Homemade Banana Pudding

Yesterday, Tiffany (check out her site http:tiffanymcmanus.com) made a "Homemade Banana Pudding" - a dessert that our family has enjoyed for generations. The recipe is found on the Nabisco Nilla Wafers box. My Mother made this for our family back in the 50's, before the company changed the name of the product. We never had to worry about refrigerator space to store it overnight - Mother considered it a one meal dessert for our family of 5. She didn't serve it in a small dessert bowl but rather a larger cereal bowl like the ones we used for homemade ice cream.

Banana Pudding was always a favorite for my children, and, as you can tell when Tiffany tries her pudding after it is finished, my grandchildren love it too.

When I purchased the box of Nilla Wafers for this recipe, I noticed that Nabisco now has a different package and the recipe is not there so just in case you are unable to find a box with the recipe on it, I am posting it below for you.

Original Nilla Banana Pudding

What you need:

• 3/4 cup sugar, divided
• 1/3 cup flour
• Dash of salt
• 3 eggs, separated
• 2 cups milk (we used half and half)
• 1/2 tsp. vanilla flavoring
• 45 Nilla Wafers
• 5 medium ripe bananas, sliced (about 3 1/2 cups)

Make it:
Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Mix 1/2 cup of the sugar, flour and salt in the top of a double boiler. Blend in 3 egg yolks and milk. Cook, uncovered, over boiling water 10 to 12 min. or until thickened, stirring constantly. Remove from heat; stir in vanilla.

Spread small amount of custard on bottom of 1 1/2 quart baking dish; cover with a layer of wafers and then a layer of sliced bananas. Pour about 1/3 of the custard over the bananas. Repeat the layers two more times making three layers and ending with custard.

Beat egg whites on high with electric mixer until soft peaks form. Gradually add 1/4 cup sugar, beating until stiff peaks form. Spoon over custard; spread evenly to cover entire surface of custard and sealing well to the edge.

Bake 15-20 min or until lightly browned (our pudding only took 10 minutes so watch carefully to avoid overcooking). Cool slightly before serving. 

Grandma's Sugar-Butter Roll

The recipe below is from Grandmother Bertha Ferguson's kitchen and was prepared for me, my brother and sister when we were small children visiting her on her cotton farm in Mississippi. Grandmother's farm was pretty self-sufficient and food that she prepared was grown and preserved on her land with the exception of the basics (flour, sugar, salt, soda, baking powder and vanilla flavoring). She raised her own meat (chicken, and hogs mostly), grew her own fruits and vegetables, and had a milk cow for her dairy products.

Perfecting the recipe below took many attempts and a combination of memories from all three of us before we got it right. There are two ingredients that are substitutes. Grandmother used whole fresh milk and lard. Our version replaced these with Half and Half and shortening.

Grandma's Sugar-Butter Roll
Biscuit Dough
2 cups Martha White All-Purpose Flour
1 tablespoon baking powder
1/4 teaspoon baking soda
3/4 teaspoon salt
5 tablespoons Crisco Shortening
1 cup buttermilk

3/4 cups Butter (softened)
3/4 cups sugar

Preheat oven to 350 degrees

Combine flour, baking powder, baking soda and salt; blend well. With pastry blender or fork, cut in shortening until mixture resembles coarse crumbs. Add buttermilk, stir with fork until soft dough forms. Turn dough out onto floured surface, sprinkle lightly with flour. With floured hands, knead dough 5 to 10 times or until no longer sticky. Roll out dough to 1/2 inch thickness in a 8x15" rectangle shape.  Cut into 3 equal sections, (about 5" x 8")

Rub shortening over the bottom of a 6x9x3 pan.

Place one dough section in bottom of pan. Spread 4 Tablespoons softened butter over top and sprinkle 1/4 cup sugar over the butter. Repeat this procedure with the other 2 sections.

Sauce:
2 cups Half and Half
1 cup sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla

Heat ingredients in saucepan on medium heat until boiling. Immediately pour over dough and place in hot oven for 30-40 minutes (top will be slightly brown).

Chocolate Cookie Cheesecake /Blue Ribbon Winner

At the recent Hopkins County Dairy Festival in Sulphur Springs, TX, Tiffany entered a Chocolate Cookie Cheesecake in the Children's Division under Deserts. I decided to film the entire process for this site. Tiffany won a First Place Blue Ribbon for the Deserts category and Best of Show for the Children's Division. There were some really nice entries in competition so Tiffany was thrilled when she won. Below is a copy of the recipe if you would like to try it. It is very rich but absolutely delicious.

Chocolate Cookie Cheesecake

Prep Time: 38 minutes  - Cook: 1 hour and 30 minutes  - Chill: 8 hours
Ingredients:

2 cups cream-filled chocolate sandwich cookie crumbs (20 cookies)
2 tablespoons butter or margarine, melted
1/4 cup firmly packed brown sugar
4 (8-ounce) packages cream cheese, softened
1 1/4 cups sugar
1/3 cup whipping cream
2 tablespoons all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
4 large eggs
2 cups coarsely crumbled cream-filled chocolate sandwich cookies (14 cookies)
1 (16-ounce) carton sour cream
1/4 cup sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1/3 cup whipping cream
1 1/4 cups semisweet chocolate morsels
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
Garnish: additional cream-filled chocolate sandwich cookies

Combine first 3 ingredients in a medium bowl; firmly press mixture evenly in bottom and 2 inches up sides of a lightly greased 10-inch springform pan. Bake at 325 degrees for 12 minutes; set aside

Beat cream cheese at medium speed with an electric mixer until creamy. Gradually add 1 1/4 cups sugar, beating well.  Add 1/3 cup whipping cream, flour, and 1 teaspoon vanilla; beat well. Add eggs, one at a time, beating after each addition.

Pour 3 1/2 cups of batter into prepared crust. Top with crumbled cookies; pour in remaining batter. Bake at 325 degrees for 1 hour and 15 minutes.

Combine sour cream, 1/4 sugar and 1 teaspoon vanilla; spread over cheesecake. Bake at 325 degrees for 7 minutes. Turn oven off, and leave cheesecake in oven with door closed 45 minutes. Remove from oven, and cool completely on a wire rack. Cover and chill 8 hours. Remove sides of pan.

Combine 1/3 cup whipping cream and semi-sweet chocolate morsels in a saucepan; stir over low heat until chocolate melts. Stir in 1 teaspoon vanilla. Remove from heat. Carefully spread mixture over cheesecake, allowing it to drip down sides. Store cheesecake in refrigerator. Garnish, if desired.

Yield: 12 servings
Per Serving: Calories 798,  Fat 55.9g, Cholesterol 194mg, Sodium 500mg

Bon Appetit!

Having Fun In The Kitchen With Your Children and Grandchildren!

This blog is all about having fun with your children and grandchildren in the kitchen. It is about passing on family traditions and little bits of family history while learning to prepare meals for the family. It is how I learned to cook in my grandmother's kitchen on her cotton farm in the delta of Mississippi and I will always remember her patience in teaching a small child to make biscuits in the top of the bag of flour without "messing up" the rest of the flour. My sister and I considered it a special privilege to be able to "churn" the cream into butter and then watch Grandmother place it in a pretty mold. She used the buttermilk to make her biscuits and cornbread. My uncle loved crumbling cornbread into a glass of buttermilk and then eating it with a spoon. Said it was one of his favorite treats along with cornbread and pot-likker (broth from turnip greens).

I hope you enjoy our blog and be sure to watch our videos on YouTube. Tiffany (my 11 year old granddaughter) will be preparing some of our recipes for you. 

What's Cookin In Grandma's Kitchen