Let’s start by taking the way back machine to 2015. Somewhere in the second half of that year you probably started seeing recipe videos with an overhead shot of two hands, a bowl and some jingly music in your social media feeds. They lasted under 2 minutes and resembled a recipe you might find on Pinterest or Sandra Lee’s Semi-Homemade Cooking. The videos ended in a pull of gooey cheese or a drizzle of chocolate. They felt attainable, yet aspirational and probably pretty tasty.
Now if you buy into the idea that internet content ages in dog years, Tasty videos will turn an awkward 42 this summer. They have not aged gracefully. Today we’re mostly left with an endless stream of shock value recipes like pickle cupcakes or Spaghetti-o’s pie. It’s a wonder Gen Z doesn’t revoke our access to the internet altogether.
Food trends tend to be nearly as fickle as fashion, cycling from touting natural ingredients and fabrics to valuing synthetic styles and convenience foods. With our current social gaze on the 1970s I realized how closely the life cycle of Tasty videos has mirrored Jell-O.
Clever Convenience
Jell-O was an everyday staple from the 1930s to the 1970s giving it an impressively long run in twentieth-century food history. That’s roughly four decades of taking a very simple ingredient borne out of convenience and scarcity and molding it into something altogether new. During Jell-O’s reign we started out short on sugar and now we’re short on time.
But content has always been king, so once the end of the meal was saturated Jell-o needed to creep into earlier courses. The first shift towards savory came with lemon, lime and tomato varieties, but that wasn’t enough. Before long you had Silent Generation house wives in a Jell-O-suspended-salad space race which ended in starting your meal with a pickle dessert. Not visually striking or marginally subversive enough for you yet? Then let’s throw some processed meat in there and turn this into a straight up aspic.
Not sure how to out aspic your neighbor? Don’t worry because cookbooks ranging from the renowned Joy of Cooking (1952 edition) to the more predictable Joys of Jell-O will get you started. If you need more check out any canned vegetable brand advertisement from the period and they probably will have at least a pamphlet full of floating foods for you to choose from. These gelatinous guides are still lingering in the dark corners of used book stores, waiting to keep you up at night.
What you might not realize is that Tasty has also put out a cookbook in every year since its launch. They want to ensure that your future grandchildren have the full possibility of being terrified by the realization that folks were stuffing chicken with jalapeño poppers in the late 2010s.
The Tasty empire seems well positioned to become the embarrassing food trend of a receding generation. However, if you can get your hands on high quality juice or agua fresca then Jell-O becomes a cleverly convenient summer treat. Take a few extra minutes to infuse the juice while you warm it and the results can really surprise you.
blueberry-cardamom jell-o
Keeping unflavored gelatin around the house is useful for various confectionary projects. It can also be added directly to warmed juice for a summer snack. For my birthday, I got a non-alcoholic cocktail book which I have found to be a shockingly unpopular topic of conversation. It gathers recipes created by bartenders working as some of the most prestigious joints in the business. This was one was perfect to “just add Jell-O!”
Want to explore a different juice base? Start with this guide to fruit flavor combinations.
Adapted from “Blue Rhapsody” in Good Drinks: Alcohol-Free Recipes for When You’re Not Drinking for Whatever Reason by Julia Bainbridge
2 cups pure blueberry juice (not cocktail)
8 cardamom pods OR 2 teaspoons ground cardamom
3 star anise pods
2 strips of orange peels, 2 - 3 inches long
2 packets of unflavored gelatin
Using a medium saucepan, combine the spices with the blueberry juice and orange peels. Bring to a simmer and cook for 10 minutes. Fine strain the liquid with a cheesecloth or tea towel and discard the solids. The straining fabric will turn deeper blue than Ms. Beauregarde, so choose carefully.
In a small bowl or cup, add the gelatin packets and a 1/4 cup of the infused juice. Let stand for 5 minutes until bloomed. (Bloomed means absorbed and expanded.)
Return the remaining infused juice to the pan over low heat. Add bloomed gelatin and stir until completely dissolved. Pour into small cordial cups or wine glasses and refrigerate for at least 4 hours until firm. Serve with fresh whipped cream and a sense of nostalgia.
Reading - East of Eden by John Steinbeck (1952)
Listening - Domestica by Cursive (2000)
Watching - Humor Me (2017)
Smelling - Not a Perfume by Juliette Has a Gun (2010)