The idea to create Dee's Delite happened six years ago when I lived in Bloomington, Indiana. One day, I baked a cherry cheesecake for my neighbor, Eva, a very cheerful woman who at the age of 90 then used to spend her days untangling partially used yarn and donating them to charity. She used to get Meals on Wheels; and I made it my duty to treat her as much as I could to my home-baked pies. One day, she asked me to bake one for her Sunday potluck at Church and the rest was history...

I lost touch with Eva over the years, but I continue to hold on to the baby blanket, Christmas tree, toy bear and the poem she gave me, not to mention her handwritten thank you note, all of which mean the world to me.

Passing on from one special woman to another, the recipe I use is based on my mom’s original recipe, and it’s from her that I learned how to prepare a pie from scratch. The recipe is our special secret, though I have developed her version of it over the years, and make cakes with thicker crusts and creamier interiors. I hope our secret recipe is handed down through generations to be a source of love, faith and hope.