Layered Jello

And the 50's pattern Corel plate adds something to the presentation of gelatin :)

My family has a love/hate relationship with Jell-O. My kids LOVE it. It's wiggly, sweet, and fun. It tastes good, is easy, and comes in bright, happy colors. It is also completely unhealthy, full of sugar, food-coloring, preservatives, and who-knows-what. There is very little redeeming about Jello--there are no necessary nutrients, so it is completely empty calories! So, on the very, very, very rare holiday occasion that I DO make Jell-o, I make it special. I make it layered. Oh, and to make it a bit less unhealthy, I make it with greek Yogurt. Let's add some dairy and protein to our sugar :).

I can easily fit 7 or 8 of these layers in my big, glass 9 x 13 pan, and this process takes a minimum of 15 minutes per layer. It's time consuming. It's a pain in the neck. It's worth it.

I have done this with sugary and sugar-free jello. In a billion color combinations. Red, white, and blue for Independence Day, Red and Green for Christmas, Reds and pinks for Valentines, Pink and White for baby showers, Rainbow colors for a start-of-summer party, blues and whites for a Frozen party, etc. 

For transparent (normal Jell-O) layers: 

1 small package Jell-O

1 cup boiling water

3/4 cup cold water

--Dissolve the Jell-O in the boiling water, stir in the cold water, pour into pan, and chill until just set. 

For opaque layers: 

1 small package Jell-O

1 cup boiling water

1/2 cup greek (or regular) plain yogurt

--Dissolve the Jell-O in the boiling water, stir in the yogurt, pour into pan, and chill until just set

For white layer:

1/4 c cold water

1 packet knox gelatine

3/4 c boiling water

1/4 cup sugar

1/2 cup greek (or regular) plain yogurt

--Sprinkle gelatine over 1/4 c cold water. Let sit for 2-3 minutes. Stir in boiling water and sugar, until completely dissolved. Stir in yogurt until smooth. Pour into pan, and chill until just set. 

Basically, you decide what layers you want. Don't do two clear layers in a row, because the colors get muddled and it just turns brown. I usually do a clear, then an opaque, or a clear then a white. Prepare the first layer (mine is usually clear), gently pour it in the bottom of the pan, and let it set. The first layer usually takes the longest because the pan isn't cold yet. About 1/2 hour. Then make your next layer, and when the first layer is just set (still a teeny bit tacky), gently pour it over the first layer, and chill for about 15 minutes, Repeat until pan is full.

Tip: I stir the goo for the next two layers when I put the first layer into the fridge. Then every time I put another layer in the fridge, I start the boiling/mixing process for the layer two behind it. It makes the setting in the fridge process faster, since the jell-O has come to room temperature. 

Tip #2: If I am doing the same color over and over, I will just stir up a HUGE batch, and just put the equivalent of one box of Jello in each time. So If I were doing stripes of clear and opaque pink, I would do 4 boxes of pink jello all together, mixed with just water, and 4 boxes of pink jello all together, then mixed with yogurt, Then I would scoop out equivalent portions of one recipe (about 1 3/4 cups) to set them in stripes. 

Tip#3: I boil my water in the microwave. I'm sneaky like that.