Although it seems uncomplicated on the outside—a tart lime named for its popular cultivation in Key West, Florida—keep unpeeling the Key lime story, and you’ll find some juicy insider info.
A Key Distinction. The original lime, citrus aurantifolia, a native of northeastern India and Southeast Asia, made its way to Florida via Spanish explorers in the 1500s, but it wasn’t until 1835 that US consul and horticulturist Dr. Henry Perrine made it official and established the first Key lime groves in the Florida Keys. In 1906, the phenomenon really took off, replacing Florida’s commercial pineapple groves. Known as Mexican, West Indian or Key limes, the small, roundish, seedy and sour fruit with pale greenish flesh and green rinds were prized for their acidic juice and rich aroma. However, by the 1920s, hurricanes, citrus disease and urban development wiped out years of growth, and Persian lime trees were planted in place of the thinner-skinned, thorny Key lime trees. Today, many homeowners in southern Florida have a Key lime tree or two in their backyard, and while a small comeback is in the works, Mexico and Central America account for 90 percent of the Key limes sold in US supermarkets, according to foodreference.com.
The Millionaire Life of Pie. Florida’s official state pie since 2006, Key lime pie made its sweet debut a couple of centuries earlier, possibly by sponge divers working in the area who combined the locally abundant limes with condensed milk and eggs they had on their boats. Limes and sweetened condensed milk (handily invented by Gail Borden in 1856) proved to have terrific chemistry—the duo interacted to make thick, delicious filling without refrigeration or cooking. Cases of the newly available milk were brought in to the parched climes of the Florida Keys by resident millionaire William Curry, whose cook “Aunt Sally” was credited with inventing the beloved key lime pie recipe. Other experts, like Key West historian and author of the recently published Key Lime Pie Cookbook, David Sloan, feel Aunt Sally’s receiving way too much credit for having simply perfected the recipe invented by the divers, perhaps adding a crust and whipped cream topping.
Current recipes are as likely to sport a pastry crust as a graham cracker one. Whipped cream or meringue topping? Equally perfect, and a matter of preference. Modern pastry chefs often tweak the basics: four egg yolks, a can of condensed milk and half a cup of bottled Key lime juice. At the Breakers in Palm Beach, for instance, the chef doubles the dose of condensed milk, uses cake flour in the crust, and bakes for a brief time instead of just refrigerating to give his legendary pie an extra creamy filling and delicate crust. At Steve’s Authentic Key Lime Pies, based in Brooklyn, but inspired by his Floridian childhood desserts, pies are produced in small batches, using only fresh Key limes juiced right before making the pies. On one point everyone agrees: the real deal is yellow, with a soft texture, not green or stiffened with gelatin or cornstarch.
Beyond the Crust. At the unofficial home of the Key lime, Kermit’s in Key West, visited enthusiastically by Food Network, Paula Deen and others, Key lime pie is only the beginning. As owner Kermit Carpenter says: “How about Key lime cookies, Key lime salsa, Key lime chutney, Key lime taffy, Key lime jelly beans, Key lime tea, Key lime olive oil, the list goes on and on!” And it does, from citrus salsa and smoked mullet spread appetizers, to omelets, to grilled Mexican-style fish, tuna salad with Key lime dressing, to burger and tartar sauces, gazpacho, and sweet potatoes, all featuring the sweetly tart Key lime juice. And there’s more…in Key lime country, up and down Florida’s 127.5-mile US 1 Overseas Highway, restaurants proudly showcase their own Key lime specialties, such as milkshakes, martinis, mousses and sorbets, jams and jellies. The acidic lime also juices up marinades for fish and seafood, meats, poultry and stews, harkening back to conch cooking done by Key West’s early settlers. It’s prized in Mexican cooking as well, used for its pickling properties in ceviche, and enhancing the flavor of soup, vinaigrette, and the mighty margarita.
*LA Times, 2011
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