Avocado Key Lime Pie [with Pecan/date crust]

Avocados make this key lime pie smooth and creamy pie without the use of heavy cream or sweeteners! And then spread on top of a date crust and you’ve got the healthiest key lime pie there is!

So, if you don’t already know…I really like a good dessert. And I like a good healthy dessert even more. Which makes this refreshing Avocado Key Lime Pie with a date crust, the perfect dessert!

I will go to great lengths to try the ‘healthiest, most gluten free, refined sugar free’ dessert at any dessert place. I feel like if the chef is attempting to make it ‘healthier’ then it’s got to be a little bit better for me than the regular old dessert….am I right??

Well, this healthy Avocado Key Lime Pie idea came after I had tasted the Avocado Key Lime pie from Peacefood cafe in New York City. [One of my favorite smoothies also comes from there…my Watermelon Mint Lime Smoothie. It’s divine and it tastes like a good New York summer in my mind-and now I can make it at home, the restaurant version actually doesn’t even stand a chance!]

Anyway, this restaurant also has a version of THIS Avocado Key Lime pie.

When I was spending $7.99 on ONE slice of pie-once a week-I had to find another solution if I was going to survive and stay married. Just like how most of my copy cat recipes begin. I spend WAY too much on the item and need to figure out how to save a few bucks so I make it myself!

This specific recipe is adapted from Eating bird Food. You can find her recipe here! I really like her recipes and kept the crust the just about the same and then added a few extra ingredients to my filling to fit my taste buds.

INGREDIENTS:

crust:

• pecans/walnuts
  • I like the combination of the two nuts but you can also just pick and choose one nut! I have also made it using cashews
• unsweetened coconut flakes
  • PLEASE don’t waste your sugar grams and calories on the fake sweetened stuff. Go and buy the real UNSWEETENED version and you will never go back. For heaven’s sake it even looks different!
• pitted dates
  • although it is noisy, blend blend blend! Blended dates make a nice paste which also serves as the sweetener to hold the crust ingredients together.
• lime zest
  • this is a LIME pie after all.
• sea salt
  • just a little will do it

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pie filling:

• RIPE avocados
  • the creaminess is determined by your ripeness of your avocado. A ripe avocado provides the smooth texture and blends into a smooth almost whipped texture.

did you know that avocados are thought to improve digestion, decrease risk of depression, and protection against cancer.

• Plain Greek Yogurt
  • I added the non-fat greek yogurt for some added protein as well as I think it makes it a bit more creamy.
  • I tried using 1/2 cup and decided that 1/4 cup seems to be the sweet spot. Taste the filling before you put it in the pie and if it is too tart from the yogurt, just add some more honey!
• Lime Zest
• Fresh Squeezed Lime Juice
  • Fresh squeezed lime juice makes all the difference! I buy a bag at costco and then make a few pies to freeze them for later!
• Vanilla extract
• Coconut oil
• Honey

STEPS

crust:

#1: Puree in a food processor

– processing the dates is the most tricky as well as the most important. It is the purreed dates that are the binding agent AND the sweetener for the crust, so they need to be pretty pureed. However, if they DO NOT need to be completely smooth. Just sticky.

– I just throw all the ingredients in together and pulse until they are sticky.

#2: Press in a springform pan

– It will work fine in a regular pie pan, just may be harder to remove

filling:

#1: Blend ingredients together

– Use a high quality blender, such as Blendtec.

– Blend until smooth…taste prior to spreading it in the crust in case it needs more honey

IMPORTANT!

FREEZE for at least 4 hours until frozen. It is normal for the pie filling to be soft and whipped like. That’s why its very important to freeze it for a pie that you can cut.

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