TOASTED COCONUT KEY LIME PIEfeatured

I grew up religiously reading Seventeen & YM magazines. And while I would faithfully read the magazines cover to cover to learn tips and trick to make my crush fall in love with me or to use mayonnaise to make my hair shinier (Does. Not. Work for the record), my favorite part of the magazines were the quizzes. Does he secretly love me? Answer the below questions to find out! Am I the girl next door or am I wild child? I had to know! To this day I can’t pass up a quiz. If I see a Buzzfeed quiz on Facebook asking me if I want to know who my 80’s RomCom perfect match is… I’ll fill it out. Every. Time.

I had a birthday a few years ago and my friends had to answer a mini quiz about a few of my favorite things. Top of the list: what’s my favorite dessert of all time. Answer? Key Lime Pie. I don’t even have to think about it. It’s the prom queen in my dessert hierarchy. I’m just curious if there is a quiz I can take that asks me this question and answering Key Lime Pie means I’m going to marry Jake Ryan from Sixteen Candles. I mean, I need to know these things.

Recipe: Toasted Coconut Key Lime Pie  |  Soundtrack: Omi

• CRUST
• 1 1/2 cups ground graham cracker crumbs (approx 16 long rectangles)
• 3/4 cup toasted coconut
• 6-8 tbsp butter
• FILLING
• 1 can sweetened condensed milk
• 3/4 cup key lime juice
• 4 large egg yolks
• Zest of 4 key limes
• 1/4 tsp salt
• TOPPING
• Whipped cream
• Extra lime zest
• Extra tasted coconut

Directions:
Preheat oven to 350º.

To toast the coconut: Place the coconut in a large saucepan or skillet so it covers the bottom of the pan. Using a wooden spoon, stir the coconut around as it begins to brown. Keep stirring until the coconut is a nice even golden brown. Remove from heat and pour the coconut into a bowl. Divide in half. One cup will go into the batter and one cup will be used for the topping.

To make the crust: Crumble the graham crackers into a food processor and process until finely ground, add the 3/4 cup toasted coconut. You can also try a blender if you don’t have a processor. Pour the butter into the crumbs and pulse until combimed. Mix until fully incorporated and the texture feels like wet sand.

Spray a 9-inch pie tin with cooking spray and then pour the crumbs into your pan. Firmly press the crumbs against the sides and then the bottom. To get the bottom even, use the underside of a measuring cup and press firmly all around. This will help make it packed and smooth. Chill the crust for at least 15 minutes.

Bake the crust for 10 minutes. Remove and cool completely.

To make the filling: In a large bowl whisk together the milk, lime juice, egg yolks, zest and salt until complete blended. Pour the filling into the cooled pie crust and bake for 20-25 minutes until the filling has just set. The custard will be smooth and slightly jiggly. Cool at room temperature and then place in the fridge. Right before serving, top with whipped cream and the extra toasted coconut and lime zest.

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