Foods, their selection and preparation

Adding Fruit and Vegetables. Any fruits and vegetables to be added to gelatin salads and desserts should be carefully drained to remove any excess of water in order to avoid dilution of the gelatin base. They should be added when the gelatin portion is thick but not set. Canned fruits heavy with sugar tend to sink if the mixture is too thin and the fresh fruits and vegetables tend to float. If the mixture has set it is difficult to combine any other material with it smoothly. When layers of fruit or vegetable are wanted in a gelatin mold, a layer of the mixture is poured into the mold and placed in the refrigerator to harden while the remainder is kept at room temperature. The fruit or vegetable is then arranged on the hardened gelatin and another layer of the mixture poured over to harden. This is repeated until the mold is full. Gelatin Desserts. Many attractive desserts are made with gelatin. Plain jellies are made of fruit juice, water, sugar, and gelatin. Fruit, whole or in pieces, may be added to plain jelly. For approximately a quart of plain lemon jelly, use 2 tablespoons gelatin soaked in J cup of cold water; add to this 2f cups boiling water and 1 cup sugar. When cooled add J to f cup lemon juice, a little grated rind, and J teaspoon salt. This basic recipe can be modified by de¬ creasing the lemon juice to J cup, the boiling water to 1 \ cups, and adding 1 \ cups of fruit juice or a mixture of juice and pulp. If the juice is sweet use less sugar. When orange juice is used, a little grated peel improves both texture and flavor. Snows or sponges have stiffly beaten egg white folded into the plain jelly. Use 2 to 3 egg whites to the above recipe for plain jelly. Lemon snow served with custard sauce is a favorite. A spongy mixture similar to a snow can be prepared by beating air into a plain jelly as directed on the next page. [219] Spanish creams are made by setting a soft custard with gelatin and adding stiffly beaten egg white. To make the custard use If cups milk, 3 egg yolks, and \ cup sugar (see page 110). Soak 1 tablespoon of gelatin in f cup of milk. Add to the hot custard and stir until the gelatin is completely dissolved in the custard. Add any flavoring extract and set aside to cool. When slightly thickened but not set, fold in 3 well-beaten egg whites. This gives the characteristic spongy texture to these mixtures. Bavarian creams are prepared like Spanish creams, from a jelled custard, but instead of the egg whites one cup thick cream is whipped and folded in last. This may require some additional sugar. Charlotte Russe is made by adding cream thickened with gelatin to whipped cream. Good proportions are 1 tablespoon of gela¬ tin softened in 3 tablespoons cold cream and then dissolved in \ cup of hot coffee cream. Cool the mixture and fold it carefully into 2 cups heavy cream whipped until stiff, sweetened and flavored with vanilla. Charlotte Russe is traditionally hardened in molds lined with lady fingers or thin slices of sponge cake. It may have candied fruits or seeded fresh white grapes added just be¬ fore it sets.