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Recipe for "key-lime-pie"

NAME

     KEY-LIME-PIE - Traditional lime pie dessert from the Florida
     Keys
     This very easy custard pie originated in the Florida Keys in
     the 1800's when fresh ingredients other than the local limes
     were hard to come by.  See the notes for information on some
     of the ingredients.

INGREDIENTS (One 20-cm pie)

     3         eggs
     400 ml    condensed milk (one standard can)
     120 ml    Key Lime juice
               sugar
     1         Graham cracker pie crust

PROCEDURE

          (1)  Separate the eggs.  You'll be whipping the whites,
               so put them in a large enough bowl.
          (2)  Combine the egg yolks, the condensed milk, and the
               juice,  and  stir  until thoroughly combined.  The
               acidity of the juice thickens the  milk  and  eggs
               into a custard.
          (3)  Add a pinch of sugar to the egg whites,  and  beat
               them until stiff but not dry.
          (4)  Spoon the custard into the pie crust and  even  it
               out.
          (5)  Spoon the beaten egg whites on top of the  custard
               and even it out so it looks pretty.
          (6)  Chill before serving.  If you like,  run  the  pie
               under  a  hot  broiler  for a minute until the egg
               whites are slightly browned.  (This  is  primarily
               for  appearance,  it  doesn't  affect  the  flavor
               much.)

NOTES

     Everybody in the Florida Keys seems to  have  a  variant  of
     this  recipe.   It  shows  up on postcards, place mats, lime
     juice bottles, and guide books.  Some people fold  a  little
     of the beaten egg white into the custard to make it lighter.
     Some put sweetened whipped cream  on  top  rather  than  egg
     white.  Some use two or four eggs.
     Traditionally, this pie is made from the juice  of  the  Key
     lime,  a  small yellow citrus fruit quite different from the
     larger and more familiar Persian lime.  Key limes  are  very
     sensitive  to  cold  and  in  the U.S. have never been grown
     above the very southern tip of  Florida.   Bad  weather  and
     disease  have  killed  off  so  many  of  them that the only
     remaining grove is a private one on one of the Keys, so  you
     cannot  buy  Key lime juice in the U.S. any more.  Key limes
     are still grown widely in South America and  probably  else-
     where on other continents.
     There is something called "Key West lime juice" sold in pint
     bottles  which everybody uses instead now, which seems to be
     regular  lime  juice  slightly  concentrated.   It's  widely
     available  in Florida and occasionally elsewhere in the U.S.
     It's also available via mail order from Key West Aloe, tele-
     phone  +1 305 294 5592 or 800-327-5866.  In a pinch, you can
     substitute regular lime juice,  though  it  doesn't  produce
     quite  the  bright yellow custard that traditionalists like.
     You may have to use extra juice, because Persian  limes  are
     less acidic than Key limes.

RATING

     Difficulty: easy.  Time: 20 minutes preparation, 1- 2  hours
     chilling.  Precision: approximate measurement OK.

CONTRIBUTOR

     John Levine
     Interactive Systems Corp, Boston, Massachusetts, USA
     johnl@ima.isc.com