As promised, as part of February’s Black History Month, I get a chance to make two recipes for this column.

The banana pudding with vanilla wafers has been a favorite for a very long time. As a matter of fact, some years ago I went to a slumber party at Ginger Smiley’s house and we were asked to make our favorite-ever dessert. Mine was a banana pudding. (Ginger, never to be outvoted, blew out the jelly of jelly donuts, added peanut butter cups and shared them warm. Never tasted anything that good before or since).

So, here is a gorgeous dessert. If you don’t have a trifle bowl, it is just as good layered in a Pyrex pan.

The other, a spiced sweet potato pie, I had never made before, although I have made pumpkin pies a lot. This recipe is beyond delicious. I did not parbake the pie shell, since I never do with a pumpkin pie.

Civil Rights Spiced Sweet Potato Pie

From Yankee magazine, January/February 2021

Serves 8

2 medium sweet potatoes, roasted, peeled and mashed

¾ cups firmly packed dark brown sugar

½ cup sweetened condensed milk

4 tablespoons salted butter, mashed

2 tablespoons all-purpose flour

1 teaspoon ground allspice

1 teaspoon ground cinnamon

½ teaspoon ground ginger

½ teaspoon ground nutmeg

¼ teaspoon kosher salt

2 large eggs, lightly beaten

1 ½ teaspoons vanilla extract

1 9-inch pastry shell, parbaked (parbaking optional)

Whipped cream, for serving

Preheat oven to 425 degrees. In a large bowl, using a standing or handheld mixer, beat mashed sweet potatoes together with brown sugar, condensed milk, butter, flour, spices, salt, eggs and vanilla until well blended and smooth.

Pour filling into pie shell. It will be full but should not spill over the sides, although I decided to put the pie atop a big piece of aluminum foil. Bake for 15 minutes, then reduce heat to 350 degree and bake until top is puffed and browned, 20 to 30 minutes more. Cool on a wire rack for at least 2 hours. Serve with whipped cream.

The Best Banana Pudding

From Allrecipes.com

Serves 20

1 5-pounce package instant vanilla pudding mix

2 cups cold milk

1 14-ounce can sweetened condensed milk

1 tablespoon pure vanilla extract

1 2-ounce container frozen whipped topping, thawed

1 16-ounce package vanilla wafers (I always use Nilla Wafers)

14 bananas, sliced

In a large mixing bowl, beat pudding mix and milk 2 minutes. Blend in condensed milk until smooth. Stir in vanilla and fold in whipped topping. Layer wafers, banana and pudding mixture in a glass serving bowl (also called a trifle bowl). Chill until serving.

On the Side

Like many of you, one of my favorite stops is to Dunkin' for a medium French vanilla coffee, milk only. (I am an East Coast girl, so, to me, Starbuck's is really Charbucks.) But some years ago I decided to buy my own coffee cup to avoid using more paper and plastic than necessary. With the pandemic, Dunkin' uses only its own plastic and paper. At $2.40 plus tip, it is getting to be an expensive treat.

A couple of weeks ago, I bought a pound of French vanilla ground coffee and make it at home. You know what? With my own 2% milk, it costs probably 10 cents a cup of coffee and, in the summer (will it ever be summer?), I will make a pot of 8 cups and put the cooled coffee in the fridge for iced coffee, which I love. Now I have enough money to go to the movies (will there ever be movies?).

Lee White lives in Groton. She can be reached at leeawhite@aol.com.