Rainbow Jello

It's that time of year again--- where the family gathers to cook for hours and hours, spend 30 minutes stuffing their faces, and groan their way through the remainder of the day. I've always liked Thanksgiving, not just because I can eat beyond capacity and not look like a pig (mob mentality rules here), but because it's the time where I get to try to see if I can make a whole meal come together at the same time.

This year, because there are only seven of us gathering (it's the in-laws' turn for my siblings, which leaves us unmarried ones to keep my parents company), my mom wanted to make a few different dishes. One of her favorites to have is rainbow jello. Now Utah of course is famous for their sometimes bizarre jello dishes, but I promise, this one has no miscellaneous vegetables (though it does one of those other Utah staples-- sour cream). I think you could use light or fat-free sour cream, and sugar free jello, and make this dish 'healthy', but hey--- it's Thanksgiving. Bring on the heavy whipping cream.


Rainbow Jello
a recipe from my mom

various boxes (3 ounce or smaller size) of flavored Jello (I use 7: black cherry, strawberry, orange, lemon, lime, berry blue, and grape)
sour cream -- 1/3 cup for each of flavor of Jello (I got 2 16-oz tubs)
water
whipping cream
powdered sugar to taste
vanilla to taste


The jello takes a LOT of time (but you're not completely busy with it so don't fret about spending 7 hours on a dessert) --- one hour per Jello box. I like to use a 13x9 clear Pyrex casserole dish, because by the time I'm done with the seven layers, it completely fills the dish. I also like to do it in rainbow order, because I tend to be a bit OCD and I like how the colors blend together. This of course is not completely necessary, and you can mix and match as much as you want.

I like to have the following things ready for use: a 1-cup Pyrex measuring cup, a 2- or 4-cup Pyrex measuring cup, a 1/3 cup measuring cup, two spoons, and a spatula. Fill the 1/3 cup with sour cream and set aside. Boil a pan of water (you'll need at least one cup of boiling water for each step). Measure out one cup of the boiling water into the 4-cup Pyrex measuring cup. Dissolve one packet of Jello in the water, and stir until completely dissolved. (I start with the purple and work backwards so I end up with the red on top.) Try to avoid making bubbles. Measure out 1/2 cup of the Jello liquid into the 1-cup Pyrex measuring cup. Put the 1/3 cup sour cream into the 1-cup Pyrex cup and mix until all the sour cream is melted. In the other measuring cup with the remaining Jello liquid, add 2 Tbsp. cold water and mix. Scrape all the bubbles out of the Jello-sour cream mixture, and slowly pour into the serving dish. Remove any remaining bubbles from the jello, and cover with saran wrap. Refrigerate for 30 minutes. When you pull it out, make sure the saran wrap doesn't touch the Jello--- it will remove a chunk of it (I know this from experience). Slowly pour the clear Jello liquid over the now set-up layer. I use a spoon, hovering it very close to the first layer, and pour into the spoon, so the force of pouring it doesn't disturb the layer I just made. I've tried all sorts of methods, and this one works best. Cover, and refrigerate 30 minutes. About 10 minutes before the second layer is done, I'll start boiling the water, and mix the second box of Jello up, separate, and mix in the sour cream, which usually puts me at the right time to add the next layer. Alternate sour cream and clear layers until you're done.

It's best to do this dish the night before you serve it, as the more time you allow it to harden after you're done with it, the better it sets up. Right before serving, whip up a bunch of heavy cream with powdered sugar (granulated sugar makes the whipped cream grainy) and vanilla to taste. Cover the jello with the whipped cream, and serve.

This dish has gotten me a whole lot of compliments, and it really does taste good. Your dish will definitely be the life of the potluck, and outshine the other people who dropped into Smiths/Krogers to buy a coffee cake.