Though hand written, it is-- almost word for word-- the recipe from the back of a Nabisco Nilla Wafers box. I don't understand why I was expecting some else, like India ink on lilac-scented vellum, but I was.

It doesn't matter one bit that her "famous" banana pudding came from the back of a box-- somewhere along the way, she made it her own. To her family and friends, banana pudding might never be the same unless Elsieberry King made it.

Though Mrs. King is gone and I will never have the good fortune to meet her, she has inspired me to make my own banana pudding. It part me, it's part Elsieberry, and it's part back-of-the-box. I'm naming it after her, to give it a nice Southern touch. Though it's being made by a California boy who has only ventured south of the Mason-Dixon line twice in his life, it doesn't matter, damn it. I'm Southern enough when I want to be. Besides, I've learned a little something from my Southern friends, who have since left their homes:

Being Southern isn't necessarily about latitude-- it's about attitude.

So do yourself or your husband a fayvuh and make yourself a little Elsieberry Pudding this weekend.

Elsieberry Pudding

Elsieberry Pudding

Serve Four to Six

There are essentially two kinds of banana puddings: those topped with meringue and baked, and those that are topped with whipped cream and refrigerated. The meringue version (which was Elsieberry's preference) is delicious, but it doesn't lend itself well to delightful, individual servings. I've gone the whipped cream, no-bake route, and with much success.

I have made two changes-- nothing earth-shattering, mind you-- to the traditional recipe: I decided to make a slightly butterscotchy custard, and I have added an extra bit of banana purée (mush, really) to the center to punch up the banana flavor. Give it a go, if you like.

This is a truly simple dessert to master. And one of the best things about it is that, the longer you let it set about and let the ingredients get downright neighborly, the better it gets. Banana pudding on Day One is delicious. Banana pudding on Day Two is fantastic. I've never had the patience to let it linger into Day Three, so I really couldn't tell you what it's like then.

Ingredients:

1/2 cup white sugar divided into two 1/4 cups

1/4 cup plus three tablespoons dark brown sugar

1/3 cup all-purpose flour

2 cups whole milk

1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract

3 egg yolks

A pinch of salt

6 medium-ripe yellow bananas sliced into 1/2 inch slices

2 tablespoons butter

One box of Nilla Wafers

1 cup heavy whipping cream

Preparation:

1. In a sauté pan, melt butter over medium heat. Add brown sugar and blend. When the mixture begins to bubble slightly, add three of your sliced bananas. Coat bananas in the butter and brown sugar and cook well-- until the bananas begin to fall apart. Transfer to bowl. Don't bother to purée, just mash them with a fork and set aside.

2. Combine egg yolks and milk in the top of a double boiler. Whisk until thoroughly blended. Add 1/4 cup of your white sugar, the flour, and a heavy pinch of salt. Whisk over medium heat (and water, naturally-- don't forget to put water in the bottom pan of your double boiler) until well mixed. Now, using a wooden spoon, stir the soon-to-be custard until it heats and becomes, well, custard-like. About 12 to 15 minutes. Remove the top pan (or bowl) and cool it's bottom in an ice bath. Set aside.

3. Layer the bottom (or bottoms, if you are serving in individual bowls) of your serving dish with wafers and create one ring of wafers facing the outside of your bowl to make the cookies look as though they are desperately trying to escape their fate of being suffocated by custard. Add a generous dollop (you're creating a layer that doesn't quite go all the way to the edge) of the mashed brown sugar banana. Cover with a layer of custard. Now roughly crumble enough wafers to create a crunchy layer, ringing the outside with slices of fresh banana to mimic the panic of their cookie brethren below. dot the top of the crushed wafers with more banana, then cover with custard. Repeat process until you have reached the top of your dish, but be certain to always finish with custard.

4. Refrigerate overnight, ideally.

banana puddingbanana pudding

Elsieberry Pudding