Watergate Salad — The Dessert That Tastes Like Being Celebrated

I turned twenty this week. October third. Twenty years old. Gloria and James had me for a birthday dinner on Sunday, which fell conveniently near the actual date this year. She made the same spread as my birthday last year: fried chicken, biscuits, collard greens, mac and cheese. And the banana pudding again, which she insists on making herself even though her hands are stiff.

I did not want her to make the pudding with her hands as they are. I offered twice. She said: I have been making this pudding since before you were born and I will make it tonight. So she made it. She sat at the kitchen table and I brought her the ingredients and she measured and mixed from the seated position and directed me on the heat and the stirring. We made the pudding together, which is not the same as her making it alone, but it is what was possible and what was possible was very good.

James brought out a card after dinner that he had written himself in his careful block lettering. It said: Happy Birthday Savannah, we are proud of you every day. Not just this day. Gloria said James wrote three drafts. He said I wrote two. She said three. He said two and a half. I keep the card on my refrigerator now.

Twenty. I have a lead teacher job and a scholarship and a 3.9 GPA and a cat named Biscuit and a Sunday table that loves me and an apartment that is mine. I did not expect to be here at twenty. I did not know here was possible. Here is extraordinary.

Gloria’s banana pudding will never leave me — the way we made it together, her seated at the table directing every stir, is something I will carry for a long time. But on an ordinary Tuesday when I want that same feeling of something sweet and creamy made without fuss, I come back to this Watergate Salad. It has that same nostalgic, celebratory spirit: cool and fluffy and a little indulgent, the kind of thing that shows up at tables where people are glad to be together. It takes almost no time, which means you can spend your energy on the people around you instead of the kitchen — and right now, that is exactly the kind of recipe I need.

Watergate Salad

Prep Time: 10 minutes | Cook Time: 0 minutes | Total Time: 10 minutes + 1 hour chilling | Servings: 8

Ingredients

• 1 (3.4 oz) box instant pistachio pudding mix, dry (do not prepare)
• 1 (20 oz) can crushed pineapple, undrained
• 1 (8 oz) container Cool Whip, thawed
• 2 cups mini marshmallows
• 1/2 cup chopped pecans or walnuts
• Maraschino cherries, for garnish (optional)

Instructions

1. Combine pudding and pineapple. In a large mixing bowl, stir together the dry pistachio pudding mix and the entire can of crushed pineapple (juice included) until the pudding mix is fully dissolved and the mixture thickens slightly, about 1 minute.
2. Fold in the Cool Whip. Add the thawed Cool Whip to the bowl and gently fold it into the pineapple mixture until fully combined and no white streaks remain.
3. Add marshmallows and nuts. Fold in the mini marshmallows and chopped pecans until evenly distributed throughout the salad.
4. Chill before serving. Cover the bowl with plastic wrap and refrigerate for at least 1 hour to allow the salad to set and the flavors to meld. For best texture, chill up to 4 hours.
5. Garnish and serve. Spoon into a serving dish or individual cups. Top with maraschino cherries if desired. Serve cold directly from the refrigerator.

Nutrition (per serving)

Calories: 240 | Protein: 2g | Fat: 8g | Carbs: 40g | Fiber: 1g | Sodium: 210mg