One in a collection of essays celebrating the cooking of our mothers.
My mom is a great cook. Don’t let her tell you otherwise.
Actually, let me tell her, because if you can’t use a space like this to further your own agenda, what’s the point?
Mom, you’re a great cook.
She’s also modest, and proud of her daughter, which is why if you talk to her about cooking and baking, she’ll probably eschew any mention of her own specialties and go on about the latest ambitious-bordering-on-crazy kitchen project I’ve taken on. She’ll use words like “fancy” and “complicated” to describe what I’m up to, with the implication that what she does is too simple.
But you know what? Simple is good. Simple can be nourishing, time-saving and much less likely to leave a person — ahem, me — standing in a flour-and-sugar-strewn kitchen, (not so) quietly cursing my propensity for latching on to lengthy and involved recipes when I should probably be doing other things.
I do this because I’m stubborn, I like a challenge — and I can. When my mom was as old as I am now, she was a dentist taking care of one baby with another on the way and juggling my dad’s long, unpredictable hours as a medical resident. Time for a day-long pain au chocolate process? Not so much.
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Truth be told, the delicious fare my mom prepared for me when I was a kid growing up in suburban Richmond in the 1990s is what reverberated around the echo chamber of my youth and inspired and amplified my culinary interests. She made (still makes) tried-and-true family recipes — for noodle kugel, Jewish apple cake, pumpkin bread, mandelbread — that were often pulled out of a manila folder, photocopies of originals in my grandparents' handwriting.
We still enjoy holiday staples such as potato latkes for Hanukkah and cranberry Jell-O mold for Thanksgiving, and one of my early entertaining go-tos was her practically foolproof chicken with mushrooms, which involves pouring a ton of wine over the two main ingredients in a casserole dish before covering and baking it.
My mom would also be refreshingly unashamed about turning to recipes from food manufacturers. That’s how a much-loved dessert from Keebler entered our rotation.
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As you might expect, the recipe calls for a Keebler Ready Crust graham cracker pie crust, which is filled with a mix of cream cheese, sugar, lemon juice and “whipped topping” (Cool Whip) that is studded with chopped (surprise!) Keebler Rainbow Chips Deluxe cookies and topped with sprinkles. It was fast, no-bake and genuinely delicious, kind of like a cheesecake-lite. To this day, whenever her kids are visiting, my mom may be tempted to throw together what we all called That Cream Cheese Cool Whip Pie.
You could compare this delightful confection with the checkered Battenberg cake I recently made or the choux-and-buttercream Paris-Brest I still dream about, but why would you? My elaborate creations were never about one-upping my childhood. They’re just my way of showing love, and in that, I learned from the best.
More Mother’s Day essays:
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• My mom doesn't cook 'fancy,' but she inspires me to do just that
• In the kitchen, my mother followed the rules — straight from her sister
• My mother and I battled over food, until she made one special thing
• It didn't matter that we lived in Denver. In our house, soul food reigned
Share this articleShare• Mom didn't teach me to cook. She taught me confidence, in and out the kitchen
• A mother's lesson in cooking for a crowd: Rely on the tried, true and remembered
• My mother had no chops in the kitchen, but she pulled off one thing beautifully
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That Cream Cheese Cool Whip Pie
8 servings
This is a fast, no-bake, retro treat that Food writer Becky Krystal’s mother still makes for occasional family get-togethers.
MAKE AHEAD: The pie needs to be refrigerated for at least 3 hours and up to overnight before serving.
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Adapted from an old Keebler brand recipe.
Ingredients
8 ounces cream cheese, at a cool room temperature
1/3 cup sugar
1 teaspoon fresh lemon juice
11/4 cups (41/2 ounces) coarsely chopped Keebler Rainbow Chips Deluxe cookies (7 to 8 cookies)
8 ounces whipped topping, such as Cool Whip, defrosted
One 9-inch prepared graham cracker crust (in its own aluminum foil pan)
Multicolored sprinkles, for garnish (optional)
Steps
Combine the cream cheese, sugar and lemon juice in the bowl of a stand mixer or handheld electric mixer; beat on medium speed until well combined.
Use a spatula to fold in the cookie pieces and whipped topping until well incorporated. Spoon the mixure into the graham cracker pie crust, spreading the filling evenly. Cover loosely and refrigerate for at least 3 hours or up to overnight.
Just before serving, decorate with multicolored sprinkles, if desired.
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