Doc Brodie and the Big, Purple Cat Toy by Brigham Vaughn

Top with sliced banana, then sprinkle with nutmeg. Sprinkle bottom layer lightly with milk and sugar. Split shortcake into three layers while still warm. Place on a rimmed baking sheet lined with parchment paper and pat into a roughly 8-inch circle.īake for 15-20 minutes or until golden brown. Cut in chilled butter until mixture resembles coarse crumbs.

Mix flour, sugar, baking powder, and salt in a bowl. The shortcake recipe is one she and my mom used for strawberry shortcake, but made in a single, giant cake instead of individual ones.Īfter I baked the shortcake, I layered it with banana, milk, sugar, and nutmeg. My grandma used Bisquick, but I find it nearly as easy to mix up a quick shortcake from scratch (it took maybe ten minutes at most). The cake is actually more of a shortcake than a cake. Did grandma cut her cake in two layers? Or three? We went with three.

But as my dad and I tried to recreate it, it would have been helpful to have as we realized our memories were a little shaky. I think the simplicity of the recipe is why she never felt like it needed to be put in writing. One of those recipes was her banana cake. Unfortunately, there were some recipes that never made it onto a card or even a scrap of paper. The recipe book never happened, but I have been trying to organize and save as many family recipes as possible lately. I had ambitious plans to scan them all, type them up, and create a recipe book for the family. But the majority of her recipes were homemade, written down on recipe cards (or scraps of paper) and covered with splotches from drips and dollops of food.Īfter she died, I ended up with all of those recipes.

When I think of my grandma, the recipes that come to mind first are cherry cobbler, German potato salad, and doughnuts from scratch. She used boxed mixes occasionally and I have vivid memories of making chocolate pudding from a box using her old metal hand-cranked beaters. I watched her cook and, as I got older, helped her. She was a good cook and I hung out with her in the kitchen often.

I spent a lot of time at my grandma’s house when I was growing up. So today I thought I’d share a recipe that I made recently that has some great memories associated with it. I have every intention of continuing to post flash fics and review books, but I thought rather than struggle to find more writing related topics, I’d include some posts about what I do when I’m not writing or reading.Īs I’m sure a lot of you know, I really enjoy cooking. And when I do, it’s all totally writing related and, frankly, boring. I sometimes feel like I’m not paying enough attention to my blog.

Doc Brodie and the Big, Purple Cat Toy by Brigham Vaughn