Boston Cream Pie

Andrew Smith

I have a very big family. On my mother's side, there is my Grandma, her 8 kids, and their 21 kids. We're not just a big family--we're a close one. We always used to get together for every occasion possible. Then we all started to move away. Now we're all only back for the big events and holidays.

When we all gather at my Grandma's house in New Jersey, there is always a lot of food. We normally have a big buffet-style dinner at around four o'clock. After that, everyone sits around and shares stories, and we have some of the weirdest conversations you will ever hear.

Normally, all of the kids are downstairs waiting until they put dessert out. If it is someone's birthday, then they get to choose what is for desert. They all have their own favorite dessert. Most of them have one of my aunts make a certain kind of cake. The cake is always served with my Grandma's famous cookies and at least one kind of pie.

If it is ever up to me to choose what we are going to have, I demand that we have my favorite, Boston cream pie. My Grandma or my Aunts Maureen and Anne are the only ones who make it. They always make two of them. One is room temperature, and the other is put in the freezer for a while beforehand to harden the chocolate on top. I normally can't decide which one I want, so I always have a slice of each.

Boston cream pie is not only my favorite dessert. A couple of my family members share the same love of the dessert. That is why I always expect Boston cream pie to be present at all gatherings I attend. Most of the time it is, but if it isn't, I can live with my Grandma's cookies.