Sweet - Keys Festival To Celebrate Key Lime Pie
KEY WEST (CBSMiami/FKNB) – It will be all about tartly sweet Key Lime pie over the July 4th holiday weekend in Key West with the kick off of the inaugural Key Lime Festival.
The festival was conceived by Key West author and baker David Sloan, who penned "The Ultimate Key Lime Pie Cookbook."
Believed to have originated in Key West in the late 1800s, Key lime pie was designated Florida's official pie in 2006 by the state legislature. Its primary ingredients are condensed milk, egg yolks and the juice of the tiny yellow Key lime, with the creamy filling typically nestled in a graham cracker crust and topped with whipped cream or meringue.
Festival highlights are to include an attempt by Sloan and three fellow chefs to set a Guinness World Record for baking the largest Key lime pie in history. They plan to debut their creation, expected to exceed 15 feet in diameter, during the Key Lime Piestravaganza Thursday, July 4, on Greene Street just off Duval Street.
The Piestravaganza is to feature other attractions including the Mile-High Key Lime Pie Eating Contest at noon and an appearance by the festival's offbeat mascot, Key Lime Kirby.
Sloan and company are to unveil "the world's largest Key lime pie" at 2 p.m., subsequently serving slices of their gigantic creation to attendees who donate $1 to the historic Key West Firehouse Museum.
Aspiring bakers can prove their pie-making prowess at noon Friday, July 5, during the Key Lime Pie Championships at the Ernest Hemingway Home & Museum, 907 Whitehead St.
Entrants can vie for blue ribbons in multiple divisions, with pies judged on criteria including appearance, flavor balance and originality. Spectators can purchase tickets to sample, savor and cast People's Choice votes.
Other festival events include the Miss Key Lime U.S.A. Pageant, paired with comedy and performances, and the Lil' Miss Key Lime pageant for costumed kids ages 6-10.
The Florida Keys News Bureau contributed to this report
