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| Key Limes (Photo from lookimadethat.com.) |
Key limes are small, somewhat larger than a walnut, oval
in shape with a thin yellowish rind.
They are aromatic and very juicy, with a stronger and more acidic flavor
than Persian limes.
We really like Key lime pie, but in Raleigh it is difficult to find Key limes, and
most of us use ordinary limes for making Key lime pies. I don't like to
use the bottled Key lime juice, because it seems to make the pie too
acidic.
Now that we are in Southern Florida we hope to get the pie made with REAL key limes. We are trying Key lime pie as a dessert each time we have the opportunity. The three of us share one piece of pie.
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| Key lime pie we shared in Fort Lauderdale. |
Key limes were cultivated for thousands of years in the Indo-Malayan region, and this variety has
long been treasured for its fruit and decorative foliage.
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| Key lime pie in Naples. |
Columbus is
credited with bringing the Key lime to Hispaniola (now known as Haiti), where it
was carried on by Spanish settlers to Florida.
It flourished in South
Florida, particularly the Florida Keys, hence the current common name of
Key
lime. Due to hurricane-depleted soils, locals switched from pineapple
commercial crops to limes in 1906, and business boomed until a hurricane wiped out the lime groves, never to be restored. Today, most
Key limes come from Mexico
Here's now to make a quick and easy
Key Lime Pie.
I noticed that Key limes are available in the grocery stores down here, and I plan to take some home, but I will wait until we are actually in the Keys later in the week. And I can't wait to try the Key lime pie down in the Keys. Of course, I like Key lime pie anywhere.
