blog #305 >> More of the Same

Well... I can't say I've done anything out of the ordinary lately. So all this is simply more of the usual.

Here are some of the cherries that I helped pick at my parents house. The tallest ladder they had would barely reach the branches with cherries, so we ended up chopping down the top of the tree to get them. Now it finally makes sense why George Washington would want to chop down his father's cherry tree. Maybe I'll make a pie...


Here's one of the fancy Jell-O molds I made this week. You can get the recipe here on my "The Joys of Jell-O" blog.


Here's one of the pictures I took out boating. I wish I worked closer to the river. I'd just live out on the water all summer and drive the boat to work.


Last week I also discovered that I really like the show Heroes. I had never really watched it before and whenever I did, I was really confused. Then I watched the whole third season on Hulu. And I liked it so much I decided to rent the first season. The only problem with renting it was I only had five days to watch it, so I watched it every spare minute of my day and it still took me six days to finish. Now my brain has turned to "mush" because I normally turn on the television once a month, if that. I think I might wait a few weeks before I rent season two. But oh, it's so good and so addictive... sort of like LOST.


And here's the garden again! I'm afraid I never tire of taking pictures of our little garden. I spent all morning weeding it today.


The lettuce and the little baby spinach.


We have a LOT of green tomatoes but not a single red one yet... I think they'll be turning soon.


Pole peas.

The monster head of lettuce, which is even more monstrous than before.

Baby zucchini.

My giant bowl of dragon striped green beans. I'm going to make them into "dilly beans" tomorrow.


And well... I guess that's it!
T

blog #279 >> A New Blog: The Joys of Jello

Well, I guess I started a new blog. I can hardly keep up the one I've got, but I really needed a place to organize all these bits of random Jello... things. So another blog it is. All future Jello posts will be here at The Joys of Jello.
Hope you enjoy!
T

blog #278 >> Orange Creamsicle

An orange Jello mold with one part boiling water and one part vanilla icecream.
See basic Jello mold recipe here.
T

blog #275 >> Jello Eggs

Here's the recipe for my sister's Jello eggs that she makes every year.
I can't wait!
See Here
T

blog #263 >> My Heros of Jello

...or Jelly as they would say.
But still Bompas & Parr have some of the most amazing Jello molds I've ever seen!
I wonder if they're hiring? I must learn their ways!
See here.
Glow in the dark Jelly. I wish I could buy that mix in the store.
See here.


I'm also very impressed with their 2-D banquet. See here.

I can't wait to see what they come up with next!
T

blog #254 >> More Jello

The gods of Jello making must have been watching over this one, because by all account, it should never had made it out of the pan. It was doomed from the beginning. Maybe the mold is cursed. Last time I used this mold it didn't turn out either. Oh well, by some divine chance, it turned out alright. Here is my tasty pineapple-lemon Jello mold. I think I just waited way too long to add the fruit, but at least it didn't float to the top.
T

blog #252 >>The Joys of Jello: Part 2 - Molds

In my fight to educate the public about the awesomeness of Jello I'll be posting a series of my favorite Jello recipes. Today's topic will be the classic Jello mold.

My Basic Jello Mold Recipe
(This is the one I use for every single one of my Jello concoctions.)

2 3oz boxes of Jello (or 1 6oz box)
2 envelopes of Knox plain gelatin
2 cups boiling water (or more)
(just think 2+2+2 and if you double it 4+4+4)

Mix Jello and gelatin in a large glass mixing bowl. (Don't use metal it will absorb all the heat of the boiling water.) Add boiling water stir about 3 minutes until gelatin is completely dissolved. Pick your Jello mold. Most hold about 2.5 - 3.5 cups liquid. Pour Jello into mold and top off with extra water if needed. Stir lightly in mold. (If you're unsteady and clumsy like me. I would suggest putting your Jello mold in a pan before filling for easier handling. Spilling Jello on the floors will make them sticky for weeks.) Place Jello in refrigerator. Chill overnight or until completely set. Now you're ready to unmold it. This is the hard part. But if you used the recipe above it's going to be super firm and much less likely to break apart. Here are the three main ways to unmold your Jello:



(a) Run a small pointed knife that's been run under warm water around the top edge of the mold to loosen it. (I've had very poor results with this method and quite trying it.)

(b) Moisten tips of fingers in warm water and gently pull gelatin away from top edge of the mold. (I almost always use this method to release them and it works great.)

(c) Dip your Jello mold just to the rim in luke warm water (DO NOT USE HOT it will melt the whole thing!) for about 10 seconds. Repeat once if necessary. Do not make your water hotter or dip more than twice. (I only use this method for though ones, after the top methods have failed.)

(d) Lift from water and shake gently to loosen from edges.

(e) Moisten the top of the gelatin. (This makes it easier to position on plate.) Place lettuce around the edges and hold in place with plate. (Do not use warm plate it will melt the Jello.)

(f) Then invert mold and plate together. Lift mold off.

(g) If your Jello is absolutely STUCK, and won't come out after dipping it twice in the luke warm water. Do NOT dip it again. The problem isn't that it hasn't melted enough. You don't need to melt it at all. The problem is that it's created a vacuum and your Jello mold is acting like a giant suction cup. The best way to get it out now is to slip a finger down one of the sides carefully and work your way around the mold, until you hear the "Swoosh" sound. Then you'll know that the vacuum seal has been broken and you can carefully pull it out the rest of the way with your fingers or invert it on a plate.

Good luck!
T

blog #249 >> The Joys of Jello: Part 1 - Pies

In my attempt to bring back the love of Jello, I'll be posting a series of my favorite Jello recipes. Here are two stupendously amazing Jello pie recipes:


Carrie's Jello Pie
3/4 cup sugar
3 T. cornstarch
1 1/2 cup water
1 3oz box of Jello
3 cups berries
1 pre-baked pie shell

Mix cornstarch and sugar in saucepan, gradually stir in water 'til smooth. Stir constantly and cook over med. heat. Bring to a full boil and boil 1 min. Remove from heat, add Jello. Stir until dissolved. Cool to room temperature. Add fruit and pour into pie crust.

• • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • •

My Favorite Chiffon Pie
1 3oz box of Jello
2/3 cup boiling water
2 cups ice cubes
8oz or 3 1/2 cups Cool Whip
(Don't use low fat or fat free they won't work.)
2 cups berries
1 pre-baked pie shell

Dissolve Jello in boiling water, stir for 3 min. Add ice, stir for 3 min. Remove ice. Use wire whip and add Cool Whip. Fold in fruit and put in pie shell.


Cheers!
T

blog #248 >> Orange Gelatin: Take Two

If at first you don't succeed, try, try again. Well, I tried the orange juice gelatin again only this time I used half the amount of orange juice, a box of Jello and a can of mandarin oranges. And this time it turned out just the way I wanted it to. Only I haven't quite mastered how long to wait before adding the fruit so it won't float to the top.

On a side note: I must admit, I've very concerned. When I went to Safeway to buy the box of Jello, they had cut their Jello stock in half! They no longer have generic brands of Jello, hardly any of the small boxes, and only a limited selection of the large boxes. The extra shelving was filled with pre-made Jello cups and pudding cups. What's the world coming too?!? Don't people ever want to make Jello anymore in molds? Or make Jello cakes? Or any of the other wonderful recipes involving boxes of Jello mix? I'm afraid boxes of Jello will soon become one of those hard to find novelties, like Junket, Sprite in a bottle and carbon paper. I guess I'd better stock up.
T

blog #244 >> Orange Gelatin

In my attempt to add more Vitamin C to my diet, I thought I'd try making Jello with orange juice instead of Jello and water. So basically, it's not Jello. I used the recipe on the gelatin box for Knox blocks, but it turned out super bitter and sour. I guess I should have used more sugar, or used a box of orange Jello with the orange juice. Anyhow, at least it set up nice...
T

blog #215>> Lobster & Son

Here is my latest Jello mold. It's the baby lobster made from the jello mold given to me by my neighbors Dave and Trina. Thanks! My Jello lobster needed some family.
T

blog #203 >> Snow Storm Jello

It's basically chiffon pie filling with double the Jello, two packets of unflavored gelatin and mini-marshmallows. Yum!
T
p.s. Yes, it's really that blue.
t

blog #187 >> Tower O'Jello

My latest lemon-lime-orange Jello mold fresh out of the mold this morning.
T

blog #156 >> Lobster Jello

Here's my Goodwill find of the week. I've been looking for one of these forever! A lobster shaped jello mold. Perfect for those jellied seafood salads. Mmm... Only since I prefer my jello without veggies and meat. I made a Marciano cherry jello mold instead.
T

blog #142 >> Plumcot Jello

Here's the Plumcot Jello mold I made last night. I used apricot Jello and added chunks of plumcots, (plum crossed with apricots). It turned out pretty good. But I was experimenting with how long I need to chill it before adding the fruit so they won't float to the top. Apparently, one hour is too long, it got sort of chunky. Forty-five minutes should be just right for next time.
T

blog #126 >> The Successful Failure.

Like Apollo 13, this Jello mold was a successful failure. Yeah, it looks okay, it came out of the mold, it tastes great. But that's not how it's suppose to look. I guess I went wrong by pretending I was on a cooking show when I was making it. Ah, cooking shows... They're nice really. But not very practical in the real world. In cooking shows the chefs make everything look so easy. They just dump everything into a bowl without a second thought. Then they throw it up into the air and catch it. I'm not sure why this is so important to cooking, but they all do it. (I think it's just for show.) I've also learned it's not such a good idea to try this at home... while making Jello... unless you want it to end up on the floor. But that's okay on cooking shows too. They can just edit that part out. It never happened. What the chef burn his hand because the hot pad slipped? Never! Burn an entrée? Impossible! Cut their finger with a knife? Only Julia Child. And time is so wonderful in Cooking Show Land. "Yes," the amazing chef on t.v. says, "I'll just bake this right here, in this wood oven, in the stone cottage on this Parisian hillside, at 450 degrees for 35 minutes, decrease the temperature to 300 degrees bake for 4 hours, increase the oven temperature to 350 degrees, bake for 2 additional hours and... (The scene fades out... fades in...) Oh look! Here's one all finished from backstage... mmmm... it's delicious." If only life were so simple. Yes, I just totally screwed up the one I was making, but it's okay. I have a perfect one finished backstage.

Well, my small apartment doesn't have a backstage. And when I just dump things into a bowl without a second thought, I usually regret it. And most importantly, I live in real time, not cooking show time. And that was my fatal mistake. My Jello mold was suppose to have a lemon layer with Marciano cherries for fruit dots, and then a bananna layer and finally a cherry Jello layer on top. (Well, I guess it's on the bottom once you flip the whole thing over.) Anyhow I made the lemon and bananna part perfectly. Let it cool for a half hour... Only, it should have been longer. Last time I let it cool overnight, I should have done what I did last time. It felt set up enough, so I poured the cherry Jello on top and put it back in the frig. And a half hour later... all the banannas had floated to the top and the lemon layer was mixed with the cherry. I felt bad.

But it will be okay, it's just a Jello mold. And most importantly, it still tastes great!

T

blog #103 >> The Amazing Jello Goldfish

Here is The Amazing Jello Goldfish. The Amazing Jello Goldfish is made with orange D'Gari Gelatin Dessert from Winco and a can of Butterfly Fruit Cocktail from Fubons containing pineapple, guava, papaya and coconut gel. I also added an envelope of Knott's unflavored gelatin, just in case it needed some extra hold.
The Amazing Jello Goldfish turned out quite delicious...
Although, I guess there isn't actually any Jello in it.
T

blog #083 >> I Really Love Jello

A lemon, bananna, orange sherbet mold.

blog #061 >> I love jello

Jello never ceases to amaze me.