Sunshine Salad

Pickle and Pineapple Gelatin from Mid-Century Menu

So I have a confession, I really love reading about vintage recipes, especially blogs where people go back and make the recipes again in all their disgusting glory. But I'm a coward. I don't want to make something that I don't want to eat--and I just don't want to eat something like pickles in my jello. I do like jello quite a bit--I even have a really awesome retro jello cookbook, with spinners to select the perfect jello to go with each meal. But almost all of them call for fruit cocktail or ketchup, neither of which I have. So today I just decided to be inspired by the retro recipes and make something new. Next time I'll make a special trip and get the ingredients and try one of the dishes in my cookbook, I promise to work up the courage. I may not eat it all, though, can't promise that!

So here's my modernized sunshine jello salad--to accompany my beef tagine.

Ingredients:
1 sml pkg sugar free lime gelatin
1 sml pkg sugar free lemon jello
half a pkg flavorless gelatin
1/2+ cup shredded pineapple
1/2+ cup blueberries
1/2+ cup fresh mango chopped
extra lime and lemon zest



So I have been collecting these lovely molds at the thrift store for the last little while--they are usually under a dollar and are fun and different. This one I like because it is not too big and has a fun and unspecific shape (not a lobster or heart). So this is pretty simple--mix up the lime jello, using about a half cup less water and add a little of the unflavored gelatin (it helps it hold its shape). That goes into the fridge to start to set.

Once that layer has started to solidify add the mango, then mix up the lemon layer--I used some of the pineapple juice in place of some of the water and let it start to thicken and add the pineapple and pour on top of the lime layer. That goes in the fridge to chill--once it has started to set I added some blueberries.

I added a little too much extra gelatin and it set up a lot quicker than I anticipated, so I didn't get the mango in before it had started to set. But on the plus side it took barely 2 hours from start to finish to completely set enough to be unmolded. That is really one of the best parts of making a jello mold--seeing it pop out all jiggly and pretty. To loosen from the mold I dip the outside in a bowl filled with warm water and run a knife gently around the edge. Sloshing it back and forth and then inverting onto a plate and here it goes!



The Verdict: If you like jello and fruit you will like this, because that is basically what it is. I topped mine with some whipped cream from a can and pretended I was living it up in 1965. It could use some more fruit, but I ate a lot of the mango before it made it to the salad.  It was very pretty, and I ate it all up really quickly. Big yum!