Banana Refrigerator Cake

Evia raised 5 children–3 sons, 2 daughters–in Louisville, Ky. She loved to cook! Her kitchen evokes a strong memory for me…classic scene from the early 70’s…brand new Tupperware EVERYTHING seemed to secure her place as a suburban housewife. Her hot kitchen served as my early lessons in washing dishes and canning produce–without central air.

There were 10 of us grandchildren and we always crowded around her kitchen table instead of the larger dining room table.

Since both grandparents were retired, a sleep-over at their house meant us grandkids could stay up late watching Johnny Carson and eating popcorn on the sofa with tumblers of Kool-Aid–a real grown-up treat.

Her eyesight began to fail about 10 years before she died, and she could no longer read her recipes. You might notice in the box I send you her handwriting goes from neat(ish) to larger and sloppier as the years went on. She eventually had one of my cousins rewrite all of her recipes in large print in a notebook. She found ways to cope and continue cooking for my grandfather. We added bright red strips of tape to the stove knobs for points of reference.

Most of her recipes are tailored with substitutes, as she was diabetic since childhood. I am sure there are more recipes including sugar-free Jell-O than anything else.

My grandfather never lifted a finger in the kitchen. He mowed the grass, tended the garden and orchard, and played golf. He outlived my grandmother by 7 years. When she died, he said, “If Campbell’s ever stops making soup, I’m a dead duck.” He meant it.