In a blog post I posted when I first start Quaint Cooking, I wrote about how Jell-O and other gelatin based products didn’t really play a huge part of my youth. I originally set a challenge to work my way through the 1970s The New Joys of Jell-O to see how I felt about Jell-O after eating the good, the bad and the ugly. Since that post, I acquired many more vintage Jell-O cookbooks from the 1920s all the way through the 1990s as well as a few from Knox gelatin.
So the challenge has changed and evolved. Every month I will pick a selection from a jar randomly because lets face it who can really consciously pick a gelatin seafood salad. I will write about my thoughts and then give you the recipe if you want to be adventurous (or foolish). This also will not just be a about Jell-O only. I will make this a section for any gelatin based recipes from yesteryear. So without further ado let us get onto the first recipe.
The first selection is the Crested Jell-O Whips from the 1937 Jack & Mary’s Jell-O Recipe Book. I choose this recipe to ease my way into this whole new culinary journey (all others will be selected randomly going forward). It features comedian Jack Benny and his wife Mary sharing their supposedly favorite gelatin recipes while telling some rather corny jokes through out. I am going to safely assumed that Jell-O was probably a huge sponsor of Benny’s radio program at the time. My copy that I have has seen much better days but I couldn’t leave it sitting alone and possibly eventually finding a home in the garbage when I saw sitting lonely at an estate sale.
The recipe is quite simple and easy to follow. The investment was only a small box of strawberry Jell-O. It tasted just like you expect Jell-O to taste. The only part that was a little weird I guess was the “whipped” parts. The Jell-O had a foamy texture that I’m not sure still if I liked or not. It was quite cool watching the Jell-O double in size when using the mixer as it was something I did not realize the gelatin product was able to do.
The photograph that inspired the above photos from Jack & Mary’s Jell-O Recipe Book (1937)
Crested Jell-O Whips
This is an easy dessert from a 1930s Jell-O advertising booklet featuring Jack & Mary Benny.
Ingredients
- 1 3 oz package of Jell-O (any flavor)
- Fruit for garnish (optional)
Directions
- Follow the directions on the package to prepare the Jell-O
- In six individual mold, pour two tablespoon of the mixture into each mold and then chill till firm
- Place in a bowl and chill the remaining mixture until it has a syrupy texture.
- Place the mixture’s bowl into a large bowl of ice and beat with a hand mixer until it is fluffy and has thickened to a sort of whipped cream mixture.
- Pour the mixture over the firm Jell-O and chill for at least 4 hours but overnight is the best.
- Un-mold and garnish with fruit if you desire.
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