I think you all know this by now; I’m ready for Spring and Summer.
I remember a recipe that my grandmother used to make. It was a blueberry cream cheese cheesecake.
It was the go-to dessert for all the unofficial family get-togethers. I say unofficial because it wasn’t the whole family, just the ones who lived within a five-mile radius. She’d break out the big guns for when the out-of-staters came in.
On those occasions, she would make desserts like lemon meringue pie or the pineapple-upside-down cake, both so special and ridiculously good in their own right. Oh! I can’t forget the peach cobbler!
Lord have mercy! It would make you want to slap your grandma. At least, that’s what Grandpa always told us. But we would never think of doing something like that. Not until he brought it up. I never understood why someone would want to slap the person who would put in the time and effort to ensure your satisfaction.
Anyways, this cream cheese cheesecake was a simple recipe. The topping consisted of cream cheese, whipped cream, powdered sugar, lemon juice, and vanilla. The crust was made up of the beloved, most revered graham cracker.
To get that sumptuous, slightly-crunchy crust, one has to crush two sleeves of graham crackers, melt three-quarters of a cup of butter, and mix those with a cup of granulated sugar.
The topping for the, uh, topping, can be any in-season fruit your little heart desires. Grandma used blueberries primarily. One time she used cherries, but it caused such a ruckus amongst the traditionalists that she decided against it for the foreseeable future.
These unofficial family get-togethers were for just-for-fun during the Summer months. They weren’t necessarily for any holiday like the Fourth of July. They’d just get hankering to have the kids and grandkids over, I guess.
Grandpa would break out the charcoal, fire up the grill and sear those thick hamburger patties and hot dogs over the leaping flames. Then he’d break out the BBQ sauce and slather the burgers and dogs. After a few more minutes over the heat, whew!
Of course, the burger would be accompanied by thick slices of tomatoes and onions straight from the garden. If that doesn’t float your boat, you’ve got a leak, my friend.
Put that on a plate with potato salad or Lay’s chips with Hiland French Onion dip and a spear of Grandma’s homemade dill pickles…Hallelujah! Sounds like a little bit of Heaven on Earth to me.
Oh yeah, I was talking about the dessert. Well, top that cookout with blueberry cream cheese cheesecake and a cup of piping hot coffee, and you’ve got yourself a mighty good unofficial family get-together.
I was going to say those were the good ole days. But I can’t. I will say that those times were my first experiences of what good ole days are supposed to feel like. Now, I get to make some good ole days for my family.
Is it summer yet?
to those who are still in the good ole days,
– Caleb
caneymountainblog.com 