER than the other Key Lime Pie recipe on my blog. It's creamy, tangy, sweet, and super easy. Even Dr. Sweetpea who was super skeptical at first, raved about how good this pie was! 

Ice Box Key Lime Pie

(Source: Cooks Country)

Crust

8 whole graham crackers, broken into smaller pieces

2 tablespoons sugar

5 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted

Filling

1/4 cup sugar

1 tablespoon grated lime zest

8 ounces cream cheese, softened

1 (14­ounce) can sweetened condensed milk

1/3 cup instant vanilla pudding mix

1 1/4 teaspoons unflavored gelatin

1 cup fresh lime juice from 6 to 8 limes

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

For the crust: Adjust oven rack to middle position and heat oven to 350 degrees. Pulse crackers and sugar in food processor until finely ground. Add melted butter in steady stream while pulsing until crumbs resemble damp sand. Using bottom of dry measuring cup, press crumbs firmly into bottom and sides of 9­inch pie plate. Bake until fragrant and browned around edges, 12 to 14 minutes. Cool completely.

For the filling: Process sugar and zest in food processor until sugar turns bright green, about 30 seconds. Add cream cheese and process until combined, about 30 seconds. Add condensed milk and pudding mix and process until smooth, about 30 seconds. Scrape down sides of bowl. Stir gelatin and 2 tablespoons lime juice in small bowl. Heat in microwave for 15 seconds; stir until dissolved. With machine running, pour gelatin mixture, remaining lime juice, and vanilla through feed tube and mix until thoroughly combined, about 30 seconds.

Pour filling into cooled crust, cover with plastic, and refrigerate at least 3 hours or up to 2 days. To serve, let pie sit at room temperature for 10 minutes before slicing.