Cherry Crap....or Easy Cherry Pie

This story absolutely cracked me up! And hopefully you might send us recipes along with your stories.


Cherry Crap

By Trudy Schuett

Through all the 1950s and most of the 1960s, my mother went to her Pinochle Club twice a month. Each lady took a turn hosting, and the dessert during a break in card playing was an important element of the evening. Everybody would exclaim how lovely that night's dessert was, and later on in the car, my mother and my aunt would say what they really thought. (One of the reasons they called it "Cat Club," no doubt.)

One lady frequently served a pumpkin pie with gravy, of all things; something I've never figured out or ever heard of anybody else doing.

A lot of the recipes in that era were based on convenience foods and Jello, and it wasn't too often Ma came home with a recipe. She was great at pies and cakes made from scratch, but every once in a while there would be one of the "Cat Club" desserts showing up at our house.

The following recipe for Cherry Crap is one of those, and nobody remembered how it got its name. I can only imagine the scene the first time Ma presented this, circa 1955:

Ma: (setting a glass cake pan on the dining room table) I got this recipe from Leona at Cat Club.

Dad: (viewing the dish with suspicion) What is it?

Ma: It's a Quick Cherry Pie!

Dad: Looks more like Cherry Crap to me.

Anyway, no matter what Dad thought of the looks, we all liked it, and I still make it today. Here's the recipe:

11 graham crackers, crushed, or pre-crushed graham cracker crumbs for two crusts (found in the baking aisle of the store)

1/3 cup sugar

1 stick (1/2 cup) butter or margarine

1 can cherry pie filling

Cool-Whip or spray whipped creme

Melt butter in microwave in microwave-safe mixing bowl. Add crumbs and sugar; mix well.

Layer half the crumb mixture in the bottom of a 9x9 square cake pan, spread pie filling over crumbs. Top with the rest of the crumbs. Refrigerate for at least three hours or overnight.

Serve with your choice of topping.

Note: Back when we lived in Detroit I tried making this once with fresh cherries from our tree, and real whipped creme but it just wasn't the same. You really want that chemical-y goodness for this one!

Thanks, Trudy!