Grandmother Rebecca's Banana Pudding

Bananas are a very controversial subject in our house.  If you want to engage in a lively discussion, just bring up bananas.  No one straddles the fence on the subject.  There are two decisive camps:  the banana lovers and the banana haters.   I'm in the camp of the banana lovers.  One of the reasons I love bananas is because of Grandmother Rebecca's banana pudding.

Here are the ingredients for Grandmother Rebecca's Banana Pudding:

2/3 cup sugar
3 tablespoons cornstarch
1/4 cup water
2 eggs, separated
1 1/2  milk
1 teaspoon vanilla
18 to 24 vanilla wafers
2 medium bananas

Combine the sugar, cornstarch and water in a heavy saucepan; mix well.  (Grandmother Rebecca used an iron skillet and I find this works well).

Beat egg yolks, add milk; mix well.  Gradually add milk mixture to cornstarch mixture.  Cook over medium heat, stirring constantly until mixture comes to a boil.  Boil one minute, stirring constantly, until thickened.

Remove from heat and stir in vanilla.  Cool slightly  (I make the meringue while the mixture is cooling).

Begin with a layer of vanilla wafers then bananas and pudding.  Top with meringue and bake at 400 degrees for 8-10 minutes.

The good thing about having bananas being a controversial issue:  more banana pudding for me.

In memory of Grandmother Rebecca I stitched a mourning sampler.  I used a Barrick Sampler design called Mary's Wreath.  The mourning sampler is stitched on Birds of a Feather linen and was stitched with Needlepoint Inc silks.  This is one of my favorite pieces of needlework.  Grandmother Rebecca was a survivor and when I am feeling wimpy, I think about her life and pull on the big girl panties.