First, break out the food processor and a 9” pie plate or glass pie dish, and preheat your oven to 350°F/177°C.

Melt 6 tablespoons of butter and set aside. Break up the 9 sheets of graham crackers and toss into the bowl of your food processor along with a ½ cup of macadamia nuts and blend until mostly crushed into small pieces. Add the 2 tablespoons of brown sugar, and ¼ teaspoon of salt if using, then pulse a few times to combine. Begin mixing again and slowly pour the melted butter in until fully combined and you have a moist mixture. You should be able to take a small amount and squeeze it between your fingers and it will hold its shape. If it feels too dry, add a little more butter, a tablespoon at a time, until it holds together and is moist but not wet.

If you don’t have access to a food processor, you can do this by hand instead. Toss the graham and nuts into a gallon size zipper lock bag and crush with a rolling pin or meat mallet until finely ground. Add the rest to the bag and agitate with your hands, or transfer to a mixing bowl and combine until the same consistency as above.

Transfer the crust mixture to the middle of your pie plate/dish and begin pushing down and out until the bottom is flat and the mixture is climbing up the walls of the dish. Using a flat-bottomed measuring cup helps to smooth out the crust and compact it, I believe I used a ½ cup measure in these photos.

Place the crust into your preheated oven and par-bake the crust for 8-12 minutes. When you can really smell the graham and nut aroma, the crust looks a few shades darker and feels mostly solid, it’s done. Remove from the oven and set aside. It doesn’t need to be completely cooled before adding the filling.

While the crust is par baking, begin making the filling. Using a nonreactive mixing bowl, whisk together the 4 egg yolks with the cup of Key lime and 2 teaspoons of lemon juices. Add the 2 teaspoons of zest and both cans of sweetened condensed milk and continue whisking until everything is combined and you can feel it slightly thickening.

Add the filling to the parbaked crust and return to the oven. Cook about 15-20 minutes, until the outside looks mostly set and the center has just a bit of jiggle to it. Remove from the oven and set on a cooling rack until room temperature. Once cooled, cover and transfer to the refrigerator for at least 1 hour, 3-4 hours or overnight is even better.

Once cooled, or just before serving, make your topping and decorations. Freeze a metal mixing bowl with the beaters of your hand mixer for at least 10-15 minutes. Add your cup of heavy cream and 1 tablespoon of sifted confectioner’s sugar and begin beating at low speed. Continue mixing and increasing the speed until you just hit the stiff peak stage. Top your pie with the whipped cream, I like to keep mine somewhat rustic, and add some freshly grated zest and a few slices of Key limes.