The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
BASIL-KISSED LIME PIE
This five-ingredient pie starts with a homemade graham cracker crust. But you could swap out the graham crackers for 1 1/2 cups of crushed chocolate wafers. Or use a store-bought crust.
I used a 10-inch pan so the filling didn’t quite come to the top edge (a 9-inch pan is ideal), but it allowed for more and slightly thinner slices. You can either pipe whipped cream around the perimeter of the pie or cover the pie completely with it so you get whipped cream with every bite.
FOR CRUST:
10 full sheets of graham crackers
5 tablespoons melted unsalted butter
1/3 cup sugar
FOR FILLING:
3 teaspoons grated lime zest
3 egg yolks
1 (14-ounce) can sweetened condensed milk
2/3 cup freshly squeezed lime juice, from about 6 limes
1/4 cup thinly sliced basil (about 12 large leaves)
1 cup heavy or whipping cream chilled, for garnish
Lime slices, for garnish
Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Make crust: Finely grind graham crackers in a food processor or in a large plastic zip-close bag using a rolling pin. You should get about 11/2 cups of crumbs.
Mix the graham cracker crumbs, melted butter, and sugar together with a rubber spatula in a medium bowl until well combined. It will be coarse and sandy. Press the crust mixture into the bottom of a pie pan dish and slightly up the sides.
Bake crust for 8 minutes; remove and allow to cool slightly.
Prepare filling: Whisk the lime zest and egg yolks together in a medium bowl until creamy and well blended. Whisk in the sweetened condensed milk, then the lime juice. Gently fold in basil.
Bake pie until the center is set but still jiggles a little, about 15 to 17 minutes. Cool to room temperature then chill in the fridge for at least 3 hours.
When ready to serve, whip heavy or whipping cream with a mixer or in the bowl of a stand mixer outfitted with a whisk until stiff peaks form. Spoon whipped cream into a plastic zip-close bag, and snip off a corner. Pipe the whipped cream on the edges of the pie, zigzag it evenly across the top or simply serve it alongside the pie in a pretty bowl.
If you like, you also can garnish the pie with thin lime slices.
Serves 6 to 8.
Per serving, based on 6: 610 calories (percent of calories from fat, 50), 10 grams protein, 69 grams carbohydrates, 1 gram fiber, 34 grams total fat (20 grams saturated), 185 milligrams cholesterol, 221 milligrams sodium.
— Gretchen McKay