Father’s Day has always been a wonderful time in our household. When I look back on my childhood, I know my Dad probably had the biggest collection of macaroni crafted pencil holders and boxes of any man on the planet. I can’t remember if it was school or church where we discovered our macaroni art talent, but all three of us had it!
My favorite pencil holder was an orange juice can with glued-on elbow macaroni spray painted gold. Oh, I was so proud of that creation. I did notice that it stayed on his dresser at home rather than making it to his office at the phone company…hmm, now I get it! That probably wouldn’t have matched his executive décor, or maybe he thought someone would take it (NOT)! But he loved it.
I wish I had photos of all the fun things my brother and sister and I made for him. I loved to make cakes, and I am sure he got his share of Betty Crocker cake mix beauties when I was young.
Dad will be 90 in September and still loves a good cake or cherry pie! Some things never change. Dad taught us many things growing up. He taught us how to speak to people, make eye contact, and have good table manners. He also taught us to work hard, as he had done his whole life.
For those of you celebrating with your dad or just celebrating beautiful memories, I hope your day is a marvelous day filled with lots of smiles and a delicious treat to share!
If you’re looking for the perfect recipe, try the one below. It is one of my favorites!
- 2 cups all-purpose flour
- 3⁄4 cup plus 1 tablespoon sugar, divided
- 1⁄4 cup ground roasted almonds
- ¾ teaspoon kosher salt, divided
- 5 tablespoons cold unsalted butter, cubed
- 1⁄3 cup ice water
- 21⁄2 pounds fresh or frozen cherries, stemmed and pitted
- 1⁄4cup cornstarch
- 3 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
- 1 teaspoon almond extract
- 1 large egg, lightly beaten
- In the work bowl of a food processor, pulse together flour, 1⁄4 cup sugar, almonds, and 1⁄4 teaspoon salt. Add butter, pulsing until mixture resembles coarse crumbs, about 20 seconds. With processor running, gradually add 1⁄3 cup ice water until a dough forms. (Add additional water, 1 tablespoon at a time, if needed.)
- Turn dough out onto a lightly floured surface. Divide into 2 equal disks. Cover with plastic wrap, and refrigerate until firm, about 1 hour.
- In a large saucepan, combine cherries and 1⁄2 cup sugar over medium-high heat. Cook, stirring occasionally, until sugar dissolves. Add cornstarch, lemon juice, almond extract, and remaining 1⁄2 teaspoon salt, stirring to combine. Cook, stirring occasionally, until thickened. Set aside.
- Preheat oven to 350°.
- On a lightly floured surface, roll 1 disk of dough into a 12-inch circle. Transfer to a 9-inch pie plate, pressing into bottom and up sides. Spoon filling into prepared piecrust.
- Roll remaining dough to 1⁄8-inch thickness. Using a knife or pastry wheel, cut dough into 1-inch-wide strips, or strips of varying widths, if desired. Arrange strips over filling in a lattice design. Trim excess crust to extend 1⁄2 inch beyond edges of pie plate. Fold edges over, and crimp as desired. Brush crust with egg; sprinkle with remaining 1 tablespoon sugar.
- Bake until crust is golden brown and filling is bubbling, 45 to 50 minutes. (Loosely cover with foil to prevent excess browning, if necessary.) Let cool completely on a wire rack.
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Comments 13
My daddy was a gentle giant who I loved much!
I also love your sweet daddy and wish him a wonderful Father’s Day with lots of cherry pie!❤️
That cherry pie looks amazing!
I am missing my father very much–he passed away three years ago after a long and productive life. But however old they may be, it is still hard to lose them. You are very lucky to have a father at 90!
Those DIY presents are the best. Actually, I have a wooden bowl that my father made in shop class for his parents. It was at their house until they died, and my dad kept it–sentimental. Me too. I use it to hold my keys, and I think of him every time I touch it.
I consider myself blessed to have grown up in a home with a father and mother whose commitment to each other and to our family kept them together for 52 years, until my father’s death. My father led by example. Some of the things I appreciate are that (1) He took our family to church each week, (2)He was hard- working, (3)He was honest, (4)He believed in me, (5)He was always supportive, (6)He and my mother worked together as a team, (7) He was from “The Greatest Generation” and served his country in WWII as a proud American.
He lived to raise my sister and me, and was a proud grandfather of 2 and great-grandfather of 3. He would have been just as proud of the 2 great-grands and 2 great-great-grands he did not live to see.
I would love to have one more opportunity to thank him for his wonderful example and to say, “Happy Father’s Day.”
Happy Fathers Day to all who still get to enjoy a Father who is alive! Bless you….
When I was small in Sunday School our teacher helped us make a small 3×5″ plaque
for our Fathers that said: God Is Love, 1John 4:8 is was a natural/beige color and we
painted the words in gold paint. On the back of it I wrote To PaPa on Father Day
from Ruthie (my middle name) He passed away when I was in 6th grade and my youngest
sister was 3 months old. Very very sad time for us 5 children he left behind. I hang the
small plaque in my bathroom by my mirror and think of him every day I put my make-up on. Time to honor and pay tribute to all Dads….oh, the memories we can cherish!
love your blog, California Carmel
My father passed away quite a few years ago. He was orphaned at 7 years old. If parents died within a month of each other. Most of the children went into orphanages He remained in the orphanage until he was 12. He always made sure my sisters and I had a happy home. At Christmas he would always get the biggest live tree and give us lots of presents. I can still remember him reading “The Night Before Christmas” to us as we lay in bed. He never had much money but always tended to our happiness.
Marion
My late father always made all of the holidays special. On one of my birthdays he put a big box outside of our apartment door. When he told me to go get it ,I was thrilled. In the box were all kinds of goodies, books , coloring books and crayons, and an assortment of little toys. He was an orphan most of his childhood, so he mad sure I had a happy childhood filled with lots of great memories.
Joan
I lost my father in 1990. He was almost 84. I treasure the time I had with him. He got my sister,mother and I on bowling. My older sister wanted no part of bowling. She said the bowling alleys were too noisy.He had me join the junior league. I was the only girl. I later went on to tournaments. He had the patience to see me through the ups and downs of bowling.
Marilyn
The cherry pie looks fabulous! Perfect for Father’s Day
I saw in one of your other magazines an article on pots de cream. I have the antique white decorative set that you photographed. I’m worried about using them in the oven with concern for possible lead in the clay. Do you have any info or a dealer who is knowledgeable about such things? I really want to use them and my husband loves the chocolate cream inside. Any ideas? Recipes?
Wow….cherry pie was also my dad’s absolute favourite!! Although my mom made all kinds of pies, when my father had his choice,whether at home or out at a restaurant, he always chose cherry. I miss my dad, as it has been 8 years now since he passed away. When you mentioned macaroni, Phyllis, I had to laugh. My dad did not cook much but his claim to fame in the kitchen was his elbow macaroni, onion and cottage cheese creation. Needless to say, neither my brother nor I liked it and I still feel guilty to this day how sad that must have made my father feel. But for me, his love of birds ,his childhood pet dog, and all animals,is want I will remember most about my father. Oh and of course, his 4711 cologne.
I wonder what it is with dads and cherry pies. This also was my dad’s favorite when I was growing up but then of course, it may have been that it was one of the FEW desserts my mom could bake. This woman, literally, could barely bring a pot of water to a boil on the stove when they married. We all lived through some pretty lousy meals until she learned to cook which oddly enough, never really seemed to develop a good interest in until I began getting into baking and cooking. (that’s called self-preservation). THANKFULLY, one of the first things she mastered, fairly well, they only had lumps when she was trying to rush dinner, was mashed potatoes. I learned very early in life you can get almost anything down if you eat it with a big forkful of mashed potatoes. It’s a miracle I didn’t weight 200 pounds as a kid instead of being the skinny little thing I was with the number of mashed potatoes I ate. Eventually she became a very good cook, never a gourmet, not like some, but pretty darn good. Would even try new and different things. She still has the cookbooks where as kids, once she got into it, we got to “grade” the dish. Same as school, A, B, C, D, or E. Of course the Ds and Es were never made again. But for a long time the ONLY things my mom would make for dessert were cherry pie and banana walnut cake. I got to the point I never wanted to see another banana walnut cake again in my life. You know, I haven’t made a cherry pie for my dad for ages, maybe I’ll make one this weekend to go with the cake. I was going to do apple, I should anyway, but a cherry for this coming week might be a nice surprise. My nephew, is is home from graduate school now and is living with the entire gang out in the double house with both his dad, his stepmom, and his grandparents has that BIG appetite 20 something young men have. Multiple desserts will NEVER go to waist (sorry, waste), who knows, maybe not.
If my Dad was still alive he would have turned 104 last January. Sadly we lost him in August of 2001. One of the “things” on his wish list was to live long enough to see the new century come in. Thankfully he did and was still alert and mindful of every one and thing around him. He would have loved the total eclipse of the sun last August. I love you and miss you Dad.
This is one of those “sweet and sour” times of the year. I lost my dad in fall of 2016 and so it is still a fresh loss. I miss him terribly, and I still need him. There have already been so many times when I said, “I know Dad would have told me what to do about that.” I don’t think we ever outgrow our need for our dad. He was such a good dad to us, and a wonderful husband to Mom.
Not sure if this is true anymore, but “back in the day” dads used to have a “Daddy drawer”. For my Dad it was the top drawer of his bedroom dresser — and when I cleaned it out after he passed away four years ago, there were all those special handmade cards, drawings, and things my brother and I had made, that all meant a lot to him.
Bless all of you who still have your dads with you and have a wonderful Fathers’ Day! :o)