I’m exactly zero percent Irish. I do, however, have a mom who loves everything holiday related, so in true Hallmark style, we celebrate St. Patrick’s Day. Since busy adult lives will keep the family from assembling on the 17th, we feasted yesterday. Nate and I were sporting horrible clashing colors of green shirts. It was fabulous and so was the corned beef and cabbage.
Don’t turn your nose up just at the mention of corned beef and cabbage.
Think about it…
Really, it’s just pot roast. Meat, potatoes, carrots, onion and cabbage all tossed together. I do love a good pot roast, so no complaints here when it’s prepared in a way that would make St. Patrick himself proud. My momma is a good cook.
This, however, is not intended to be a post about corned beef or my momma’s good cooking. Back to J-e-l-l-o…
I’ve been anxious to try out a number of The Food Librarian’s creations, especially in the Jello category, and my mom was more than happy to indulge my experimenting.
In the end, it’s really just all-American classic Jello, but it’s artsy Jello…if that’s possible. If you’ve got a shamrock cookie cutter, you could also cut these into shapes. Mine happens to be on loan to another very talented baking friend.
I love finding and making creations that I’ll be able to use and make with our kiddos one day. Thanks to a wide variety of colors and flavors, I see a number of Jello inspired concoctions for all kinds of holidays; maybe even something in honor of my alma mater for March Madness. Oh the possibilities!
You’ve got two days. Get yourself some Jello, throw an apron on your kids and don’t leave it to the last minute. Jello is easy to make, but it takes a little time and patience to be ready to serve!
7-Layer Finger Jello
(although The Food Librarian and I only made it in 5 layers. Do what you want! If you do the 5 layers, you’ll need one less box of Jello and you’ll have left over sweetened condensed milk mixture.)
4 packages of 3 oz. Jello (pick your colors flavors!)
4 packages Knox unflavored gelatin
1 can sweetened condensed milk
Mix 1 package of flavored Jello with 1/2 package (about one teaspoon) of unflavored gelatin. Add 1 cup boiling water. Stir to dissolve. Cool to room temp and pour into a 9 x 13 (The Food Librarian’s recommendation) or 7 x 11 (what I used) glass dish. Use whatever you want. Obviously, the bigger the dish, the thinner your layers will be.
Refrigerate for 20 minutes…and definitely set the dish on a level surface.
Mix 1 can sweetened condensed milk with 1 cup boiling water. In a small bowl, sprinkle 2 packages of unflavored gelatin over 1/2 cup cold water. Let stand a few minutes and then add 1/2 cup of boiling water to dissolve gelatin. Add to milk mixture and stir to combine. Cool to room temp and pour 1 cup of milk mixture over first layer of jello. Refrigerate for 20 minutes.
Repeat for next three flavors. Let Jello set. Cut and serve!
