Captain's Log, Day 25 (and Happy Thanksgiving!)

This is how the 25th day went...

It started out with a little writing. How much, I don't know. But Thanksgiving is today and the desserts needed to be made yesterday. (Yeah, Tim is a good cook, but baker, he is not.) And those kids of mine had made requests: 1. Pumpkin Chiffon Pie, 2. Cheesecake Pie, and 3. Brownies. Two of the three recipes come from my mom, and as you all know, she was diagnosed with Alzheimer's this past summer.

Most of the time I think about Mom, I'm okay with the diagnosis of Alzheimer's. I mean, what can I do? Worrying about the diagnosis, about Mom, or about my own possible diagnosis down the line would do nothing. But as I went through the motions of making those desserts yesterday, a sadness overwhelmed me. My mom can no longer follow a recipe. The desserts requested by the kids will no longer be made by my mom.

Because I don't want to forget these recipes, I'm posting them.

Pumpkin Chiffon Pie (recipe that Mary C. uses, from my Aunt Jean who got it from a fellow teacher way back in 1973!)

1 envelope gelatin in ¼ cup water

1 ¼ cup canned pumpkin

½ cup milk

1 teaspoon mixed pumpkin spices

½ teaspoon salt

1 cup sugar

3 eggs, separated

1. Beat egg yolks slightly, then add ½ cup sugar, pumpkin, milk, salt, and spices. Cook until thick over medium heat, stirring constantly.
2.  Dissolve gelatin in cold water and add to the hot pumpkin mixture. Mix thoroughly and cool.
3. While the mixture is cooling, beat the egg whites until stiff, adding the other ½ cup of sugar. Then fold into the thickened and cooled pumpkin mixture.
4. Pour into baked pie shell and store in the refrigerator.

The very observant will notice a small smudge at the bottom of the pie. I needed to taste the filling to be sure it was okay.

Cheesecake Pie

Crust:

1 ¼ cups plain graham cracker crumbs

¼ cup butter, melted

Filling:

1 8 ounce cream cheese, softened

½ cup sugar

1 tablespoon lemon juice

½ teaspoon vanilla

dash salt
2 eggs

Top layer:

1 c sour cream

2 tablespoons sugar

½ t vanilla

1. Mix crumbs and butter and press into buttered 8 in pie plate, building the sides.
2. For the filling, beat the cream cheese until fluffy. Gradually blend in ½ c sugar, lemon juice, vanilla, and salt.
3. Add the eggs, one at a time. Beat well after each.
4. Pour filling into the crumb crust and back at 325 for 25 to 30 minutes until set.
5. Combine the rest of the ingredients and spoon on top of the baked filling.
6. Bake 10 minutes more and cool. Keep chilled.

This pie looks better when you make it in a glass pie plate. Alas, I only have one of those and the Pumpkin Pie was already in it.