Feb 20, 20222 min read

Betty White Cook Along

Betty White recently passed away and a huge celebration of her life was in order!

Betty White recently passed away just a few weeks shy of her 100th birthday. She began her acting career in the early 1950s and went on to appear on "The Mary Tyler Moore Show", "The Love Boat", "Mamma's Family", "The Golden Girls", "Boston Legal" and "Hot in Cleveland". White won five Prime Time Emmy awards and was beloved by several generations. A lifelong animal advocate, Betty White was a dedicated supporter of several animal charities and the Los Angeles Zoo. She attributed her longevity to eating plain hot dogs and drinking vodka. "The Golden Girls" TV series is still shown daily in re-runs around the world and is a pop culture phenomenon that has spawned board games, toys, t-shirts and drag shows. She meant so much to so many of us and is dearly missed.

The Episode

The Recipes

Instead of having everyone make cheesecake, I decided it would be fun to have everyone make something different in tribute to Betty! I'm a HUGE fan of The Golden Girls, so I decided to make the Sperhuven Krispies. Her character Rose Nylund made those on an episode in season 3 and said they were basically a Viking midnight snack.

I ran into some trouble making these. They turned out to be hard as rocks and I was seriously worried that my teeth would fall out. This problem happened again when Danny and I tried to make them live on the episode. Afterwards, we put them in the microwave and that helped soften them up considerably. We were finally able to finish making them, but I think I'll try some of the other recipes in "The Golden Girls" cookbook next time. Like many things in St. Olaf, there is more to Sperhuven Krispies than meets the eye!

I rounded up a great team of friends and Betty White fans to contribute their culinary efforts.

Applesauce Cake

Presented by Annette Bochenek

(Annette recently went to Betty's centennial celebration in her hometown. You can read all about her visit on her "Hometowns to Hollywood" website. She also has a separate post all about Betty's hometown of Oak Park, Illinois.)

Double Fudge Chocolate Cheesecake

Presented by Benjamin Meißner

Mr. Ha Ha's New York-Style Birthday Mini-Cheesecake Cupcakes

Presented by Danny Miller

Ice Cream Clown Sundaes

Presented by Casper Bryant

Vansskapskaka St. Olaf Friendship Cake

Presented by Barbara Boyd Doss

Sue Ann Nivens' Chocolate Soufflé

Presented by Lara Gabrielle

Lara decided to make a chocolate souffle in honor of the Sue Nevins character that Betty White played on "The Mary Tyler Moore Show". She used the Martha Stewart recipe as her guide. I asked Lara to send me a picture of the final product, but it turns out her Mom had eaten the whole thing. So here's a picture from the Martha Stewart website instead.