Jellied Fruit Mold

This recipe is from the 1930's, "The Greater Jell-O Recipe Book." As usual I can't quite follow a recipe as it's written out. For this one I substituted peaches for the pineapple, but otherwise I made it exactly how it is written. It turned out absolutely delicious! This is a nice easy one to try if you're new to making Jell-O molds.
Enjoy!
T

Mandarin Orange Gelatin Delight

Originally, this is the first Jell-O mold I ever tired making. It was the one that made me fall in love with Jell-O molds. And it's still one of my favorite recipes. It's from Betty Crocker's "Dinner for Two" cookbook. Of course I can never follow a recipe to the "t" so I always add an extra envelope of plain gelatin, and I threw the mandarin oranges into the Jell-O instead of serving them on the side. But still this recipe is great and you can't really go wrong. You can also try it with different flavors of Jell-O and icecream.
Enjoy!
T

Patriotic Molds

I know I should have posted these last week, but it's better late than never!
Here are the two patriotic molds I made for The Fourth of July.


The USA mold is strawberry, 2 pkg. plain gelatin, 1 1/2 cups boiling water, and 1/2 cup condensed milk, with a dash of vanilla. And I forgot how hard it is to get Jell-O out of a plastic mold! I definitely prefer the metal and glass ones.



The star mold is 3 pkg plain gelatin, 3 cups boiling water, 1/2 cup sugar, and a few drops of LoAnn's flavoring oil. I used peach and orange oil for this one. I think that's my favorite combination.

I hope everyone had a fantastic fourth!

Enjoy!
T

Griesmeel Pudding

Here's another dutch pudding delicacy.
Griesmeel Pudding!
Translated: Semolina Pudding
Dictionary: sem•o•li•na |ˌseməˈlēnə|
noun
the hard grains left after the milling of flour, used in puddings and in pasta.

So basically, it's similar to eating a tapioca-grit like cookie flavored dessert!
It's different, but not bad.
Enjoy!
T

Coconut Pineapple Mold

Here is the coconut pineapple mold I made last week. It turned out amazing! To make it mix 1 box lemon Jell-O with 1/2 cup boiling water. Mix until dissolved. Add 1 5.6oz can of coconut milk. And chill until partially set. Whip with electric mixer until stiff and foamy. Fold in pineapple tid-bits and chill until set. (This would also be good with rum, but I didn't have any.)

Enjoy!
T

Triple Layer Mold

Here's the magnificent mold I will be presenting for Thanksgiving dinner tomorrow... funny they always ask me to bring Jell-O... It's a triple layer mold.



The top layer is almond gelatin:
3 packages gelatin
1/2 cup sugar
1 T. almond flavoring
2 cups boiling water.
Mix all until dissolved. Pour half of your gelatin into your mold and let it chill until partially set. Then arrange fruit, pour in remaining gelatin. Chill.

Middle layer:
1 package lemon Jell-O
1 package gelatin
1/2 jar coconut gel
1/2 cup coconut gel liquid
1 1/2 cups boiling water
2 T. condensed milk
Mix all until dissolved. Chill until partially set. Pour in mold. Chill.

Bottom layer:
2 packages orange Jell-O
1 package gelatin
4 cups boiling water
mandarin oranges
4 T. condensed milk
Mix all until dissolved. Chill until partially set. Pour in mold. Chill until firm.

Enjoy!
T

Blackberries 'n Cream Mold

One thing I love about this time of the year, is that there are blackberries growing along every country road and in every empty lot. They are just waiting there, ripe for the picking. This year I stole them from the used car lot behind the apartments. I have to admit that this is the first thing I have ever stolen from a used car lot, and they certainly are delicious!

Here's the recipe:
1 box of 6oz blackberry Jell-O
2 cups boiling water
Mix until dissolved. Pour a little into your mold and arrange blackberries. Chill until set. Pour a little more into the mold and chill until nearly firm. Add...
1 can of condensed milk
...to the remaining Jell-O. Chill until very thick but not set, for those of you who make pudding I would describe this as "trace." Fold in blackberries and pour into mold. Chill until firm.

Cheers!
T

Fouth of July Jell-O

Wishing everyone a "sane and safe" 4th of July one day early... unless of course you're a pyromaniac... in which case I hope you enjoy tomorrow to the full extent... and mange to keep all your fingers in the process.
Enjoy!
T
I basically made a stained glass mold with whipped cream and stripes instead of chunks.
(Recipe Here)

Banana Nut Ring

And yet another delightful recipe from the 1963 "Joys of Jell-O" cookbook, the Banana Nut Ring. This one is simple and easy to make, plus there's nothing too dangerous in it like mayo or pimentos, it's just a straightforward, tasty recipe. I didn't switch it up too much, I did add some vanilla to the Jell-O and I used walnuts in stead of pecans, but I pretty much followed the recipe this time around. But next time I make it, I want to try it with banana flavored Jell-O.
Enjoy!
T

Avocado Strawberry Ring

mmmm...
I really wanted to make this recipe in a ring, but I didn't want to make that big of a mold, since I was counting on not really liking it. But I must confess it's MUCH better than I thought it would be, espeically with the strawberries. In fact the strawberries are what make this mold so extremely tasty. Instead of throwing half of it away, I'll probably end up eating the whole thing. I guess it's not such a bad flavor combination after all. This recipe is also found in The Joys of Jell-O cookbook ©1963.
Enjoy!
T

Peach & Cheese Salad Mold

I apologize, I've been a very bad Jell-O blogger lately. But here I am, back at it again, with this delicious Peach & Cheese Salad Mold. Many of you may be thinking, this looks horrific, but actually, it's quite delightful. However, I'm one of those strange people who really likes cottage cheese and peaches for dessert, so this mold wasn't that much of a stretch for me. Anyhow I located this recipe from The Joys of Jell-O cookbook ©1963 and I've posted it below for you consideration.
ENJOY!
T

Jell-O Fruit Salad

...because one small banana just isn't enough.
T

Macaroon Velvet Jell-O Mold

I first saw this recipe in my 1910 Jell-O recipe book, then later in the 1931 Greater Jell-O recipe book and also in the 1963 Joys of Jell-O recipe book. And I figured if it's been in the Jell-O recipe book for over 60 years, it has to be a pretty good recipe.
Strangely, It's not in the 1975, The New Joys of Jell-O recipe book. I guess by then people had gotten tired of it, or perhaps people just didn't know what macaroons were anymore. But now that macaroons are once again gaining popularity, perhaps this recipe will be in style again. And since macaroons are one of my new favorite cookies, I decided to try this recipe with my hand full of leftover macaroons from Christmas.



I ended up using the 1931 recipe only I used strawberry Jell-O instead of cherry, I added 1 envelope gelatin, I decreased the amount of water by 1/4 cup and I toasted the almonds in 1T. of butter before I added them. Personally, I think it's the butter that made this recipe so good.

The 1910 Recipe:

The 1931 Recipe:

The 1963 Recipe:

Enjoy!
T

Cherry Cola Jell-O Mold

This mold needed a lot of updating from the original recipe.
It is also the only one that I ever thought smelled gross.
Smells must really trigger memories, because this one reminded me of when I was a kid and my mom used to mix cherry cough syrup into cola to get me to take it. YUCK! Actually, I don't remember her doing that, but I can remember the taste, so she must have at some point. Luckily, this tastes nothing like that, it's actually very good. But I think I would modernize it a little bit more.
Here's the original recipe:

But I made mine as follows:
1 can cola
1/2 cup water
1 package 3 oz cherry Jell-O
1 envelope gelatin
1/2 cup chopped walnuts
1/2 cup chopped maraschino cherries
(I tried dates as suggested, but I would have preferred cherries.)

Bring water and half a can of cola to a boil. Mix cherry Jell-O with gelatin in a glass bowl. Pour in boiling cola and water and mix until the gelatin is dissolved. Mix in the other can of cola. Chill until slightly thickened. Fold in nuts and cherries. Chill until firm and unmold. Makes about 3 cups.

Enjoy!
T

Under the Sea Jell-O Salad

(my Jell-O molds)

• • • • • • • • • • •

(Original molds from The New Joys of Jell-O cookbook and The Joys of Jell-O cookbook.)


Here they are! The Under the Sea Jell-O molds. I ended up with a double batch since I only have small meat loaf pans, but that's alright, I'm sure I can part with one of these. And they're surprisingly tasty too. They remind me of a pear-pistachio salad my mom used to make.
Enjoy!
T

Creepy Jell-O

Jell-O's not always the happy fun colorful dessert you think it is. Sometimes Jell-O can be downright scary and I'm not talking about The Swedish Salad Mold. I'm talking about freaky and creepy Jell-O.


Here's the undead Jell-O found by Geekologie. You'll need to eat it before it eats you... or I guess you could always just kill it with fire. You can find this mold here at Think Geek. (You can also try brushing on some red food coloring when it's out of the mold for an extra bloody effect.)


Of course if you are a zombie, you might prefer the brain Jell-O mold. I'm assuming Jell-O is a bit more appetizing than actual brains. You could also try filling this mold with the "pink salad" to make it extra revolting.
Found at The Daily Dairy and you can buy a brain mold of your own here at Think Geek. (You can also fill your Jell-O mold with some spaghetti to make it look extra brainy.)



While we're on the subject on internal body parts, you might want to consider trying an anatomically correct heart. Nothing says "I love you!" like giving that special someone a still beating heart... or at the very least a Jell-O mold shaped like a real heart. Found here at Sick Kitchen and you can buy the mold here at Anatomical Chart Company. (I would highly suggest using the bleeding heart recipe.)

Enjoy!
T

Citrus Surprise with Whipped Jell-O

Really there's nothing surprising about this Jell-O mold. Which is exactly why it tastes so good. It doesn't have eggs, or veggies, or vinegar, or spam. It's made with just plain old Jell-O and canned fruit. It was also surprisingly easy to make. The top layer is simply whipped Jell-O, that you make by taking the stiff Jell-O and beating it like egg whites until it's thick and frothy. Then the bottom layer had orange Jell-O and fruit. I used Mandarin oranges for mine.
See the recipe below:





p.s. I know I've been a bad Jell-O blogger lately. But I just got two amazing new Jell-O cookbooks, so there will be more to come soon!

castle o'jello

Please note:
Sand castle toys make excellent Jell-O molds... provided they're clean.
T



(Photo by Nareshe on Flickr.)

How to: Encase live flowers in Jell-O

This is in response to an earlier post "How to: Give a sick friend both Jell-O and flowers simultaneously."

Encasing live flowers in Jell-O has the same steps as encasing anything in Jell-O including: remote controls, cell phones and staplers. I'll go over those another time.

Step One: Find your flowers.
One important thing to remember is: NOT ALL FLOWERS ARE EDIBLE. Here is a list of edible flowers. It is also important not to use flowers that have been sprayed with nasty pesticides or chemicals. Most large grocery stores carry packages of mixed edible flowers, just look by the fresh herbs. (I've seen these at Safeway.) I used nasturtiums that I grew myself. Unfortunately however, the flavor of most flowers don't go so well with the flavor of Jell-O. And unless you're making a salad mold with lots of veggies and vinegar, there will be a definite flavor clash.

Step Two: Wash your flowers.
Just run them under COLD water and shake them off. If they're a little wet, it really doesn't matter. You just don't want to squish them.

Step Three: Make your Jell-O.
Your flowers will show up best in a light colored Jell-O. I would suggest yellow.
Use my basic Jell-O mold recipe:
2 - 3oz boxes of Jello (or 1 - 6oz box)
2 envelopes of Knox plain gelatin
2 cups boiling water
First mix Jell-O and gelatin in glass bowl.
Add boiling water, and stir until gelatin is completely dissolved.
Chill until it's just a little warmer than room temperature. But NOT until set.



Step Four: While your Jell-O chills, prepare your mold.
Instead of a mold I used tea cups.
You'll need: String, tape, scissors, flowers and some type of container.
First, tie the string around the base of the flower. Leave a few inches of string on both sides. Then, tape the strings to the sides of your container and tighten. Make sure your flower is suspended inside the container. It shouldn't be touching the edges anywhere. Next tie a string to the flower, perpendicular to the first one. Tape the strings to the container and tighten.

Step Five: Pour Jell-O into mold.
Make sure your Jell-O is cool enough to pour. DO NOT POUR HOT JELL-O OVER YOUR FLOWERS! They will wilt. Pour Jell-O slowly from all sides. I used a turkey baster so I'd make less of a mess. Don't fill the container completely full. Leave about a half to three-quarters of an inch at the top...

...or skip "Step Four" and pour about a half inch of Jell-O into your container. Place flower face down on top and chill. When mostly set pour more Jell-O on top completely covering the flower.

Step Six: Chill.
Chill until set.



Step Seven: Trim off the tops of the flowers and take off the strings.

(Steps 8-9 are optional.)

Step Eight: Make white base.
(This will make the flower stand out more.)
Add 1/4 cup cold water to 2 envelopes of plain gelatin, wait until it blooms. Add 1 cup boiling water, stir until it dissolves. Add 1 cup condensed milk or icecream and stir. Let this chill until it is about room temperature but not set.



Step Nine: Pour white base over Jell-O.
Pour your chilled white base over the Jell-O, completely cover your flowers, and fill the remaining space in the container. Chill overnight or until completely set.

Step Ten: Remove from container or mold.
Moisten tips of fingers in warm water and gently pull gelatin away from top edge of the mold. Dip your Jello mold just to the rim in lukewarm water for about 10 seconds. (Only use hot water if you're using a glass or a plastic container.) Lift from water and shake gently to loosen from edges. Moisten the top of the gelatin. Place lettuce around the edges and hold in place with plate. Then invert mold and plate together. Lift mold off.
If your Jell-O is stuck, and it probably is, see more detailed notes here.



And there you have it! Live Flowers Suspended in Jell-O! Amaze your friends and relatives!

Enjoy!
T