Sugar/Butter Pie

When we were growing up, many of our weekends were spent in Matador, Texas, where one set of our grandparents lived for their whole lives, and our other grandmother spent many years.   Nannie and Daddy John (aka Olive and John Russell) lived in a small, shotgun home with a single bedroom and an enclosed sleeping porch for the children.  The cabinets in the kitchen had been specially built for Nannie who stood on tiptoes at about 5'2", so even as teenagers we had to stoop a little when working alongside her in the one small wall of cabinets and about 24" of counter space on either side of a sink.  Nannie never loved to cook, she preferred to be outdoors in her yard or garden, but that didn't keep her from turning out some wonderful culinary creations.  

She made ice cream from a cooked custard and froze it in her ice trays, taking them out to stir several times so that ice crystals wouldn't form.  It was a wonderful treat after a hot morning working cattle.  I intend to share this and several of her other creations in the days to come, but the most outstanding treat to me was the sugar/butter pie.   It was actually the left-over pastry crust from cobbler.  I don't ever remember her making pies, but she turned out cobblers that were sweet and had the most luscious crust. 

I think she probably made extra crust to line the pie pan and slather with butter and sugar and cinnamon and then pop in the oven.  As you walked in the back door and passed Daddy John in his rocking chair in the kitchen, in front of you was the range and sitting there would be a cobbler and a sugar/butter pie to be enjoyed on the spot.  We would just break off pieces and scatter crumbs all over the kitchen.  I can't even remember getting fussed at for making a mess.  Our love of this confection would always bring a shy smile to the face of our grandmother. 

As adults we have talked about the freedom we had to explore at their house and the extra things they would do to create new experiences.  There are books of stories from that little house.

Recipe of the day:

Sugar/Butter Pie

1. Pastry for a 9 inch pie pan.                                                                                                         Use scraps mashed together and folded over at the edges to complete the crust.
2. Melt enough butter to thoroughly coat the sides and bottom of the crust
3. Sprinkle liberally on all surfaces with sugar and sprinkle with cinnamon.
4. Bake in a 375 degree oven until barely brown.
5. Enjoy and Share.....