Egg Custard

As my grandmother stood in her small kitchen with one elbow casually leaning on the counter and her left hand gripping an old Sunbeam mixer, she talked about how much her mother would bake when she was a kid. “Everyday when we would come home Mama would have some kind of pie or cake waiting” she stated. I questioned, “every day?” she confirmed, “Everyday.” My first impulse was to ask why she departed from such a tasty sounding tradition and and didn’t have treats waiting for us when we got home from school everyday. I already knew the answer originated from the fact that after spending the day cleaning other peoples homes, baking cakes and pies were not high on the priority list. I knew that remark would result in a head tilt and dark glare over the top of her glasses followed by her frankly explaining all the reasons why we didn’t have baked goods waiting for us everyday.

So I shelved my sarcasm and kept quiet as she explained that the Egg Custard she was making for Devin and I was one of her favorite things her mother would make. As a kid, I liked when she made it but it wasn’t my favorite as it was in was in competition with a stiff line-up of possible desserts like pound cake, lemon meringue pie, banana pudding, pumpkin pie and a host of other sweets. My affection for this one raised a bit after hearing her talk about how much she loved when her mother made it when she was a kid (and it doesn’t hurt that its damn good too).