After only 4 days, the Pie in the Park book project is already 20% funded!

Thanks to all of those who have donated, and also to those who have tweeted, Facebooked and emailed about the project, your support is very much appreciated. Keep it up, and Pie in the Park should be at 100% in no time!

Inspired by watching what Kickstarter is calling "the most delicious video we've seen yet" (thanks guys!) over and over again, I decided I needed to make some pies this weekend and share them with my friends.

The kind of pie that I would make came to me like all good things do, on the subway - Rhubarb Curd and Meringue Pie.

Delicious.

Taking some rhubarb I bought at the Grand Army Plaza farmers market last weekend, I chopped the stalks - about 3 cups worth - into tiny cubes, mixed it with sugar and heated the mixture on low heat on a pot until soft.

After setting the mixture aside, I added 6 egg yolks and 12 tablespoons of sugar to a heat safe pan and beat the mixture consistent submerged in a pot of boiling water. I slowly added the rhubarb mixture. After removing the mixture from the heat, I added a stick of butter that I had cut up into little cubes. I then put the rhubarb curd in the fridge to cool.

I had already made two sweet crusts, using a recipe from my pie crust bible Sweetie Pies, so I rolled out one crust, and pre-baked it in the oven. When the crust was done, I added more than half of the curd, and put the topless pie back in the fridge.

Now for the meringue.

I took the excess egg whites after using the egg yolks for the curd mixture and added about a cup of sugar. I poured the mixture into a heat safe pot and submerged the mixture in water, beating continuously until the mixture was sufficiently warm and incorporated. I then beat the mixture with an electric mixer until it was thick. I took the cooled now simply just Rhubarb Curd Pie from the fridge, added the meringue on top and placed it in the broiler in my oven to lightly brown the top.

I did all of this on Saturday, and ended up taking the pie to a rooftop gathering of some of my favorite ladies before jetting off to a performance art show.

On Sunday, I was heading to some friends' backyard for some gardening and grilling, and I pre-baked the other crust, added the remaining curd mixture (which was less than there was in the first pie) and then added a layer of strawberries before adding and broiling the meringue.

I had to go all the way from Ft. Greene to Greenpoint on the shuttle with a pie carrier in one hand, and a dog in a bag on arm, and although the pie got moved around a bit (and some sticky rhubarb curd somehow found its way on Bella's ear?) we all got to Greenpoint safe and sound and the second pie was enjoyed by both old friends and new.

So, this weekend - Rhubarb Curd and Meringue Pie for all, some lessons learned (like keep your eye on that broiler so as not to blacken meringue when making a pie with meringue in it) and 20% funding - hooray!