Key Lime Pie Pudding (no-cook, vegan, fruit-sweetened)

If you’re looking for an easy, fruity, creamy, dreamy no-cook dessert, your search is over!  This Key Lime Pie Pudding satisfies that sweet tooth using only four whole-food ingredients while keeping the fat and calories low.  With no nuts required, this gluten-free, sugar-free, vegan treat hits the spot and only takes 2 minutes to whip up in your blender.  It’s the perfect cooling treat for those hot summer days, with all the flavor and nostalgia you’d expect from your favorite key lime pie filling.

So, whether you’re nutritarian or just looking for an incredibly simple, healthy and satisfying dessert idea, I think you’re going to love this recipe…

What makes this Key Lime Pie Pudding special?

• no cooking required
• no oil, nuts or dairy
• no coconut milk or cream
• sweetened with your choice of golden raisins or deglet noor dates
• colored with fresh spinach (optional)
• only 128 calories (4 grams fat and 7 grams protein) for a 1/2-cup serving

What ingredients do you need?

1. silken extra-firm tofu (I use Mori-Nu shown above)
2. 1/2 Hass avocado
3. golden raisins or deglet noor dates
4. half-handful fresh spinach (optional for greener color)
5. key lime juice

Notes about ingredients & substitutions: 

Key Lime Juice: I don’t recommend substituting this with regular lime juice.  Regular limes are more tart than key limes.  Key limes also have a more floral flavor profile than standard limes.  This is the key lime juice brand that I love.  They also have a smaller 12 oz. size in a glass bottle here.  If you absolutely must substitute with regular lime juice, start with 2 tsp. and then taste before adding more.

Dried fruit sweetener options: While you can use either golden raisins or deglet noor dates, I highly recommend the raisins.  The tangy-sweetness of the golden raisins compliments the bright, citrus flavor best.  Second-best is deglet noor dates.  When I use deglet noor dates for this recipe I typically increase the lime juice by 2 tsp..  You can use medjool dates for this recipe but it’s not my favorite option because the caramel-flavor of the medjool dates competes too much with the key lime (just a personal observation).

How to make Key Lime Pie Pudding: 

Begin by adding the golden raisins or deglet noor dates into your high-speed blender bowl.  You want the hardest-to-blend items closest to the blades.

Next, add the half avocado and the lime juice. Finally add the extra-firm silken tofu.  I like to open my tofu container over my sink and drain out any liquid.

Blend together on high for 40 to 60 seconds.  In the beginning of the blending you’ll want to use your blender tamper to help move the ingredients along.

Sample the pudding and add more lime juice to taste.

If you’d like to get the color a bit greener, add about 1/3 cup fresh spinach leaves (stems trimmed) and blend on high for 10 to 15 seconds (use the tamper to get the spinach incorporated).

Taste the pudding again at this point to see if you need to add more lime juice.  Add in 1/2 tsp.-increments, it’s easy to go too heavy with lime.

Scoop out the pudding into a glass snaplock food storage container or Mason jar and chill in the refrigerator for at least 2 hours before serving.

What are the storage recommendations for this Key Lime Pie Pudding?

Fridge: This pudding keeps for up to 4 days the refrigerator in a glass storage container with snap lock lid.

Because this recipe is made with avocado you may notice a slightly-brownish watery condensation on days 2 through 4.  This is more apparent when you haven’t used the optional spinach for coloring.  Simply mix the pudding together to incorporate, the taste is still delicious.    

Freezer: This is not my preferred storage method for this recipe because the texture changes after freezing.  If you have to freeze, it will keep up to two months in an airtight container.  To thaw: allow it to chill in the refrigerator overnight then leave it on the counter for 20 minutes before serving.  Mix well to reconstitute.

What’s the flavor like?

• cooling
• refreshing
• tangy
• perfect balance of sweet and tart
• decadent

What’s the texture like?

• rich
• creamy
• la cross between a yogurt and pudding

Why did I create this Key Lime Pie Pudding recipe?

My name is Kristen and I was born and raised in South Florida…  Any guesses as to my favorite dessert?

I’m OBSESSED with key lime pie!

My grandma Shirley made the most delicious key lime pie with a sky-high fluffy cloud of meringue on top.  I remember sitting at her orange kitchen booth and watching in awe as she’d take it out of the oven.

The smell was pure comfort and the taste was tangy, sweet heaven.

While growing up, almost every year for my birthday we would take a family trip down to Key West.  I remember seeing the key lime trees even on the side of the road and nothing was a more nostalgic treat than sitting at the trolly bench with a rapidly-melting key lime pie ice cream cone in my hand.

Now that I’ve been a nutritarian for well-over a decade, it was high time that I recreated this childhood favorite in a healthy way.

I started with my Easy Vegan Yogurt recipe as a base and went from there.

The result is a creamy, refreshing and decadent-tasting dessert with no baking or cooking required.  After all, who else thinks the filling is the best part? 

Topping suggestions:

• kiwi
• strawberries
• banana
• mangoes
• lime zest
• raw hemp seeds
• raw chia seeds
• unsweetened coconut
• pistachios
• macadamia nuts
• cashews
• nut or seed butters

How much Key Lime Pie Pudding can you have on the nutritarian plan? 

If you’re following the Aggressive Weight Loss Plan stick to the recommended 1/2-cup serving.  

The best toppings for weight loss would be 1/2 cup fresh strawberries or kiwi and a 1/4 tsp. sprinkle of hemp or chia seeds.

Avocado: Dr. Fuhrman advises no more than 2 ounces (57 grams) of avocado per day.  A medium Hass avocado weighs about 70 grams for half an avocado.  There is 1/8 avocado (18 grams, .7 oz.) in each serving of the pudding.  You will have 49 grams remaining in your avocado quota for the day–that’s a bout 1/4 medium Hass avocado.

Dried Fruit: Dr. Furhman recommends a max of 2 Tbps. dried fruit daily.  This recipe has 1.75  Tbsp. golden raisins or 2.5 deglet noor dates per 1/2-cup portion.  So, don’t have more dried fruit on a day where you eat this dessert.

If you’ve reached your ideal BMI (under 23) you can enjoy this pudding with more starchy fruits like banana and mango.  You can also add in a higher-fat topping like coconut flakes or nut butter drizzle.  

Print

Key Lime Pie Pudding

With only 128 calories for 1/2-cup, this no-cook creamy and tangy Key Lime Pie Pudding recipe is vegan, gluten-free and fruit-sweetened.

Course Dessert

Cuisine American

Keyword gluten-free, healthy, no cook, nutritarian, oil free, refined sugar free, vegan, WFPB, whole food plant based

Prep Time 4 minutes

Total Time 4 minutes

Servings 4 1/2-cup servings

Calories 128.3 kcal

Author Kristen Hong

Ingredients

Choose ONE sweetener:

• 1/3 cup + 2 Tbsp. golden raisins (~73 grams)
• 10 pitted deglet noor dates (~73 grams)

Base ingredients:

• 1/2 Hass avocado, medium (~70 grams)
• 3 to 5 tsp. key lime juice* (15 to 25 mL)
• 10.9 oz. silken tofu, extra firm (308 grams)

Optional for greener color:

• 1/3 cup fresh spinach, lower stems removed (~10 grams)

Instructions

1. Add the ingredients to your high-speed blender bowl in this order: raisins or dates, avocado, key lime juice and tofu.

2. Blend on high for 40 to 60 seconds. In the beginning of the blending you'll want to use your blender tamper to help move the ingredients along.

3. Sample the pudding and add more lime juice to taste, 1 tsp. at a time.

4. If using optional spinach: add spinach and blend on high again for 10 to 15 seconds or until spinach is fully incorporated. Sample the flavor again, adding more lime juice if necessary.

5. Scoop out the pudding into a glass snaplock food storage container or Mason jar and chill in the refrigerator for at least 1 hour before serving.

Recipe Notes

Yield: just under 2 cups (~435 grams)

Servings: four 1/2-cup servings 

* Key Lime Juice: True key lime juice is recommended and preferred because it's more sweet, less tart and has distinctive floral notes. For a milder key lime flavor start at 3 tsp., for a tarter flavor go for 5 tsp. juice to begin. Adjust to taste and only add in 1/2-tsp. increments. If you must use regular lime juice start at 2 or 3 tsp. and adjust to taste.

Storage Recommendations: 

Fridge: This pudding keeps for up to 4 days the refrigerator in a glass storage container with snap lock lid.

Because this recipe is made with avocado you may notice a slightly-brownish watery condensation on days 2 through 4.  This is more apparent when you haven't used the optional spinach.  Simply mix the pudding together to incorporate, the taste is still delicious.    

Freezer: This is not my preferred storage method for this recipe because the texture changes after freezing.  If you have to freeze, it will keep up to two months in an airtight container.  

To thaw: Allow it to chill in the refrigerator overnight then leave it on the counter for 20 minutes before serving.  Mix well to reconstitute.

Nutrition information is given using golden raisins as the sweetener.

Nutrition Facts

Key Lime Pie Pudding

Amount per Serving

Calories

128.3

% Daily Value*

Fat

 

4

g

6

%

Saturated Fat

 

0.4

g

3

%

Sodium

 

8.6

mg

0

%

Potassium

 

365.9

mg

10

%

Carbohydrates

 

17.9

g

6

%

Fiber

 

2.9

g

12

%

Sugar

 

11.9

g

13

%

Protein

 

7

g

14

%

Vitamin A

 

8.49

IU

0

%

Vitamin C

 

2.3

mg

3

%

Calcium

 

51.6

mg

5

%

Iron

 

1.5

mg

8

%

* Percent Daily Values are based on a 2000 calorie diet.

I’d love to know what you think if you give this recipe a try.

Your comments and recipe ratings motivate me so much to keep creating memorable and delicious recipes while helping the website get rankings in search engines.