As Thanksgiving meals go, there was too much yummy food and a bunch of boisterous kids. I brought dessert. 'Ah ha!' I thought to myself, I will be the extra popular aunt, because I will bring a fancy Jello creation for the children, and coffee trifle for the adults, and everyone will be happy.
Well, there was an argument with the daughter first, about which colour jello I was allowed to use. "But," I said, "It would look better if I used the red jello with the green and yellow!" She pouted, "No! All the red berry flavours belong together!" I was distracted, so I agreed to use the orange jello in place of red.
So. We all know how to make jello, right? I very lightly greased a round glass bowl, and made green jello. Then after some fussing, Rob suggested the silicone spatula (non-skid) to prop up the bottom of the bowl, so I could tilt it while the jello set, getting an angled line. I sprinkled marshmallows on top. After a few hours, I looked at it, and there was a fine, grainy powdery looking substance on the bottom of the bowl. The marshmallows had shed and my green jello had white murky streaks. 'Looks kind of cool,' I thought. The yellow was next, with the bowl upright, leaving a small wedge of green sticking up beyond it. This was eventually covered with the orange, which set into a lovely, glassy surface. I triumphantly covered it with plastic wrap, dreaming of accolades from the adults. Happy begging from the children. "More!" they would shout, "We LOVE your jello creation. PLEASE, give us more!"
Meanwhile, I threw together the coffee trifle. I made a vanilla custard with low fat milk and omega 3 eggs (whole), some cornstarch and sugar. Once it had thickened, I added vanilla extract and Tia Maria liqueur and covered it directly on the surface with plastic wrap. This gets rid of the 'skin'. When everything was cool, I folded it with whipped cream. In a glass pan I covered the bottom with savoiardi biscuits dipped in strong coffee. Layered with the custard cream, I was done. Into the refridgerator overnight and that was that. It took very little time.
I showed off my beautiful jello in a bowl to everyone before dinner. "The orange kind of blends into the yellow and it's hard to tell the layers," said Rob. Well, what can I expect from someone who is married to me? "What are those weird white lumps in the jello?" asked my niece. At least she was happy to find out they were marshmallows.
After two tries, the jello wiggled and jiggled and came out, more or less intact. Rob had earlier taught me the importance of breaking the seal but I was unsuccessful the first try, so the jello tore slightly. Immediately, I was surrounded with eager children with plates and spoons. They all wanted to try the jello! They were so happy! I was so happy! A few kids did point out the yellow and orange were hard to tell apart, even after it came out of the mold, but what did they know?
I gave some jello to my mother, who promptly said, "I don't like green, so don't give me too much green!" Fortunately the angles worked in her favour I gave her very little. Then I pulled out the coffee trifle, and offered her some too. There was a pause in the noise. I looked around me. I was surrounded by munchkins all holding out their plates. "We want to try the coffee thing too!" they said. So I grudgingly spooned very small amounts onto their plates. "You won't sleep at night if you have too much. There's coffee in it," I said.
I began to move towards the adults, only to find myself confronted by plates held up at my waist level. "It's really good, we want more!" they joyfully cried. "But don't you want more jello?" I asked them. "No, the trifle is MUCH better!" The children chased me around the kitchen all the way to the adult table. They fought over how much I gave out and squawked long and loudly if they felt unfairly treated. The adults also enjoyed the coffee trifle. There was barely enough. I had to guard the trifle against small hands and arms, reaching for more, more!
Sadly, there was leftover jello. My brother said, "The kids will always go for taste over presentation!" I know he's wrong. The kids have always delighted in fun looking food, but no longer. They demand quality too. The next family gathering will require double trifles - strawberry and coffee. Bland looking dishes with nothing to recommend their appearance, until eaten. I will have to rethink my strategy in the future.
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I wish to remember an amazing meal we had the other day, but I had no time to write about it. Rob makes squash soup in the fall and winter. He roasts butternut squash with onions and cooks it in chicken broth with seasonings - herbs we grow in the garden, usually sage. The he uses a hand blender to puree it.
On a blustery night, we had squash soup with sasquatch bread, toasted and buttered. The piece de resistance was the plate of gruyere and ementhal cheese Rob put out. I love the taste of gruyere, I love the taste of squash soup, and I love the taste of sasquatch bread. It is amazingly exciting all put together. If the soup is not sweet enough, Rob adds a little maple syrup. Just a little bit. Ahh.
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