Original: "Conch Cooking" L.P. Artman, Jr., August 1975 Florida Keys Printing & Publishing, page 74 The dish is named after the small key limes (Citrus aurantifolia 'Swingle') that are naturalized throughout the Florida Keys.
Simplified: Many early recipes for key lime pie did not instruct the cook to ever bake the pie, because they depended on this reaction to make the filling thick.