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Sweet, tart, and tangy, Lemon Key Lime Pie Bars …with a vanilla butter crust and lime salt on top. These bars are much like key lime pie but made with a few upgrades. They’re super easy, creamy, and made with an extra amount of tang. The filling is made with just a few simple ingredients. There are, of course, plenty of fresh limes. There’s also a secret ingredient…a touch of lemon juice. The crust is rich, buttery, and full of vanilla flavor, with the perfect touch of saltiness. Put everything together and you have the most mouthwatering key lime pie bars Just sweet enough, incredibly luscious, super creamy, and perfectly tangy. Finish with lightly whipped cream and lime salt for an amazingly salty-sweet key lime pie bar.
Surprise! Key lime pie bars! I feel like these are maybe a bit unexpected from me? I haven’t done many key lime pie recipes, so these feel very new and exciting to me. They’re also perfect for the spring and summer days ahead.
As a kid, the only person I knew who loved key lime pie was my grandpa. He’s always been very into key lime pie, and well, any fruit pie for that matter. But key lime and apple are two of his favorites.
I never understood either of his pie choices. I was raised to love a good, classic chocolate chip cookie pie, or a chocolate bourbon pecan pie. Yummm, right? Chocolate over key lime any day!
(key limes)
But times have changed. Over the last few years, I ventured into key lime pie territory. And while I still can’t say I’d choose key lime over chocolate, I will say that it certainly has its time and place. It’s actually pretty darn delicious when done right.
So, I’ve made the pie, but these bars are even more special, and for a few reasons.
The inspiration
Two things…fresh key limes at the grocery store, which I couldn’t believe I was able to come across.
And the desperate desire to be in Key West…as the snow currently falls outside my window.
(bars after baking)
Onto the details…
The amazing thing about these bars? They are EASY. So easy they’re hard to mess up.
You make the crust, bake, mix up a quick filling, and bake again. Then let the bars chill and top them with cream. So SIMPLE.
For the crust, I switched things up a bit and created a buttery, heavy on the vanilla, Ritz cracker crust. To me, this is better than a graham cracker crust any day. Simply mix the cracker crumbs with salted butter and a good splash of vanilla and bake everything up in a square baking dish. All done, super easy. That touch of vanilla and the use of salted butter are key.
But the real secret to this crust? A touch of brown sugar, which adds to that salty-sweet flavor, it’s delicious.
While the crust is baking, make the key lime filling. I always go extra tangy with my key lime filling. And for sweetness…I try to go just sweet enough. This means heavy on the lime with one very secret but key ingredient, a splash of lemon juice. Preferably pink lemon juice but any lemon juice will do. It’s an unexpected twist that makes for an even tarter key lime pie. Trust me on this. I know it’s not traditional, but I promise it really does make for a better key lime pie.
Once that’s mixed, bake the filling in the crust, and in fifteen minutes you’ll have key lime pie bars. So easy right?
Simple is the name of the game these days.
Also, a little note, while key limes are ideal, you can really use any ole’ lime to make these bars!
Now finish it up…
To serve, I like to spread a delicious honey whipped cream over top with a sprinkle of fresh lime salt. Nothing fancy, but it seals the deal on these key lime pie bars.
Once chilled, the bars come out almost perfect. They have a rich, salty-sweet, and buttery brown sugar crust with the creamiest most luscious smooth key lime filling that melts in your mouth. Beyond delicious.
So good that we overnighted a batch to my grandpa because I just knew he’d LOVE these more than anyone.
If you want to step up your presentation game, sprinkle over some edible flowers. Either way the bars are sure to be enjoyed by all…
And they’re pretty fun too!
Looking for other sweet bars recipes? Here are some of my favorites:
Swirled Carrot Cake Cheesecake Bars
Cinnamon Sugar Blueberry Crumb Bars
Lunchroom Chocolate Peanut Butter Bars
Lastly, if you make these Lemon Key Lime Pie Bars, be sure to leave a comment and/or give this recipe a rating! Above all, I love to hear from you guys and always do my best to respond to each and every comment. And of course, if you do make this recipe, don’t forget to tag me on Instagram! Looking through the photos of recipes you all have made is my favorite!
Lemon Key Lime Pie Bars
Servings: 16 bars
Calories Per Serving: 232 kcal
Nutritional information is only an estimate. The accuracy of the nutritional information for any recipe on this site is not guaranteed.
Ingredients
- 2 sleeves Ritz crackers
- 2 tablespoons light or dark brown sugar
- 1 stick (8 tablespoons) salted butter, melted
- 3 teaspoons vanilla extract
- 5 large egg yolks
- 1 3/4 cups sweetened condensed milk
- 1 tablespoon lime zest, plus 2/3 cup lime juice
- 3 tablespoons lemon or pink lemon juice (or additional lime juice)
- 1/4 teaspoon kosher salt
- 1 cup heavy cream
- 1-2 tablespoons honey
Lime Salt
Instructions
- 1. Preheat the oven to 350° F. Line a 9-inch square pan with parchment paper. 2. In a food processor, pulse the crackers and brown sugar into crumbs. Add the butter and 2 teaspoons vanilla, pulse to combine. Press the mix into the prepared pan. Bake until golden, about 18 minutes.3. Meanwhile, whisk the egg yolks in a medium bowl until smooth. Add the sweetened condensed milk, lime zest, lime juice, lemon juice, and salt. Whisk to combine. Carefully pour the mix into the baked crust.4. Bake for 15 minutes, until just set on top. Let cool slightly, then cover and chill in the fridge until set, at least 1-2 hours. 5. Before serving, using an electric mixer to whip the cream until soft peaks form. Add the honey and 1 teaspoon vanilla. Whip to combine. Swirl the cream onto the bars. In a bowl, mix the lime zest and a pinch of flaky salt. Sprinkle over the bars. Slice and enjoy! The bars will keep chilled in the fridge for up to 5 days.
This post was originally published on April 16, 2021
This recipe sounds great and is very similar to Atlantic beach pie; along the coast of North Carolina lots of seafood restaurants serve a lemon merengue pie with ritz cracker crust (the history is very interesting, and ther is an NPR article about it!). This looks like a simpler version of that and I can’t wait to try it!
Thanks so much Lindsey! Let me know if you give it a try!
These look great! My lime trees are almost at the end of their season so I’m always looking for ways to use them up. I don’t live in America so I’ll have to use other crackers for this. Can you please give measurements for the weight of two sleeves of Ritz crackers? Thanks!
Hey Barbara,
Each sleeve contains about 40 Ritz crackers. I hope you love the recipe, please let me know if you have any other questions! xTieghan
Oh my gosh, I can’t wait to make these! I literally just searched your website for a key lime pie bar recipe this week, because I wanted to try making key lime pie, but loved the idea of them as a bar. I feel like you read my mind! Thanks for the recipe 🙂
Lol perfect timing Becca! I hope you love them:)
I look forward to making this recipe as I love the flavors involved. Your pictures are simply stunning!
Thanks for the great recipe development.
Thanks so much Linda! I hope you love the recipe!
These look delish! Would love to swap out the Ritz crackers with graham crackers. How many rectangles of graham crackers would you guess that converts to?
Hey Anna,
Sorry, I’m honestly not sure because I haven’t tested the recipe with graham crackers, I would just eyeball it as best you can! I hope you love this recipe, please let me know if you have any other questions! xTieghan
I am so excited to make this! I actually have key limes and key lime juice already stocked. Do you think graham crackers would work in place of ritz crackers? Only asking because that’s what I’ve got in my pantry!
Hey Nicole,
Yes, graham crackers would be great! I hope you love this recipe, please let me know if you give it a try! xTieghan
These look so pretty with the flowers on top! Love that you sent some to your Grandpa ? hope he loved them too. Xx
Thanks so much Kelly-Jane!!
About how many cups should the cracker + brown sugar mix make? I am gluten free so want to try GF graham crackers since there is no GF ritz alternative. Excited to try this!
Hey Lea,
The ritz crust will make about 2 cups. I hope you love this recipe, please let me know if you have any other questions! xTieghan
Could you substitute merrange for the whipping cream.
Hey Valerie,
Sure, that would be a fun idea! I hope you love this recipe, please let me know if you give it a try! xTieghan
Hello:)
In Canada, ?? what are 2 sleeves equivalent too? We have boxes totalling 200gms.
Thank you! Can’t wait to try:)
Hey Melanie,
There’s about 40 crackers in 1 sleeve. I hope you love the recipe, please let me know if you have any other questions! xTieghan
Not only are these so pretty, they sound scrumptious as well. Anything citrusy in the spring and summer always makes me happy. Love all your recipes. Thanks so much for sharing!
Hey Linger,
Thanks so much for making this recipe, I am delighted that it was enjoyed! Have a great weekend! xTieghan
The thing that really make these outstanding, on top of the crust, would be using key limes instead of regular limes. Regular limes work, but they don’t taste like key limes, just like limes don’t have the same taste as lemons. Key limes are kind of a mixture of the two. If you can get key lime juice, even bottled, use that. Luckily I have a key lime tree in my back yard that is ready to drop about 30 limes. This is on my list to make! Thanks for sharing. Fence Contractors Lakewood
I hope you love the recipe Elice!!
Oh boy! This looks like summer in a bite! Can you tell me how many grams or ounces are in 2 sleeves of Ritz crackers? In Canada, they are sold by the box and jumbled in a bag (like cereal), rather than sleeves. So I have no idea how many crackers would be needed for this recipe, which I intend to make ASAP!
Hey there,
There’s about 40 crackers in a sleeve. I hope this helps! Let me know if you give the recipe a try! xTieghan
How many grams is two sleeves of Ritz crackers? I live outside of the States and portions here are smaller. Thank you!
Hey Janice,
Each sleeve contains about 40 crackers. I hope you love this recipe, please let me know if you give it a try! xTieghan
How thoughtful to send your grandpa a batch. I am sure he will enjoy them.
Thanks so much Charlotte!