Difficulty Level Easy

Between bad economic times and the extremely cold weather, "comfort food" appears to be the buzzword of the month. I was saying to my husband that if I heard the phrase one more time I was going to scream. Then I opened the February issue of Gourmet and I was instantly transported back to my childhood, the great land of comfort food. There was a photo of butterscotch pudding that was so familiar, I could taste it. When I was very young and my mother was still a stay at home mom, she baked pretty much every day, but once she started back to work we ate a lot of pudding for dessert because my dad could make it. Now, I have to be very clear about this. It was packaged Jello pudding, not the magnificent homemade pudding in Gourmet.

My dad worked at night, so he made lunch for us everyday. This being the 1960's we ate our meals on TV trays in front of the television. I remember one eventful day when my dad's foot hit a leg of his TV tray and over it went. His full bowl of butterscotch pudding landed upside down on the carpet and my brother and I watched in fascinated horror as it slid all the way across the room leaving a trail of gooey, sugary mess. I have to say that the two of us thought it was pretty funny, especially as neither of us had to answer to our mother.

Even though I only make dessert now when I'm having company, and I never eat it myself, I simply had to make this pudding. It was so good that my husband positively shivered with pleasure as he ate it. I think I'll have to make it for my mother for her birthday in a couple of weeks, to see if it transports her back to a happier time. Then I will put the recipe away and never make it again, because although it doesn't have all the preservatives that packaged pudding has, it has enough fat to instantly clog the arteries of the most health conscious among us. But really, as I let it melt on my tongue and thought about my dad, I realized that for once, it was worth it. Assuage your guilt by using organic cream, it'll make you feel better.

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