If You Love Key Lime Pie, You Need To Try This Other Floridian Staple

Every state has an iconic dessert, from George's peach cobbler to New York's cheesecake. In Florida, Key lime pie is often the dessert that's most well-known. But Florida's abundance of citrus means other delicious options are often overlooked. One pie popular among locals but rarely heard of elsewhere is the sour orange pie. If you're a fan of Key lime, you might want to give this one a try.

Sour oranges grow wild all over Florida. The most popular kind to use is Seville orange. These are about the same size as a typical orange but have a bumpy exterior and resemble lemons. Calamondin (also known as calamansi) can be used as well. Calamansi is a cross between a mandarin orange and a kumquat; it looks like an orange but is small like a lime. Both types of citrus are generally too sour to eat on their own, the way you'd eat most oranges, so using them in baking with some sugar makes them more palatable. That said, their natural sourness provides a great balance. The point of a sour orange pie is to preserve some of that tartness and not drown it out with sugar, the way some Key lime or lemon meringue pies do.

The recipe for the pie is typically the same as a Key lime pie, just substituting sour orange for lime. You'd use the juice and zest from sour oranges or calamansi in place of Key lime, make a graham cracker crust, and top with meringue or whipped cream.

For many, sour orange pie is a standout, better than Key lime and an underrated but iconic Florida staple. The point of the pie is to accent that tartness. If you've never had one, try to imagine the appeal of a glass of homemade lemonade, or even Sour Patch Kids. You want to lean into the sour with the sweet to play on your palate.

If you can't find Seville oranges (which are hard to track down even in Florida) or any calamondin, there are a few substitutions you can use. You can make this with Naranja Agria sour orange juice, or with equal parts fresh-squeezed orange and lemon juice (½ cup each), reduced to ¾ cup total.

A graham cracker crust is a good contrast for the sour fruit filling because of the extra sweetness. Any pie crust will do, but graham cracker complements the citrus flavor better. Likewise, you can top your pie with either meringue or whipped cream to add creamy sweetness and balance. It also works just as well with no topping, so you can experience the sour orange flavor more clearly. If you're looking for the best dessert in every state and think key lime is all Florida has to offer, give a sour orange pie a try.