Color Is The Secret To Avoiding Unauthentic Key Lime Pie While You're In Florida

Florida is all about sunny beaches, palm trees, and fresh seafood. But there's another local treasure that you can't miss: Key lime pie. This tangy, sweet dessert is an icon — and Florida's official state pie — especially in the Florida Keys, where it originated. However, not all key lime pies are created equal, and anybody looking for an authentic slice in Florida may find themselves disappointed and deceived by impostors. The key — pun intended — to avoiding an inauthentic key lime pie? It's all in the color.

One of the biggest misconceptions about key lime pie is that it should be green. After all, limes are green, right? While it's true that most lime citruses are indeed green, authentic key lime pie is not. True key lime pie has a pale yellow color, thanks to the juice of the tiny, yellow-green Key limes used in the recipe. The color of real key lime pie comes from natural ingredients, not artificial food coloring.

If you see a bright neon-green radioactive-looking pie somewhere in Florida — run. You are not getting the real deal. These artificially green copycats are made with regular lime juice or lime-flavored gelatin, giving them a much different taste and color than the authentic version. Although they might look more vibrant and visually appealing — in the same way that gelato in Italy can be a deceiving tourist trap — they lack the signature tangy flavor that makes real key lime pie a beloved dessert.

The difference in color comes down to the type of lime. Authentic key lime pie is made using — spoiler alert — Key limes. These are different from other varieties, like Persian limes (the type often sold in grocery stores), as Key limes are smaller in size with thinner skin and have a complex, distinctive flavor that is tart and aromatic but not overly acidic. When Key lime juice is mixed with egg yolks and sweetened condensed milk (the traditional ingredients of the pie filling), it turns a pale yellow. Encase all that tangy goodness in a graham cracker pie crust and top it off with some meringue or whipped cream, and you've got the original recipe of key lime pie, dating all the way back to Florida's Key West in the 1850s.

Florida, particularly Key West, is filled with places that serve up slices of key lime pie, but not all of them stay true to this traditional recipe. To find the real deal, look for pie shops and restaurants that advertise using fresh Key limes or making their pies from scratch. You can even inquire whether the pie is made with fresh Key limes or bottled lime juice. But, we'll save you all this trouble. If you're in the Keys, check out the original outpost of Kermit's Key Lime Pie Shop for authentic, homemade slices of pie (that you can even get on a stick). Also visit Blue Heaven, a laid-back island-vibe restaurant that serves some of the best in town, and Blond Giraffe Key Lime Pie Factory, for an award-winning key lime pie.