#19. Master a signature family recipe

This post is for my grandmother. In my ‘grandmother land’ post I told you a bit about my favorite place in the world. Now I’ll tell you about the woman who makes it so great, and for whom we’ll be celebrating her 80th birthday this weekend.

My first memory of childhood is of my grandmother. I was in the hospital with pheumonia at age three and they had me in a crib that felt like a cage. I'm not sure of what my diet was back then, but I do remember the hosptial food being absolutely disgusting.  I can clearly recall my grandmother visiting and letting me out of my 'cage' to eat smuggled in chicken mcnuggets. Hero status achieved.

My grandmother lived in ‘grandmother land’ a few hours from my home so we often only saw her 4 or 5 times per year. We would sit in our front window for hours waiting for her to arrive. My grandfather knowing we'd be watching would flash the car lights once they had turned on our street. We would race to the door to find cupcakes, or cookies, or pie, and of course a new Barbie.

If we were visiting her in ‘grandmother land’ there would always be treats upon arrival and either toys to play in the sand in the summer, or sleds to ride down hills in the winter. We would spend our lazy afternoons on walks on the beach collecting shells and water glass, or on the back trails in the winter looking for animal tracks. We watched the 'Price is Right' every morning religiously before lunch. I became a pro at american grocery prices.

My grandma hums and whistles songs when there is silence which adds just the little bit of unexpected happiness to your day. My grandmother has always been a trendsetter for fashion wearing whatever makes her happy and puts far more time into her hair than I could ever imagine spending.

As a child this woman brought me fairytales and in adulthood she provides me more comfort than she knows. My grandmother will always listen, never judge, and always remember to follow up on whatever issue with the next phone call, card, or letter.

I am very happy to be celebrating my grandmother’s 80th with her, I just wish it was her 70th, or even 65th, as I never want my time with this wonderful woman to run short.

So here is a recipe for my grandmother’s ‘Sinfully Delicious’ (my comfort food) that will be a staple on the dessert menu of my home:

Ingredients:


½ cup margarine, melted


1 cup chopped pecans or maraschino cherries (if desired)


1 ½ cups graham cracker crumbs


1 (8 ounce) package of cream cheese


1 cup of sugar


4 cups of frozen whipped topping, thawed


2 packages of instant pudding mix


3 cups of milk


Directions:


1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees (175 degrees C)


2. To make crust in a medium bowl mix together margarine and graham cracker crumbs (and pecans if you desire). Pat into a 9 X 13 baking pan. Bake in preheated oven for 20 minutes or until crust is brown. Allow to cool completely.


3. In a medium bowl beat together cream cheese and sugar until smooth. Fold in 1 cup of whipped topping. Spoon mixture onto crust.


4. Prepare chocolate puddings with milk as per directions. Allow pudding to set before pouring onto top of the cream cheese layer. Spread remaining 3 cups of whipped topping over the pudding layer.


5. Chop up maraschino cherries and sprinkle on top.


6. Cover and refrigerate for an hour.