I have always had a sweet tooth, and I come by it honestly. When my great-grandmother turned 95, she decided that she had finally reached the stage of life where it just made more sense to eat whatever she wanted whenever she wanted. She then enjoyed five years of decadence and was one of the happiest people I knew! My sisters and I absolutely loved going to visit her house as we could count on ice cream for breakfast, provided we got up ahead of our parents, and she kept a box of chocolate truffles in nearly every room.

While my mother was always a health nut when it came to everyday eating, she too inherited the family sweet tooth, and on special occasions when we were out to lunch or dinner with just her — Dad never would have gone for this — we would order dessert first. That way, we would be sure to have plenty of room for what we were there for anyway and could get straight to the main purpose. The waiter would often look from her to me in perplexity when taking this unconventional order, seeming to wonder if an adult really were present!

And then there was the famous Oreo dinner that is now a retold legend in our family. Dad was out of town — a critical element — and Mom realized she didn’t have anything to fix us for dinner. She had had a long day at work and did not have it in her to go to the grocery store, so she lit the candles as she set the table, divided a package of Oreos into four small bowls, and placed a big bowl of milk in the middle of the table. She then called to us that dinner was ready.

“Um, Mom, does Dad know about this?” was my reaction upon coming into the kitchen and seeing what was set before us.

“Mom, is this a healthy idea?” was Mary’s conscientious concern.

“Mom, how many can I have?” Helen finished.

Mom asked Mary and me if we wanted her to fix us something else instead, and we quickly assured her that we were quite happy with what she had prepared! 

Despite it perhaps not seeming possible, a Columbia family manages to put ours to shame on the sugar front. Aimee Murphy and Elizabeth Mounce are two of four sisters who grew up helping in their mother’s kitchen, where they prepared a homemade dessert every day of the week for their father. They have kindly shared some of their family favorites that are perfect for Easter on page 96. We hope your celebration is especially sweet this year!

Sincerely,

Margaret Clay