Every hometown needs a real cafeteria, owned by neighbors who serve up home-cooked food from recipes that have been passed down and down and down. Every hometown needs a bakery with cookies worth a kid’s allowance money. And every hometown needs at least one opportunity to eat Purple People Eater Pie.

Dodson’s Cafeteria was my hometown treat. Their food was “Aunt Prudence-worthy” (and she was the best cook in the family in addition to being the most huggable woman in the world). And good golly, could they do magical things with sugar. Purple People Eater Pie was right up there with their Oatmeal Lace Cookies (that I have the recipe for, but am terrified to try for fear I’ll ruin them and forever taint my memories). It’s – well – purple. And it’s delish. Seriously delish. Like “I’ve had friends overdose on this” delish.

And it’s so incredibly easy to make. Five minutes and it’s done. Or 10 minutes if you opt to do the right thing and make your own graham cracker crust (rather than use a store-bought one). Do the right thing. It’s worth it.

Now, I attempted to take Purple People Eater Pie and transform it into a lovely thing in a lead crystal bowl. It started off looking quite fancy.

But all it took was one taste for fancy to look like this. Because friends were overdosing. Going back for thirds. That’s good kitchen therapy. And according to the nutrition rules of Aunt Prue, Purple People Eater Pie is good for you. It’s got grains, dairy, fruit…almost as healthy as her homemade vanilla custard pie, which featured pretty much every food group.

From my hometown to yours, enjoy. But be careful. You just might overdose. It really is that good.

Dodson’s Cafeteria Purple People Eater Pie

Makes one 9″ pie

 

1-14 oz can Eagle Brand Sweetened Condensed Milk

1/4 cup fresh squeezed lemon juice

1/4 teaspoon salt

3/4 cup black raspberry preserves (I couldn’t find these so I opted for blackberry preserves)

1/2 cup sweetened whipped cream

1 graham cracker crust

Whipped Cream (optional)

Fresh Berries (optional)

 

Mix first four ingredients in a medium mixing bowl at low speed until fluffy. Gently fold in whipped cream. Pour into graham cracker crust and chill until ready to serve (if you’ve made your own graham cracker crust, reserve a little bit of the mixture and sprinkle it on top of the pie). If desired, top with additional whipped cream and fresh berries.