Easy Key Lime Parfaits
These Key Lime Parfaits are a simple 5 ingredient recipe perfect for hot summer months. We love how quickly they come together and that you don't need to use your stovetop at all! We're using our Original Cannoli Chips in powdered sugar to create texture and add more flavor in these easy delicious parfaits. Experiment and make it your own, we think that our cinnamon or lemon flavors would work really well here too!
Here is what you'll need:
- 1/2 cup of lime juice (3-4 medium limes)
- Zest from one lime
- 1 can of Sweetened Condensed Milk (12oz)
- 2 tbsp of confectioners sugar
- 1 1/2 cup of heavy whipping cream
- 1 tsp of vanilla extract or paste (optional)
- 1 bag of Original Cannoli Chips (we used Powdered Sugar)
To start, zest one of your limes and set zest aside. Then juice your limes until you've collected 1/2 cup of juice. If using key limes (which can be tricky to find up here in New England) you will need more than 3-4 limes. Key limes are a little sweeter and more yellow in color than normal limes, but we found that classic limes worked just fine.
Combine lime juice with sweetened condensed milk in a large bowl. Add half of your lime zest (reserve the rest for a garnish) and whisk thoroughly. Make sure you purchase sweetened condensed milk, not evaporated milk. This is not something you can substitute. Sweetened condensed milk's unique texture and taste are what give the key lime mousse its delicious creamy texture.
Set aside your lime mixture and make your whipped cream. Combine 1 1/2 cups of chilled heavy whipping cream, 2 tbsp of powdered sugar and 1 tsp of vanilla extract (we love Nielson Massey vanilla) in a bowl. Whisk using back and forth movements until the whipped cream forms stiff peaks. You can also use a hand mixer to whip your cream, or even use cool whip as a replacement here.
Fold whipped cream into your lime mixture, reserving about 1/2 cup to garnish the top of your parfaits with.
Open your bag of Powdered Sugar Cannoli Chips and reserve some whole chips for garnishing your parfaits. Use a rolling pin crush the remaining chips into a crumb that we'll place in between the layers of the parfait. Original Cannoli Chips have more flavor and texture than traditional shortbread or graham cracker crumbs. We love the idea of choosing different flavored chips to really add character to a recipe (imagine these parfaits with lemon mousse and lemon chip crumbs!)
Now its time to assemble parfaits! You could use stemless wine glasses, glass yogurt cups or even martini glasses to hold these! We recommend taller skinnier glasses to really show off the layers.
Start with a layer of crumbs, then add a layer of your lime mousse. Alternate until you get to the top, making sure you finish with a layer of mousse. You can make extra whipped cream and alternate with that too if you want!
Top the parfaits with the reserved whipped cream, a little lemon zest and an original cannoli chip! Eat immediately or keep in the fridge. These can be made up to 48 hours advance, but we recommend making the components in advance and assembling them a few hours before serving.