Pink Grapefruit Pie (Grapefruit Cream Pie)

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Pink grapefruit pie with grapefruit pie filling in a graham cracker pie crust decorated with grapefruit zest, grapefruit slices, and piped whipped cream. A slice is cut out and placed next to the pie on a white plate with yellow flowers. Text overlay reads "Pink Grapefruit Pie"

Pink Grapefruit Pie (Grapefruit Cream Pie)

Name: Pink Grapefruit Pie
Prep time: 15 min
Cook time: 30 min
Total time: 45 min
Ingredients: 1 Graham Cracker Crust; 28 oz Sweetened Condensed Milk (795g); 1 cup Pink Grapefruit Juice (237mL); 5 Egg Yolks; 1 tbsp Grapefruit Zest; 1½ cups Heavy Whipping Cream (355mL); ¼ cup Powdered Sugar, sifted (30g); ½ tsp Vanilla Extract

This pink grapefruit pie is one of the more unusual citrus icebox pies you can make, and it puts a creamy, floral twist on key lime pie. I’m calling it a pink grapefruit pie on this website to differentiate it from a Texas red grapefruit pie, which is an entirely different beast of a pie. The filling comes together just like key lime pie, but the grapefruit gives it a sweeter and slightly more floral flavor.

A slice of pink grapefruit pie on a white plate with yellow flowers. Graham cracker crust and decorated with a slice of pink grapefruit and swirls of whipped cream

What is Pink Grapefruit Pie or Grapefruit Cream Pie?

Pink grapefruit pie, occasionally also called grapefruit cream pie, is a citrus icebox pie that’s extremely similar to key lime pie. It’s made with just a few simple ingredients: pink grapefruit juice, sweetened condensed milk, egg yolks, and grapefruit zest. The filling bakes up creamy and sweet, with a slightly more floral flavor than key lime pie. Like key lime pie, pink grapefruit pie is best served in a graham cracker crust or, if you can’t easily find graham crackers, a Digestive biscuit crust. This pie is beautiful when topped with whipped cream and grapefruit slices, or covered with a spiral of fresh grapefruit wedges. It can also be topped with a toasted meringue.

Pink grapefruit pie with a slice cut out. Close up photo with icebox pie filling in a graham cracker crumb pie crust decorated with grapefruit zest, grapefruit slices, and piped whipped cream

History of Pink Grapefruit Pie

With most pies on this site, I hear about a pie, research it, go out and buy the ingredients, recipe test, and then do a write-up and post my recipe. With this one, my process was a bit inverted. I went to the farmer’s market during peak grapefruit season (which runs roughly November through May in the US) and came home with way more grapefruits than I needed. I already knew about grapefruit meringue pie, but with six grapefruits sitting on my counter, I figured a pie like key lime pie but made with grapefruit juice had to exist, and went ahead and whipped this pink grapefruit pie up too.

Well, it turns out that grapefruit pie that’s like key lime pie where grapefruit juice is swapped out for key lime juice does exist, but, oddly enough, it’s a newer recipe. I haven’t been able to find any recipes for this style of grapefruit pie in printed cookbooks, and the earliest version I’ve been able to locate online is from 2014 on a food blog called Savory Simple.

Although this style of grapefruit pie seems pretty new, there are a number of different kinds of grapefruit pie that have been around for decades, and some that have been around for over 100 years.

Pink grapefruit pie with a slice cut out with pink grapefruit juice pie filling in a graham cracker crumb pie crust decorated with grapefruit zest, grapefruit slices, and piped whipped cream

What are the Different Kinds of Grapefruit Pie?

Pink grapefruit pie is one of a few distinct types of grapefruit pie that are quite different from one another. The most common types of grapefruit pie I’ve come across are these four.

Pink Grapefruit Pie or Grapefruit Cream Pie

Pink grapefruit pie is a creamy, sweet citrus icebox pie that’s very similar to key lime pie, made with pink grapefruit juice instead of lime juice. I’ve found similar recipes online calling it a grapefruit cream pie as well, and I’m using the two terms interchangeably for now. It’s a newer pie in terms of the history of pie, and the filling is creamy and sweet with a slightly more floral flavor than key lime pie thanks to the grapefruit.

Texas Red Grapefruit Pie

Texas red grapefruit pie is a stunning regional pie from the Rio Grande Valley that suspends fresh ruby red grapefruit wedges in a homemade strawberry gelatin. Mission, Texas is a small city in the Rio Grande Valley, right on the border with Mexico, and the city claims to be the home of the Ruby Red grapefruit. Ruby red grapefruits are much sweeter and less bitter than pink grapefruits, and are, well, a bright ruby red in color. The pie is also sometimes called a Texas ruby red grapefruit pie, and the result is a stunningly eye-catching red color of the pie.

Grapefruit Meringue Pie

Grapefruit meringue pie is an old-fashioned pie made with grapefruit curd topped with a toasted meringue, similar to lemon meringue pie. Recipes first started appearing in the 1920s, then largely disappeared after the 1990s, only to begin resurfacing online around 2006. If you enjoy a classic lemon meringue pie, grapefruit meringue pie is a wonderfully unusual twist on an iconic dessert.

Make a Grapefruit Meringue Pie

Old-Fashioned Grapefruit Pie

Old-fashioned grapefruit pie, sometimes called grapefruit custard pie, is a baked pie made with grapefruit juice, sugar, and cornstarch that sets into a vibrant grapefruit curd in a pie crust. When you search just “grapefruit pie,” this is actually the pie you’re more likely to come across than this newer pink grapefruit pie. It’s a simple, straightforward recipe with a bright and delicious filling.

Milk Bar Grapefruit Pie from the Momofuku Cookbook

The Momofuku Milk Bar cookbook includes a unique no-bake grapefruit pie with a Ritz cracker crust and a two-layer filling. The bottom layer is a grapefruit and passion fruit curd, and the top layer is a grapefruit condensed milk mixture spread over it. One of the more interesting parts of the recipe is that the grapefruit is heated with a little oil, which causes all of the little citrus kernels to separate.

Step-by-Step Pink Grapefruit Pie Recipe

Crust:

This grapefruit cream pie is best served in a graham cracker crust like key lime pie. You can sometimes find pre-made graham cracker crusts at the grocery store, or you can make your own since it is one of the easiest crusts to prepare at home. You can find my recipe for graham cracker crust here. If you live somewhere where graham crackers are not commonly sold, a Digestive biscuit crust is a great substitute.

Pink Grapefruit Pie Filling Recipe

This pink grapefruit pie filling is one of the easiest pie fillings you can make. You don’t need any special equipment, and it only takes four ingredients.

Ingredients

28oz Sweetened Condensed Milk (2 14oz cans, or 795g)
1c Pink Grapefruit Juice (237mL)
5 Egg Yolks
½T Grapefruit Zest

Note: You’ll need 2-3 pink grapefruits to get 1 cup of juice.

ingredients for pink grapefruit pie filling laid out on a cutting board with text labels: condensed milk, grapefruit zest, grapefruit juice, and egg yolks

1.

Preheat your oven to 325°F (165°C).

2.

In a large mixing bowl, combine the sweetened condensed milk and egg yolks. Using a whisk or even a fork, mix until fully combined.

3.

Add the grapefruit juice, and once again mix until fully combined.

pink grapefruit pie filling mixed in a metal mixing bowl

4.

Pour the filling into your prepared graham cracker crust.

Grapefruit icebox pie before being baked

5.

Bake for 25 to 30 minutes, or until very tiny cracks begin to appear around the edges of the pie. (To be quite honest, baked and unbaked pink grapefruit pies look very similar. But after 30 minutes at the correct temperature, the pie should be done).

6.

Chill the pie for at least 3 hours in the refrigerator so the filling can fully set before serving.

Homemade Whipped Cream Topping:

This grapefruit pie is delicious topped with either toasted meringue or whipped cream, but whipped cream is the easier topping of the two.

Ingredients

1½ c Heavy Whipping Cream, cold
¼c Powdered Sugar, sifted (60g)
½t Vanilla Extract

1.

In a stand mixer fitted with the whisk attachment, combine the cold heavy cream, sifted powdered sugar, and vanilla extract. Whip on medium-high speed until stiff peaks form and the cream holds its shape.

2.

Spread the whipped cream evenly over the chilled pink grapefruit pie using an offset spatula or the back of a spoon. For a more decorative look, transfer it to a piping bag and pipe rosettes or swirls across the top.

Overhead photo of a Pink grapefruit with pink grapefruit juice pie filling in a graham cracker crust decorated with grapefruit zest, grapefruit slices, and piped whipped cream

Pro-Tip: Sifting your powdered sugar is an important step to prevent clumps in your whipped cream. You can shake the powdered sugar through a fine-mesh sieve to sift it.

Pink grapefruit pie close up photo with icebox pie filling in a graham cracker crumb pie crust decorated with grapefruit zest, grapefruit slices, and piped whipped cream

Adding Acidity to Pink Grapefruit Pie

Some recipes for pink grapefruit pie will mention that grapefruit juice is less acidic than lime or lemon juice, and that extra acidity needs to be added so that the filling sets properly as the pie bakes. This is true. The pH of pink grapefruit juice tends to be around 3, while lemon and lime juice tend to have a pH around 2. (The lower the number, the more acidic. You can find a chart of approximate pHs of common foods here.)

In citrus pies like key lime pie and Atlantic Beach pie, the acidity of the citrus helps set the custard filling, and the baking finishes it off. Some recipes for pink grapefruit pie online claim that the filling will not set completely without added acidity because of grapefruit juice’s higher pH. However, I was unconvinced, especially considering that sour orange pie, a regional pie from Florida, sets without issue. The juice of sour oranges (also called Seville oranges) is closer in acidity to grapefruit juice, with a pH around 3.

I baked off a few of these pink grapefruit pies with and without added acidity and found that there was no reason to add any acid to the filling. If you bake the pie for the appropriate length of time (25-30 minutes, or until extremely tiny cracks begin appearing around the edges of the filling) at 325°F (165°C), the filling will set just fine and you’ll have a delicious, creamy pie. If you do feel like you need to add some acidity, you can swap out ¼ cup of the grapefruit juice for ¼ cup of lemon juice, or add ½ teaspoon of citric acid to the recipe.

Other Citrus Icebox Pies

This pink grapefruit pie belongs to a family of closely related citrus custard pies that all follow a similar formula, using different citrus juices to create distinct flavors. If you enjoy this grapefruit pie or key lime pie, here are a few other citrus pies worth trying:

Key Lime Pie: Key lime pie is the most popular and ubiquitous pie in this category and is considered the state pie of Florida.
Atlantic Beach Pie: A pie from the North Carolina coast similar to key lime pie that uses a mix of lemon and lime juice. More uniquely, it’s baked in a saltine cracker crumb crust.
Sour Orange Pie: Sour orange pie is actually the predecessor to key lime pie, though it has never gained the same recognition. Some bakeries in Florida still sell this pie. While regular orange juice is much sweeter than lime juice, Seville oranges have a sour flavor that creates a sweet and sour filling. This is an excellent pie worth trying.
Lemon Icebox Pie: Although the flavor and aromatics of lemons and limes differ noticeably, lemons are similarly sour. Lemon juice creates a deliciously creamy lemon pie. In some ways, it acts like a simpler version of lemon curd, making an easy dessert similar to lemon meringue pie.

How to Store Pink Grapefruit Pie

This grapefruit pie is most delicious when served chilled, and it needs to be chilled for a few hours after baking so the custard filling can fully set. Store your grapefruit cream pie in the refrigerator, so you can serve a slice at any time. The pie keeps well in the refrigerator for 3 to 5 days. The filling will be good for over a week, but after a few days the graham cracker crust will begin to soften and the whipped cream topping will no longer hold up.

Pink grapefruit pies also store very well in the freezer, just like key lime pies. Bake your pie as usual, and instead of storing it in the refrigerator, place it in the freezer wrapped in plastic and sealed in a freezer bag to prevent freezer burn. Do not top the pie with whipped cream or meringue until you are ready to serve it, since the toppings do not freeze well. When you are ready to enjoy your pink grapefruit pie, thaw it in the refrigerator for a couple of hours and then cut your slices.

We’d love to see your citrus pie creations! If you give this recipe a try, tag @doggone_baking on social media so we can share in the baking fun.