The Holidays are my favorite time of year, and not because of the decorating, change in seasons, or gift giving (although all of these things are great!). It’s because I know it’s the time of year I get to have my grandma’s sugar cream pie.
I didn’t see my grandma often growing up, mainly because they lived so far away. So, we would make the trip 1-2 times a year, and often around the holidays, so I always knew she’d be in the kitchen baking at some point. The recipe was always a secret to everyone except for her, but little did we know that the recipe was one that she truly tried and erred until she found the perfect fit.
The sugar cream pie is the Indiana state pie, which is made of simple, on-hand ingredients that would supplement the meal for large families, just like bread and butter would. During the depression, meat and potatoes were limited and trying to feed a larger family meant that something else had to be made that was low cost, but filling. Bread and butter, and desserts did just that.
It was something we always looked forward to when making the trip. Walking into the kitchen and the smell of nutmeg filling the room told us all we needed to know, sugar cream pie. There would be so many pies on the kitchen table for dinner and everyone to take home. It’s funny that this is exactly what we do now too.
My grandma passed away when I was a teenager after battling dementia. I watched my mom navigate grief living hours away from her family while still trying to show up for our family. Grief is a tender, unpredictable companion. Sometimes it arrives as a deep ache when we remember the people we’ve loved so dearly. Other times, it shows up more gently, bringing a quiet softness that lingers through the holidays. I imagine what that feels like for my mom when we make this pie around Thanksgiving and Christmas. For me it’s the happiness I feel in knowing this was how my grandma loved us when we visited, through food.
That’s the point. Food is not just food. It holds memories, celebrations, it brings people together, it is a way we cope, heal, and last but not least feed ourselves.
In the screenshot of the recipe you can see it took us a bit to figure out what the actual recipe was because my grandma had it memorized -including all the changes she made over the years. I still remember when my mom had told me she figured it out after many soupy fillings and thrown away pies, she was so happy. Now every year when we eat grandma’s sugar cream pie we carry on her tradition, while we honor and remember her through.
Hi! I’m Jordyn (she/her), a Registered and Licensed Dietitian Nutritionist who specializes in eating disorders. I work with both adolescents and adults to find freedom from food and peace with their bodies from a non-diet, weight-inclusive, Health At Every Size (HAES) approach. I’ll help provide a safe & non-judgmental environment so that you always feel safe when sharing about your relationship with food and your body. I’ll help you find enjoyment and connection in food again (because food is meant to be enjoyed) and a healing relationship with your body, however that looks for YOU, because there is no cookie-cutter definition of recovery.
Weight-inclusive and trauma-informed nutrition and therapy services.
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