Jello Mold Magic

1845 - Peter Cooper obtained the first patent for a gelatin dessert, but did very little with it.

1897 - Pearle B. Wait, a carpenter and cough medicine manufacturer from LeRoy, New York, developed a fruit-flavored version of Cooper's gelatin. His wife, May Davis Wait, named it Jello gelatin. The first flavors were: strawberry, raspberry, orange and lemon.

1899 - Wait sold the business to a neighbor for only $450!

1923 - Sugar-free jello!

1930 - Gelled or "congealed" salads became very popular around this time, with almost one-third of the salad recipes in the average cookbook gelatin-based. This led to the introduction of Lime JELL-O gelatin in 1930, a flavor well-suited to salads, appetizers, relishes, and molds.

1950 - .JELL-O Apple gelatin made its debut, followed later in the decade by grape, black cherry and black raspberry.

1966 - With women working outside the home and feeling pressured for time, "faster is better" became the Jello gelatin theme of the 70s-with consumers offered shortcuts using ice cubes or an ice bath.

1990 - Jell-O Jigglers debuts.

1996 - The Jello Museum opened its doors in LeRoy, NY (the birthplace of JELL-O). The museum features JELL-O memorabilia and artwork by famous artists such as Maxfield Parrish and Norman Rockwell.

Jell-O Today: With about 300 million boxes of Jello gelatin are sold in the United States each year.

I decided to use a traditional jell-o mold and make 3 batches in 3 different flavors. The result was a very festive 3 layer refreshing dessert. Topped with fresh berries and a bit of light whip cream it's just perfect!

The following recipe and nutritional information is for 1 batch of yelatin yielding 4 - ½ cup servings but you can, of course, get creative and festive with multiple boxes and flavors!

3 oz sugar free gelatin dessert (like jello) - any flavor
1 cup (8oz) boiling water
1 cup (227g) fat free plain yogurt (vanilla would be good with some flavors too!)
Dissolve the gelatin mix in the boiling water. Whisk in the yogurt. Refrigerate for about 2 hours until set.

So easy and so pretty!

courtesy of Green Lite Bites

At the Jello Mold Competition in Brooklyn this year Shelly Sabel was a runner up for her vintage looking 1958 light bulb. It was flavored with sweet jalapeno Jell-O because "light bulbs get hot".

1 pkg. (8-serving size) JELL-O Lemon Flavor Gelatin
1 pkg. (8-serving size) JELL-O Strawberry Flavor Gelatin
3 cups boiling water
2 cups cold champagne
2 cups cold ginger ale
2 cups chopped strawberries

COMBINE dry gelatin mixes in large bowl. Add boiling water; stir 2 min. or until gelatin is completely dissolved. Refrigerate 20 min. Stir in champagne and ginger ale. Refrigerate an additional 25 min. or until slightly thickened (consistency of unbeaten egg whites). Gently stir in strawberries.
POUR into 10-cup mold sprayed with cooking spray; cover.
REFRIGERATE 4 hours or until firm. Unmold. Store leftover gelatin in refrigerator.

1-1/2 cups boiling water
1 pkg. (8-serving size) JELL-O Cranberry Flavor Gelatin, or any red flavor
1 can (16 oz.) whole berry cranberry sauce
1 cup cold water
1/4 tsp. ground cinnamon
1/8 tsp. ground cloves
2 cups thawed COOL WHIP Whipped Topping

STIR boiling water into dry gelatin in large bowl at least 2 min. until completely dissolved. Add cranberry sauce; stir until mixed. Stir in cold water. Pour 2 cups of the gelatin mixture into 6-cup mold sprayed with cooking spray. Refrigerate 45 min. or until set but not firm. (Gelatin should stick to finger and should mound.)

MEANWHILE, stir cinnamon and cloves into remaining gelatin mixture. Refrigerate 30 min. or until slightly thickened (consistency of unbeaten egg whites). Add whipped topping; stir with wire whisk until well blended. Pour over gelatin mixture in mold.

REFRIGERATE 4 hours or until firm. Store leftover gelatin in refrigerator.