Vegan Key Lime Pie

By Ela on 2. September, 2018 | 38 Comments. This post may contain affiliate links*. As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases.

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5 from 6 votes

This vegan key lime pie is a delicious, light and tangy dessert. The recipe contains only 8 ingredients and is plant-based, gluten-free, oil-free, nut-free, refined sugar-free, and easy to make.

Gluten-Free Vegan Key Lime Pie

Why did I not create this recipe earlier? I am sure if I did, I would have made it so many times by now. However, it never came to my mind to make a vegan key lime pie, until recently, when we had so many limes at home. And do you know what I love most about this pie? It’s light, creamy, tangy, and very delicious! The recipe is not only plant-based (egg-free, dairy-free), it’s also oil-free, refined sugar-free, and nut-free!

Creamy Baked Vegan Key Lime Pie

To be honest, I never ate a “real” (non-vegan) key lime pie before. I know they contain eggs, sour cream, condensed milk, and other not really healthy ingredients. Since my baked vegan cheesecake turned out super delicious, I decided to create a similar recipe and it turned out so creamy and delicious.

Nut-Free Key Lime Pie

As mentioned before, this vegan key lime pie can be made nut-free. The crust contains ground oats, shredded unsweetened coconut, maple syrup (you can use any other liquid sweetener), and 2 chia eggs. That’s it, just 4 ingredients. For the cream, I used silken tofu (read below for a soy-free version), maple syrup, lime juice, coconut butter, and cornstarch. You can, of course, use cashew butter, almond butter or any other nut butter of choice if you aren’t nut-free.

This Vegan Key Lime Pie Is:

Gluten-free
Oil-free
Dairy-free
Egg-free
Nut-free
Refined sugar-free
Plant-based
Easy to make
Tangy
Light

Soy-Free Alternative

I have recently updated the recipe with a soy-free version because there are lots of people who have a soy allergy. It’s totally possible to make this pie soy-free by using canned coconut milk and soaked cashews instead of silken tofu. For a soy-free AND nut-free version, I would recommend using canned coconut milk and coconut butter.

Vegan Whipped Cream

You can top this delicious pie with whipped coconut cream or vegan marshmallow fluff. How to make vegan marshmallow fluff? All you need is 3 ingredients which are Aquafaba (brine from one can of chickpeas), 1/4-1/3 cup maple syrup, and 1 1/2 tsp lime juice to stabilize the marshmallow fluff. You just have to whip up the Aquafaba which takes about 10 minutes and then add the other two ingredients and whip again! However, please note that the vegan marshmallow fluff won’t stay stable like whipped cream.

Another great option would be to use whipped coconut cream. How to make whipped coconut cream? You’ll to chill a can of coconut milk in the fridge for at least 8 hours without shaking it and then whip up the thick cream only (not the water!). It doesn’t work with all coconut milk brands though, so you would need to experiment with different ones.

If you try out this delicious pie and maybe even make a photo of it, then I would love to see it. You can DM it to me on Instagram. Don’t forget to tag me in your Insta caption + photo with @elavegan and use the hashtag #elavegan.

Author: Michaela Vais

This vegan key lime pie is a delicious, light and tangy dessert. The recipe contains just 8 ingredients and is plant-based, gluten-free, oil-free, nut-free, refined sugar-free, and easy to make. I have included a soy-free alternative in the recipe notes!

5 from 6 votes

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Prep Time 15 minutes mins

Cook Time 35 minutes mins

Total Time 50 minutes mins

Ingredients

Crust:

1 1/2 cups (135 g) oats (see notes)
1 cup (80 g) shredded unsweetened coconut (see notes)
2 chia eggs or flax eggs (see notes)
3 tbsp (60 g) maple syrup or any other liquid sweetener

Cream:

1 12.3 oz package (350 g) silken tofu firm (see notes)
1/4 cup (60 g) coconut butter (see notes)
1/4 cup (80 g) maple syrup (or any other liquid sweetener)
1/3 cup (80 ml) lime juice from key limes or regular limes
3 tbsp (25 g) cornstarch
zest of one lime

Instructions

Crust

To make the crust, process the shredded unsweetened coconut in an electric spice/coffee grinder (or blender). Repeat this step with the oats.
Put all crust ingredients into a bowl and mix with an electric hand mixer (or use your hands) until a dough has formed. It should have the texture of shortcut pastry. Press the crust evenly into the bottom of a greased 8-inch (20 cm) pie pan or tart pan and about 2 inches (5 cm) up to the sides.

Cream layer

For the cream layer: Blend all ingredients in a high-speed blender until smooth and creamy. Pour the cream onto the crust.
Bake in the oven for about 30-35 minutes at 350 degrees F (175 degrees C). Depending on your oven it might take a few minutes less or more. If you bake it for less than 30 minutes the pie will turn out more creamy and soft and if you bake it for 35 minutes (or more) it will get firmer and can be sliced better.
Turn off the oven and let the pie cool at room temperature for a while. Then put it into the fridge to set. Decorate with whipped coconut cream or use SILK's Dairy-Free Heavy Whipping Cream Alternative. Store leftovers in the fridge for up to 5 days. Enjoy!

Notes

You should use gluten-free oats if you have a gluten allergy.
You can use ground almonds (or any other nuts/seeds) instead of shredded unsweetened coconut.
To make ONE chia egg, simply mix 1 tbsp ground chia seeds with 3 tbsp water and let it sit for 5 minutes). Instead of chia eggs or flax eggs, you can also use 1 small banana (80 g).
You can use any nut/seed butter of choice, for example, cashew butter, almond butter, etc (if not nut-free). The color of the pie will be darker if you use e.g. almond butter.

SOY-FREE ALTERNATIVE

Cream:

320 ml (1 1/3 cup) coconut milk, canned
80 ml (1/3 cup) lime juice (from key limes or regular limes)
32 g (4 tbsp) cornstarch
80 g (7 tbsp) light granulated sweetener (e.g. xylitol, erythritol, white sugar)
1 tsp vanilla extract
112 g (3/4 cup) cashews (soaked) (*see below)
zest of one lime

Soak cashews in hot water for about 30 minutes until soft.
Blend all ingredients in a blender until completely smooth and creamy.
Follow the other steps of the recipe.

You could also use 120 g (1/2 cup) of cashew butter (or coconut butter for a nut-free version) instead of the soaked cashews!

Recipe make an 8-inch pie. Nutrition facts are for one slice if you cut the pie into 8 slices.

Nutrition Facts

Vegan Key Lime Pie

Amount per Serving

Calories

277

% Daily Value*

Fat

Carbohydrates

Fiber

5.4

Sugar

12.8

Protein

* Percent Daily Values are based on a 2000 calorie diet.