Today is my little sister’s birthday (previously mentioned here). It is our tradition to make the birthday person the dinner and dessert of there choice on their birthday. Meiling requested Sloppy Joes for dinner and Jell-O for dessert. Not just any Jell-O, but specifically red and orange Jell-O. Today I made Jell-O.
I haven’t made Jell-O in years. It was so long ago, I can barely even remember the last time I (or anyone in our family, for that matter) made Jell-O.
Well, it wouldn’t be any fun to just make two bowls of Jell-O, especially since they were to be two different colors. I considered layering them in a bowl, and making a batch of the Jell-o Jigglers on the side. Mom then suggested to me what her dad used to do with Jell-O: Make individual-sized servings in stemmed glasses, pouring each color as a layer and chilling in-between to make each layer distinct. She said that he used to take the glasses and put them in a fridge with a wire rack, then tip them while they set, so that the layers were on angles to each other.
As our only fridge with wire shelves is downstairs and my toe is pretty sore from a procedure that was done yesterday (no details – trust me, you don’t want to know), that idea was pushed aside pretty early.
After some thinking and crafting, this is what I came up with.
Jeweled Jell-O Cups
3 – small packages Jell-O, either two of one flavor and one of a third flavor, or all three different flavors
1 – small package Jell-O, different flavor that the ones above, made into Jigglers and chilled according to package directions
1. Collect 7-8 stemmed glasses, each with a capacity of about 1 cup. If you want the serving sizes/layers to be smaller, use more glasses. I used 7.
2. Make 1 package of the Jell-O according to package directions, then divide (somewhat) evenly between the glasses. If you are using a total of 2 colors, you should be using the color that you have 2 boxes of.
Refrigerate until firm. They don’t need to be super firm – about 1 1/2 – 2 hours is fine.
In the fridge
3. In the meantime, cut up the Jigglers into little pieces. The biggest side should be less than 1/2-inch in length. Vary the sizes! It will make this more fun.
4. Remove the glasses from the fridge, and place 4-7 of the Jiggler pieces in each glass (these are the jewels). Return to fridge.
Not the best picture – those lumps are the Jiggler pieces.
5. If using 2 colors, mix up the contrasting color as directed on package, except don’t add the cold water just yet. Let the hot molten Jell-O liquid cool for at least 10 minutes. Once it has cooled, add the cold water. After you add the cold water, stick your finger in it to test the temperature. It should be just warm. Remember, you don’t want the Jell-O to harden in the bowl.
6. Divide (somewhat) evenly between the glasses. Return to fridge for about 20 minutes.
Starting to look pretty!
7. Once the Jell-O is semi set, take it out and drop more Jiggler pieces on top. You want them to go into the second layer, so you may have to use a knife or some other tool to push them in. Refrigerate until second layer is firm.
8. Mix up the last box of Jell-O, just like you did for the second layer with the cooling. Divide that (somewhat) evenly between the glasses. Refrigerate until set. Voila! You’re done! There are all kinds of variations – different colored Jiggler pieces, more thinner layers, three different color layers, and the jewels in the first and third layers instead of in the second layer. The possibilities are endless!
All three layers
You can see the colors a little better in the glass on the right
A fun picture – doesn’t this look like wine a little? It’s Jell-O, though!
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