I guess that should just be gelatin, so as not to use a proprietary name, but then would you know what I'm talking about?
Actually, I guess I really should just call this Mom's Gelatin, because it doesn't resemble the brand-name stuff in anything but texture.
I started making my own gelatin maybe two years ago. I have one child with an unfortunate tendency to frequent digestive upsets. When liquid diets are prudent, gelatin is one of the very few things that can be more or less eaten, rather than consumed as a drink. It's interesting how much one misses chewing when on a liquid diet. Gelatin requires a little chewing, which makes it a nice break from juice or stock.
I didn't do a whole lot of research into the best brand of gelatin. I just went online and bought one that looked good.
You can see that I wrote right on the bag the proportion of gelatin to liquid. I had to figure that out for myself, because all the recipes I found online for homemade gelatin were from keto people who wanted as much gelatin as possible. Those recipes made a very, very firm gelatin. That wasn't what I was going for. I wanted something as much like the texture of the name-brand Jello as possible. After some experimentation, I settled on 3 cups liquid to 2 tablespoons gelatin powder.
The next thing I learned was how important it is to dissolve the gelatin all the way. The general recommendation is to sprinkle the gelatin powder over cold water and let it sit for a bit before stirring it into hot liquid. I don't do that. I just sprinkle it over the hot liquid right in the dish and then vigorously whisk it until it's dissolved. If I see any little lumps, I just fish them out with a spoon.
Flavor is really where this is different from store-bought gelatin. Whatever liquid the gelatin is mixed with needs to be a clear juice. I don't have strawberry or raspberry juice to imitate the flavorings used in the name-brand stuff. What I make most often is lemon gelatin. That's just lemonade--sugar, boiling water, bottled lemon juice, and for this a bit of salt as I'm trying to hydrate the eater--with the gelatin mixed in.
For the child who loves switchel, I'll make switchel with all boiling water and mix in the gelatin. I have also successfully used the liquid poured off of home-canned pears and apples, which makes a gelatin that tastes like apple cider. I bet peach juices would work as well, although I haven't had enough of that to try yet.
It takes a few hours to set the gelatin properly, so it needs to be made well ahead of time. And then you give it to the sick child and cross your fingers that solid food can be consumed before you have to make another batch.
5 comments:
I make jello all the time but I do it a bit differently, I might try your way next time. Here is what I do:
1 C of 100% juice with 5 T of gelatin in a mason jar and shake vigorously. Add 1C of boiling water to that and shake again. Pour into a glass dish (I normally add frozen fruit to the dish first). Then add 4-5 more cups of juice and put in the fridge!
Oh and I also use the juice from home canning- peach is good!!
I actually have a question about this. I bought gelatin once, thinking I could, y'know, all the things. Gummy bears! Knox blocks! Jell-O with pineapple! Etc. But no. The flavor of the unflavored gelatin was abysmal and the scent of it was even worse. I don't even have a good adjective to describe it, but it turned my stomach, and I never did any of those things. What is up with that? Unfortunate brand choice? Or just my nose? — Karen.
Oh yeah. It's not just you. It smells disgusting when I'm mixing it into the liquid. Animal-y, like wet dog or something. I can't taste it in the flavored gelatin, though, and I've never tried it by itself.
I bought a special mold to make gummy candy with gelatin. Too firm and a pain to get out of the mold. I have used plain gelatin in some creamy cake fillings, and you can't taste or smell it.
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