A brain mold made of cool and refreshing gelatin.

By Debbie Morrow

Honing Your Culinary Artistic Skills Now  

If you’re planning on making some new gruesome treats for Halloween, it’s better to practice your skills a few months ahead before the big party.

When the summertime heat rises, there’s nothing more refreshing than Jell-O! Hardly the Jell-O mold your grandma has made, the basic recipe originally came from The Pumpkin Nook, where you can find several recipes of gruesome delight. I tweaked the brain recipe by adding a few ingredients and made it my own.

You’ll Need:

One brain mold

A large platter (to accommodate brain with blood drippings)

Non-stick cooking spray

7 small boxes of peach gelatin

Green food coloring

1 can skim evaporated milk, chilled

3 ½ cups water

One of the following: A can of cherry pie filling or 1 bag of frozen strawberries or frozen raspberries.

3 bowls: one for mold stabilization in the refrigerator, one for mixing and one for water dipping.

A mini cleaver is optional but gives a great visual effect.

1)      Cover the inside of mold with non-stick spray. With a paper towel, dab any areas that have an excess of pooled spray. Place the mold inside the bowl making sure it is snug enough not to tip.

2)      Pour the boxes of gelatin in a large bowl, add 2 and 1/2 cups of boiling water. Mix until granules are dissolved.

3)      Add 1 cup cold water and 1 can of COLD skimmed evaporated milk, stir well.

4)      Add about 4 drops of green food coloring and stir.

5)      Pour mixture into your mold, up to about 1/4 inch from the top lip of the mold.

6)      Place your mold that is in the stabilizing bowl into the refrigerator. Let set for approx. 5-8 hours.

7)      Once you have confirmed the mold is set well, put very warm to hot water about 3 inches less than the depth of you mold into your extra bowl. For an example: if your mold is 6 inches deep and 5 inches across, make sure your water bowl has 3 inches of water and is at least 8-10 inches across to accommodate your hands holding on to the lip of the mold. *Wear gloves if you think you’ll burn your hands while dipping.

8)      Dip the mold into the water for approx. 30 seconds. Pull out and wiggle the mold. Cover the mold base opening with you platter and flip over to the upright position and pull the mold off.

9)       Add your berries or filling to a blender and chop, but not too fine. The chunks look great. Pour the chopped fruit over the top. Take the cleaver, stick it in and enjoy!

EXTRA TIPS

• To get an interesting effect, DON’T mix the food coloring well or add more coloring after it is poured into the mold. The coloring with settle in various spots, making the brain look more rotten.
• Add sugar and water to the berries to make more “blood”.
• As with any gelatin, if you replace half of the cold water with ice cubes, you’ll get a faster set.