Pot(f)uck Key Lime Pie

On Saturday, I went to my first potluck while on a diet. I knew this would be a disaster without advance thought, so I developed a plan of attack. My strategy was pretty straightforward: stuff myself with veggies and hummus all day (low cal, low points), and save all my points for dinner. Bring a low-points dish in the category of food in which I least expected to have options.

I sort of failed in my first goal (SAVE THE POINTS!) by having a bit of BF’s homemade fettucini masterpiece with lunch without calculating it first (two ounces = 5 points! WTF!). My second goal, however, was definitely a success.

The theme of the potluck was “Internationality,” in which each guest brought a dish reflecting their heritage. I’ve got a bit going for me in that area: Jewish, Russian, New York, Florida, and Weight Watchers (I consider this to be part of my heritage now). I figured there would be meat and vegetables in the appetizer/entree category, but I assumed (correctly) that the dessert table would be filled with battered, fried, sugared, and fatty foods. I started hunting for diet-friendly, but also taste/potluck friendly, desserts.

I found a recipe for a 5-point-per-slice key lime pie (hello Florida!). This was so incredibly easy to make that I will definitely be making it again. The only problem with the recipe, IMO, was that it didn’t fully set. Despite cooking it for almost ten minutes beyond the recommended time, it still didn’t quite solidify. It had the consistency of a pudding rather than a custard. I’m inclined to blame myself and not the recipe. I’ll try cooking it for longer next time, but even with a bit of goopiness it was still delicious.


“What do you mean you’re on a diet??” Key Lime Pie

Ingredients:

• 6 oz pie crust (I used graham cracker. I was reluctant to use a pre-made crust, but the filling softened up the crust nicely. You can tell the difference, but you save several points per slice by avoiding the homemade graham cracker crust)
• One can (14 oz) fat-free sweetened condensed milk
• 8 oz egg beaters
• Fat free whipped cream (8 oz)
• 1/2 cup fresh lime juice

That’s right---just three main ingredients!

Instructions:

1. Preheat oven to 325.
2. Wisk together the egg beaters, lime juice, and milk.
3. Pour into the pie crust. Put the pie crust on a baking sheet. (I didn’t use a baking sheet. Could that explain the goopiness?)
4. Bake about 15 minutes, until the center looks “set but still slightly quivery, like gelatin.”
5. Let it cool on a rack. Then put in fridge and let cool more for about two hours.
6. Top with whipped cream as you please.

Bad picture, I know...I need to get a new camera. The fat-free whipped cream melted SUPER-fast, and I sort of hurriedly put it on in a less pretty pattern than before.