The heat has settled upon us down here in the Bayou State. It is here to stay for quite a while – we won’t get any relief until after Labor Day, and then it will be only in the evenings. October will bring tolerable daytime temperatures, but October is a long way off.

The heat didn’t seem so oppressive when I was a girl, and my sisters and I would while away the summers at MawMaw’s house in coastal Mississippi. I often passed the days in the kitchen with MawMaw to learn her craft. She used to make us this special summer treat when blueberries were in season – she called it Blueberry Angel-food Delight. It’s easy to make, and truly is a delightful way to beat the heat.

Blueberry Angel-food Delight

Ingredients:

1 gallon fresh or frozen blueberries
1 angel-food cake
1 quart heavy whipping cream
4 tablespoons sugar

(Go ahead and sneak a slice of the angel-food cake. Trust me; no one will notice!)

1. Make Chantilly (fancy French term for whipped cream) with the heavy whipping cream and sugar. Set aside.
2. Mash half of the blueberries with a potato masher or in food processor.
3. Tear half of the cake into pieces and line the bottom of a decorative bowl with them.
4. Pour half of the mashed berries then half of the whole berries over the cake.
5. Cover the berries with half of the whipped cream – I mean Chantilly!
6. Repeat steps 3-5 once more, saving a handful of berries for a garnish.
7. Garnish with a handful of berries in the center of the dessert.

Though summer is my least favorite season of the year, spending time with MawMaw always made it better. And though she is no longer with us, every year during blueberry season, I am a little girl again, in her kitchen, shadowing her every move.

I wonder if she was trying to make life happier for the silent girl, or if she was just being MawMaw. Somehow it doesn’t matter, does it? Making memories for a child and carrying on traditions for the next generation – this is what matters.