Key Lime Mousse

One of favorite summer desserts has got to be Key lime pie. It's a wonderful combo of tangy, sweet, and cold that's just perfect on a hot summer day. This Key lime mousse is a twist on the traditional pie. It has all the elements of a key lime pie but the whipped cream is incorporated making for a very light dessert. Topped with super ripe fresh mango, this maybe the perfect summer dessert!

Mango topped Key Lime Mousse

Ingredients

For the crust
1 1/4 cup graham cracker crumbs
3 Tablespoons sugar
1/3 cup melted butter

Mix graham cracker crumbs, sugar, and butter together. Press mixture into an 8 or 9 inch sprinform pan. I line the bottom of the springform pan with parchment paper so that I can easily remove the bottom when I serve the mousse.

For the mousse

2 can sweetened condensed milk
1 cup key lime juice-if you want it a little more tart add about 1/4 cup more juice. I used Nelly and Joe's Key Lime juice but you can use freshly squeezed key lime juice if you want.
1 (1/4 ounce) envelope plain gelatin
2 cups whipping cream
1/4 cup confectioners sugar
1 ripe mango diced

In a large bowl mix together the sweetened condensed milk and the key lime juice.
In a small pot over low heat, warm 1/4 cup of the cream until it is about room temperature, warm to the touch.
Sprinkle gelatin over the warmed cream; let stand for a minute or two to soften; over low heat cook, stirring constantly, until dissolved, 1-2 minutes; cool away from the heat for five minutes.
At high speed, beat the 1/4 cup sugar with the remaining cream until soft peaks form.
Reduce the speed to medium and gradually drizzle the gelatin mixture into the cream. Beat until stiff peaks form. Mix about 1/4 of the whipped cream into the sweetened condensed milk. Mix until well combined, then gently fold in the rest of the whipped cream. Put the mousse into the prepared springform pan. Smooth out the top and cover with plastic wrap. Refrigerate overnight. Remove from the sringform pan. I run a dampened knife around the edge before I open the pan. This seems to help it to release easily. Top mousse with the diced mango.


Notes
This time I wanted to make the mousse into individual servings so I made these in my silicon muffin pan. I pressed the crust into the bottom of the silicon muffin pan then filled them to the top with the mousse. I refrigerated them overnight. I ran a knife around the edge then flipped the pan upside down to release the mousse. I removed them one at a time. I haven't tried to use a regular muffin tin so I don't
know if that would work or not unless they were lined with muffin papers.