Do you have a Betty Crocker cook book? Mine was a wedding present so is very old and shows much wear and tear from so much use while on my dairy farm and these many years since. The outside is broken off as are many of my favorite pages.

HOW-SOME-EVER…..I still often refer to recipes from that raggedy old book. That is where I get the recipe for my cream filling for banana pie and coconut cream pie. And as per-usual, I revise that recipe!

Things you need to purchase at you favorite market:

Package of Pet-Ritz deep-dish pie shells (comes two in a pkg)
Package of coconut (I buy the 5 cup package).
Package of Dream Whip
Two percent milk ( that is what I use.)
Eggs

I’m assuming you have sugar, cornstarch, salt and vanilla
This is my revised recipe for the cream filling.

3/4 cup sugar
3 & 2/3 tablespoons cornstarch
1/2 teaspoon salt
4 cups milk
6 egg yolks
1 and 1/2 tablespoons butter
1 & 1/2 tablespoons white imitation vanilla extract
3/4 cup shredded coconut

In advance, take a pie shell from the freezer to thaw and after it is thawed punch holes in bottom and sides to let our air pressure while baking and keep it from raising up in bubbles.

In medium size bowl mix sugar, cornstarch and salt, add small amount of milk from one cup just enough to make a paste, add egg yolks and mix well. Add 2 tablespoons vanilla to mixture. Add approximately 1/4 cup more milk to this mixture and put the remainder of that cup of milk plus three more cups in a microwave bowl and heat in the microwave for four and 1/2 minutes. Add butter to hot milk.

Place thawed pie shell in 385 degree oven to bake while you finish mixing the hot milk slowly at first into the mixture of sugar, eggs etc, place in a medium size pan on burner stirring constantly with flat end wood spoon. Bring to a boil and cook for two minutes. Turn burner low for boiling so it doesn’t bubble up and burn your hand. That has happened to me more than once and take it from me that hurts.

Remove from burner and add 3/4 cup coconut to pudding, place back on burner and bring to a boil and remove. Never stir the pudding once you have removed it from the burner. That will cause it to go runny like soup. You probably already knew that.

Your pie shell should be baked to a light golden about the same time you pudding filling is done so remove from oven and pore hot pudding into the hot pie shell. That is how you keep the crust from soaking with them each being hot. I leave the pie on the counter to cool to room temperature before placing it in the fridge to cool further before adding the dream whip topping.

I top with Dream Whip using one package dream whip with one half cup plus two tablespoons two percent milk and when beaten up sweeten with a rounded teaspoons confectioners sugar and add a few drops of vanilla. If I don’t have the white vanilla I use the regular dark vanilla. After pie has cooled in fridge add dream whip to top of pie, sprinkle with fresh moist coconut and place your completed beautiful pie back in the fridge until ready to serve.

I baked this pie often for Barbara and Bernie Collins who were my helpful neighbor’s in Highland Creek in Salem Ohio. When I ask him what kind of pie he wanted it was always COCONUT CREAM!!!!!!!!!!

When I moved to Florida, Bernie said I could mail him a coconut cream pie.

Sure Bernie!!  Keep watch for that Florida bird that will swoop down out of that Salem Ohio sky and deliver a COCONUT CREAM PIE AT YOUR FRONT DOOR!!!!

FRF ❤️


Portrait I painted of Pamela and Tracy on  Chesapeake Baysailing with Dr Kelly and Linda Drake who are mirrored in their dark glasses.

I have never really understood why the 50th birthday is such a big deal. And possibly it isn’t to everyone, but in my family it is the time for extra big celebration. I found these pictures of my daughter Pamela on her 50th birthday and thought you might enjoy seeing them.

She along with her husband Tracy Drake ( he already had his 50th party) their daughters Evin and Sarah lived on Quaker Lane Salem Ohio where Tracy was CEO of the Columbiana county Port Authority located on the Ohio River at East Liverpool and Pamela had her psychiatry office north west of town next to the Salem Hills golf club.

So here are Pamela’s 50th birthday pictures taken at their home on Quaker Lane.

Evin, Sarah, Pamela’s sister Meredythe, me (with my mouth open) and Pamela

Tracy our family super chef at the grill

Close up of our feast

Pamela, Evin, Tracy, Meredythe, Sarah, I’m the photographer

Now it’s light the candle and everyone sing HAPPY BIRTHDAY PAMELA!!!!!!!

Sarah, Evin, Pamela, tracy

My daughter Pamela, a beautiful 50 year old or should I say 50 YEARS YOUNG!!!!!!!!!!!

FRF ❤️


Portrait of baby Jodi

It took my daughter Meredythe a while and a lot of convincing to finally get her daughter Jodi, who has multiple sclerosis, accepted at The Gables nursing home in Marysville Ohio.

Here you see Jodi in her beautiful room at The Gables.

image1Meredythe decorated her room with portraits I had painted of Jodi’s son Levi at a lake in Canada holding a fish he had just caught and her daughter Holli sitting on a little white pony. And then put between the paintings a creation of mine with a bird house on a tree limb and eggs in a bird nest. Jodi’s aunt Pamela sent her the beautiful new bedspread.

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Close up of Levi’s portrait

image4Close up of Holli’s portrait

image5And for Jodi’s birthday this special treat chocolate caramel brownies made especially for her by her gramma Flo.

We, all her family, are so happy to know she is where so many advantages are offered. Delicious food, fresh clean clothes each day, bingo with funny money rewards for winners and a special store set up to spend that money for delightful gifts. Plus ever so many other wonderful advantages to keep her busy and happy.

The Gables nursing home, owned and operated by the Marysville hospital is truly THE ANSWER TO OUR PRAYERS for our beautiful JODI !!!!!

FRF ❤️

 


Things to buy at your favorite market.

Pkg of fresh chicken breast
One can Campbell cream of chicken soup
Pkg of linguine (pasta noodles) from the store cooler case One half gallon College Inn chicken broth 50 percent low sodium

Butter sides and bottom of large casserole, wash chicken pieces and place accross the bottom in one layer.

Add one cup of chicken broth, sprinkle with meat tenderizer, thyme, dill weed, garlic salt and parsley.

Bake covered at 325 for 2 hrs. Remove from oven and allow to cool to room temperature.

Separate the linguine in long strips on a cutting surface and cut 1 and 1/2 inch pieces. Sprinkle 2 tablespoons flour over linguine pieces and shake to mix through.

When chicken has cooled enough to handle, cut into small pieces ready to add to the noodles.

In a large kettle, pour the remaining chicken broth, the drippings from the roasted chicken and bring to a full rolling boil. Add the linguine noodles a little at a time while stirring constantly.

Boil until tender and add Campbell’s cream of chicken soup and bring to boil.

Add the cut up chicken and bring to a full rolling boil stirring constantly with flat end wooden spoon before removing from burner.

I serve this over mashed red potatoes with the skin left on and add salt, butter and sour cream. Save the hot water you drain from the potatoes and add some back in to give your potatoes a good consistency. I like to add a little parsley to the potatoes for a smidgen of color added to the color of the red potato skin.

With this dinner my granddaughter Sarah likes buttered peas, my granddaughter Evin likes the cherry jello salad and my daughter Pamela likes coconut cream pie.

HOW DOES THIS SOUND TO YOU? So….who’s counting calories already!!!!!!!!!!!!!

FLO ❤️


I am almost settled in my new home. My bedroom is all furnished with new purchases, just have to wait for the man who painted my walls white to come back with his ladder and hang a few of my high school paintings. I am still working on my studio/sitting room.

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Sunday November 1st Tracy Pamela and I met Maia Morrison at the Casey Key Fish House for a 2:00 PM lunch. She is such a super lady with her beautiful red hair streaked with gold. She was dressed so neat in yellow denim knee shorts. Yellow with green and blue lace short sleeves and inserts, and yellow strap sandals. Quite the stylist!!!

We all enjoyed drinks while sharing a plate of crab cakes and a plate of coconut shrimp as we visited reminiscing of by-gone days.

Maia was in my blog in January 2014 “PLASTIC SURGERY! WHO? ME?” She was president of the Venice Area Board of Realtors and had named me membership chairman and just after I had inducted as realtors the new salespeople of the Venice area, she ask me to tell everyone that I had just had a face lift and I had foolishly declined.

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Tracy, me, Maia

We all enjoyed our delicious sea food meal while Tracy and Pamela questioned Maia of developments in the area since we were last here. This delightful lady is still helping people find the perfect Florida home.

But wait a minute! My birthday wasn’t Sunday…….so now it’s Monday November 2nd and I am now 93 years old. And……….Tracy made a delicious dinner of short ribs, mushrooms, carrots and tiny red potatoes slowly roasted in a wine sauce. YUM!!! YUM!!! Followed with slices of birthday cake and ice cream all washed down with red wine. Who could ask for anything more?

Footnote:
I have a sister Fannie who is 97 and 1/2 and another sister Mabel who lived to celebrate her 98th birthday.

HEY! I MIGHT LIVE TO BE100!!!!

FRF ❤️