Budget Friendly Old Fashioned Desserts
For me growing up in Appalachia meant there was no shortage of cheap, sweet treats to follow our cornbread and butterbean meals.
Some of my favorites were vinegar pie, brown sugar pie, brown sugar fudge, and chocolate depression cake.
The secret? Brown sugar.
Brown sugar was a key ingredient in almost every item we had on the table during any given meal, dessert or otherwise.
There was nothing that a little bit of brown sugar couldn’t make better: pork chops, potatoes, beans, pies, and cookies all made better by a quick addition of the cheap sugar. This is a truth I still live by today.
The following recipes have brought a little bit of sweetness to my life for more than two decades and I hope they’ll bring a little bit of sweetness to yours.
Vinegar Pie
My grandma would make this simple pie during the worst of financial hardships when she could barely keep food on the table.
For her, having a treat was always a priority because a treat is good for the soul.
This dish is a personal favorite of my fiancee from her own experience of growing up in Appalachia and I made her this version early on in our relationship.
Ingredients:
Three eggs for a softer, more custard-like set or four eggs for a more solid set
1 cup of packed light brown sugar
2 tablespoons of apple cider vinegar
6 tablespoons of melted and cooled unsalted butter
¼ teaspoon of salt
1 pie crust (store-bought or homemade, I use store-bought)
Instructions:
Preheat the oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit
Place your pie crust in a pie pan
Bake the crust for 15 minutes
Whisk your eggs into sugar and salt until smooth
Slowly combine the melted butter into the mixture
Pour the mixture into the crust
Bake for 35 minutes or until the pie is 165 degrees Fahrenheit
Remove the pie from the oven and cool to room temperature
Transfer the pie to the fridge once at room temperature, and serve chilled
Brown Sugar Pie
This brown sugar pie was made by my mother for me for every occasion, good or bad. I always knew when I won a competition or got a bad grade, this pie would be waiting on the dinner table for me in only a couple of hours.
Ingredients:
1 pound of light brown sugar
½ cup of unsalted butter (melted)
3 eggs
1 tablespoon vanilla extract
1 pie crust (store-bought or homemade, I use store-bought)
Instructions:
Preheat the oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit
Prepare your pie pan with a pie crust
Lightly whisk together eggs and add in sugar, butter, and vanilla
Pour the pie filling into the pie pan
Bake on the middle rack of the oven for 45-55+ minutes or until golden brown. It should jiggle slightly.
Brown Sugar Fudge Recipe
My grandmother would make this brown sugar fudge recipe for every holiday from President’s Day to Christmas, it didn’t matter. It was a favorite of the household and one that yielded a large number of treats and had a long shelf life.
My mother once tried to replicate this recipe and had to throw away her cooking pot.
Ingredients:
1 cup granulated sugar
3 cups lightly packed brown sugar
1 cup heavy cream
¼ teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
2 tablespoons unsalted butter
Instructions:
Combine the brown sugar, granulated sugar, butter, cream, and salt over medium heat until butter and sugar are melted and combined
Bring the mixture to a boil, stirring occasionally. Reduce the heat back to medium and cook until mixture reaches 236 degrees Fahrenheit.
Test the fudge by adding a dollop of the candy mixture to cold water, if a ball forms the fudge is done
Remove from heat and cool to 110 degrees Fahrenheit. Add vanilla and beat until mixture is smooth. The fudge should become a lighter color and lose its shine.
Quickly pour the fudge into a heat-safe glass dish of your choice lined with parchment paper. I recommend a 6x6. Smooth the fudge out with a spoon.
Cool completely and cut into squares.
Store sealed at room temperature for up to 3 weeks.
Chocolate Depression Cake
This cake was a Sunday staple in both my mother's and grandmother’s households. I knew every Sunday that I could look forward to a slice of this cake after Sunday lunch.
Ingredients:
Store-bought icing or frosting of your choice
¾ cup of granulated sugar
¼ cup of packed light brown sugar
1.5 cups of all-purpose flour
¼ teaspoon of salt
1 teaspoon of baking soda
⅓ cup of olive or canola oil
⅓ cup of Dutched cocoa powder
1 tablespoon of vinegar
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 cup of purified water
Instructions:
Preheat the oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit
Stir together the dry ingredients until combined
Combine water, vanilla extract, and vinegar together
Add the oil, followed by the water, and stir until combined
Pour the cake batter into your pan of choice (I recommend a heat-safe glass 9x9 pan) and bake for 35 minutes
Remove from oven and allow to cool completely before applying icing or frosting
