Gelatin, Three Birds in One Stone

Do you like gelatin/jelly? Well, I do. When I was younger, almost every celebration we have, we prepare gelatins for deserts. It is because it’s very easy to prepare. Well, we are not cooking some high-end super special desert so it’s just easy to prepare.

You might wonder why it’s hitting three birds in one stone when making gelatins for deserts during any celebrations. First, let’s dive a little on how we prepare our recipe and I’ll tell along the way why and how it is so.

Recipe: Gelatin Desert

Ingredients:

Gelatin powder – suit yourself on how many you wanna make

Top water – number of cups depend on the gelatin powder’s water requirement

White sugar – depends on your preference on how sweet you want it

Condensed milk (optional)

Fruit cocktail (optional)

Procedure:

There are 3 ways we prepare our gelatin. But all of them undergo almost same procedure in cooking. Normally, a pack of gelatin powder has a direction and requirement indicated on it. On the brand we are using, it is said to use 6 cups of water per pack/sachet and other brands varies.

1. Put 6 cups of top water in a pot.

2. Slowly pour the powder into the water. While pouring the powder, continuously stir the mixture until the powder is totally dissolved.

3. Heat the pot with gelatin mixture and continuously stir.

In this part, there are 2 ways we can do.

4. When the mixture is about to boil add white sugar. Make sure to stir it well and taste it to meet your desired sweetness. By adding white sugar, you can preserve the color of the gelatin. For example, if it’s green/pandan flavored, the color will stay green and it will be transparent.

Or..

 

When the mixture is about to boil add the condensed milk. With the brand we are using, 1 can of condensed milk is already enough to make our gelatin sweet. If in any case you want it to be sweeter, you can always add some white sugar. Don’t forget to stir. The outcome of this one will differ in taste and in color. There will be a hint of milk on this one and the color is lighter and not transparent.

5. On the second time around that the mixture is about to boil, remove the pot from the fire and pour the mixture into a molder/container.

6. Let it set and cool. If you want it to have more color and texture, that’s where the fruit cocktail is used. Add in the fruits to the container. We normally add fruits if we are not adding milk in it. That way, the fruits are visible because the gelatin is transparent.

7. Place it inside the refrigerator after adding a few finishing touches to cool it faster. Also, it is best served cold.

Okay, we are done with how to prepare it, right? It’s child’s play recipe so everyone can easily make it, I think. Now, the gelatin is not only served as deserts. Well, it is most of the time. If say you have prepared gelatin, either with or without milk (not the one with fruits ofc. lol) you can add it to your drinks or cocktails. Simply slice the gelatin to small chunks and mix to your drinks. Or if you have prepared another desert, say fruit salad or any sweet salad where you might need an additional color in it. You can always add some gelatin in it. And that’s how you can hit 3 birds with one stone, gelatin style. Lol. Plain gelatin desert, drinks with gelatin and salad with gelatin. Try it, it’s very easy to prepare and also cheap. 

This is a mixture of with condense and without condense recipe, the transparent gelatin became my toppings.