gelatin dessert

File:Eliza Acton Orange Jellies 1845.jpg leaves, in Eliza Acton's Modern Cookery for Private Families, 1845.{{cite book |date=1855 |first=Eliza |last=Acton |location=London |oclc=758341567 |publisher=Longman, Brown, Green and Longmans |title=Modern Cookery for Private Families}}]]

Before gelatin became widely available as a commercial product, the most typical gelatin dessert was "calf's foot jelly". As the name indicates, this was made by extracting and purifying gelatin from the foot of a calf. This gelatin was used for savory dishes in aspic, or was mixed with fruit juice and sugar for a dessert.{{cite book |author=The Picayune |title=The Picayune's Creole Cook Book |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=DfCFYBehGgUC&pg=PA288 |year=2013 |publisher=Andrews McMeel Publishing |isbn=978-1-4494-4043-5 |page=288 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171202212451/https://books.google.com/books?id=DfCFYBehGgUC&pg=PA288 |archive-date=2 December 2017 |df=dmy-all }}

File:Puddingsbhm.jpg's Book of Household Management, 1861. Top left, "jelly of two colors", top right, "raspberry cream" flavor]]

In the eighteenth century, gelatin from calf's feet, isinglass and hartshorn was colored blue with violet juice, yellow with saffron, red with cochineal and green with spinach and allowed to set in layers in small, narrow glasses. It was flavored with sugar, lemon juice and mixed spices. This preparation was called jelly; English cookery writer Hannah Glasse was the first to record the use of this jelly in trifle in her book The Art of Cookery, first published in 1747.{{cite book |last1=Glasse |first1=Hannah |author-link1=Hannah Glasse |title=The Art of Cookery |year=1774 |page=285 |publisher=Printed for W. Strahan, J. and F. Rivington, J. Hinton |edition=1774 |url=https://archive.org/stream/artcookerymadep02glasgoog#page/n326/mode/2up/search/trifle}} Preparations on making jelly (including illustrations) appear in the best selling cookbooks of English writers Eliza Acton and Isabella Beeton in the 19th century.

Due to the time-consuming nature of extracting gelatin from animal bones, gelatin desserts were a status symbol up until the mid-19th century as it indicated a large kitchen staff.{{cite web| url = https://www.seriouseats.com/history-of-jell-o-salad| title = A Social History of Jell-O Salad: The Rise and Fall of an American Icon|website=Seriouseats.com}} Jelly molds were very common in the batteries de cuisine of stately homes.{{cite web|url = https://www.liveauctioneers.com/news/columns-and-international/miscellaneana/miscellaneana-savoring-antique-jelly-molds/|title = Miscellaneana: Savoring antique jelly molds|website=liveauctioneers.com|date = 30 October 2015}}

To make a gelatin dessert, gelatin is dissolved in hot liquid with the desired flavors and other additives. These latter ingredients usually include sugar, fruit juice, or sugar substitutes; they may be added and varied during preparation, or pre-mixed with the gelatin in a commercial product which mainly requires the addition of hot water.

In addition to sweeteners, the prepared commercial blends generally contain flavoring agents and other additives, such as adipic acid, fumaric acid, sodium citrate, and artificial flavorings and food colors. Because the collagen is processed extensively, the final product is not categorized as a meat or animal product by the US federal government.

File:00505 Weihnachtsgelee Sanok 2012.JPG

Prepared commercial blends may be sold as a powder or as a concentrated gelatinous block, divided into small squares. Either type is mixed with sufficient hot water to completely dissolve it, and then mixed with enough cold water to make the volume of liquid specified on the packet.

The solubility of powdered gelatin can be enhanced by sprinkling it into the liquid several minutes before heating, "blooming" the individual granules.{{cite web |url=http://whatscookingamerica.net/gelatintip.htm |title=Unflavored Gelatin – Using Gelatin in Your Cooking |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100426091852/http://whatscookingamerica.net/gelatintip.htm |archive-date=26 April 2010 |df=dmy-all }} The fully dissolved mixture is then refrigerated, slowly forming a colloidal gel as it cools.

Gelatin desserts may be enhanced in many ways, such as using decorative molds, creating multicolored layers by adding a new layer of slightly cooled liquid over the previously solidified one, or suspending non-soluble edible elements such as marshmallows or fruit. Some types of fresh fruit and their unprocessed juices are incompatible with gelatin desserts; see the Chemistry section below.

When fully chilled, the most common ratios of gelatin to liquid (as instructed on commercial packaging) usually result in a custard-like texture which can retain detailed shapes when cold but melts back to a viscous liquid when warm. A recipe calling for the addition of additional gelatin to regular jelly gives a rubbery product that can be cut into shapes with cookie cutters and eaten with fingers (called "Knox Blox" by the Knox company, makers of unflavored gelatin). Higher gelatin ratios can be used to increase the stability of the gel, culminating in gummy candies which remain rubbery solids at room temperature (see Bloom (test)).

File:Rowntree's jelly cubes.jpg jelly cubes, now manufactured by Hartley's]]

The bloom strength of a gelatin mixture is the measure of how strong it is. It is defined by the force in grams required to press a {{cvt|12.5|mm}} diameter plunger {{cvt|4|mm}} into {{cvt|112|g}} of a standard 6.67% w/v gelatin gel at {{cvt|10|C}}. The bloom strength of a gel is useful to know when determining the possibility of substituting a gelatin of one bloom strength for a gelatin of another. One can use the following equation:

$C\; \backslash times\; B^\{\backslash frac12\}\; =\; k$

or

$C\_1(B\_1)^\{\backslash frac12\}\; /\; (B\_2)^\{\backslash frac12\}\; =\; C\_2$

where $C$ is the concentration, $B$ is the bloom strength, $k$ is a constant. For example, when making gummies, it is important to know that a 250 bloom gelatin has a much shorter (more thick) texture than a 180 bloom gelatin.{{Cite book|title=Encyclopedia of Food Science and Technology|last=Francis|first=Frederick J|publisher=John Wiley & Sons|year=2000|location=New York|pages=1183–1188}}

File:Tray of jello shots.jpg prior to refrigeration]]

{{See also|Jello shot}}

A gelatin shot (usually called a Jell-O shot in North America and vodka jelly or jelly shot in the UK and Australia) is a shooter in which one or more liquors, usually vodka, rum, tequila, or neutral grain spirit, replaces some of the water or fruit juice that is used to congeal the gel.

The American satirist and mathematician Tom Lehrer claims to have invented the gelatin shot in the 1950s while working for the National Security Agency, where he developed vodka gelatin as a way to circumvent a restriction of alcoholic beverages on base.{{cite web |url=http://www.sfweekly.com/2000-04-19/news/that-was-the-wit-that-was/ |title=That Was the Wit That Was |work=SF Weekly |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130512190125/http://www.sfweekly.com/2000-04-19/news/that-was-the-wit-that-was/ |archive-date=12 May 2013 |df=dmy-all }} An early published recipe for an alcoholic gelatin drink dates from 1862, found in How to Mix Drinks, or The Bon Vivant's Companion by Jerry Thomas: his recipe for "Punch Jelly" calls for the addition of isinglass or other gelatin to a punch made from cognac, rum, and lemon juice.{{cite book|url=https://archive.org/details/bub_gb_QDUEAAAAYAAJ|page=[https://archive.org/details/bub_gb_QDUEAAAAYAAJ/page/n28 24]|title=How to Mix Drinks, Or, The Bon-vivant's Companion|publisher=Dick & Fitzgerald|author-link=Jerry Thomas (bartender)|first=Jerry|last=Thomas|year=1928|df=dmy-all}}The Joy of Mixology by Gary Regan. Clarkson Potter, 2003. pp. 15–16, 150.

File:Gelatin Art Dessert.jpg

Gelatin art desserts, also known as 3D gelatin desserts, are made by injecting colorful shapes into a flavored gelatin base. Creations by Lourdes Reyes Rosas of Mexico City kicked off the growth in popularity of this 3D gelation art technique in the early 1990s,{{cite web | last=Moncada | first=Katlyn | title=These Jelly Cakes Are Edible Works of Art You Have to See to Believe | website=Better Homes & Gardens | date=August 6, 2020 | url=https://www.bhg.com/recipes/trends/jelly-cakes/ | access-date=February 8, 2024}} which spread to Western and Pacific countries.{{citation needed|date=December 2019}}

These desserts are made using high quality gelatin that has a high bloom value and low odor and taste. The clear gelatin base is prepared using gelatin, water, sugar, citric acid and food flavoring.

When the clear gelatin base sets, colorful shapes are injected using a syringe.

The injected material usually consists of a sweetener (most commonly sugar), some type of edible liquid (milk, cream, water, etc.), food coloring and a thickening agent such as starch or additional gelatin.

The shapes are drawn by making incisions in the clear gelatin base using sharp objects. Colored liquid is then allowed to fill the crevice and make the cut shape visible.

Most commonly, the shapes are drawn using sterile medical needles or specialized precut gelatin art tools that allow the shape to be cut and filled with color at the same time.

Gelatin art tools are attached to a syringe and used to inject a predetermined shape into gelatin.

When combined with other ingredients, such as whipping cream or mousse, gelatin art desserts can be assembled into visually impressive formations resembling a cake.

{{See also|Agar|Carrageenan|Gulaman|Konjac|Microbial cellulose}}

File:GreenTeaYokan.jpg}}, a popular Japanese red bean jelly made from agar]]

File:Sago't Gulaman.jpg, a dessert beverage from the Philippines made with pandan-flavored cubes of gulaman, a traditional gelatin-substitute made from carrageenan]]

Other culinary gelling agents can be used instead of animal-derived gelatin. These plant-derived substances are more similar to pectin and other gelling plant carbohydrates than to gelatin proteins; their physical properties are slightly different, creating different constraints for the preparation and storage conditions. These other gelling agents may also be preferred for certain traditional cuisines or dietary restrictions.

Agar, a product made from red algae,[http://www.sciencebuddies.org/science-fair-projects/project_ideas/MicroBio_Agar.shtml "All About Agar"] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110603081846/http://www.sciencebuddies.org/science-fair-projects/project_ideas/MicroBio_Agar.shtml |date=3 June 2011 }}. is the traditional gelling agent in many Asian desserts. Agar is a popular gelatin substitute in quick jelly powder mix and prepared dessert gels that can be stored at room temperature. Compared to gelatin, agar preparations require a higher dissolving temperature, but the resulting gels congeal more quickly and remain solid at higher temperatures, {{convert|40|C|F}},{{cite web |url=http://www.molecularstation.com/microbiology/agar-plates-bacterial-culture/ |title=Agar Plates Bacterial Culture |access-date=11 January 2009 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090219181025/http://molecularstation.com/microbiology/agar-plates-bacterial-culture/ |archive-date=19 February 2009 |df=dmy }} as opposed to {{convert|15|C|F}}{{cite web |url=http://chestofbooks.com/food/science/Experimental-Cookery/Gelation-And-Stiffening-Power-Of-Gelatin.html |title=Gelation and Stiffening Power of Gelatin |access-date=11 January 2009 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090210075817/http://chestofbooks.com/food/science/Experimental-Cookery/Gelation-And-Stiffening-Power-Of-Gelatin.html |archive-date=10 February 2009 |df=dmy-all }} for gelatin. Vegans and vegetarians can use agar to replace animal-derived gelatin.

Another common seaweed-based gelatin substitute is carrageenan, which has been used as a food additive since ancient times. It was first industrially-produced in the Philippines, which pioneered the cultivation of tropical red seaweed species (primarily Eucheuma and Kappaphycus spp.) from where carrageenan is extracted. The Philippines produces 80% of the world's carrageenan supply.{{Cite news|title = DA: Phl to regain leadership in seaweed production|date = 14 September 2011|url = http://www.philstar.com/nation/726503/da-phl-regain-leadership-seaweed-production|last = Pareño|first = Roel|work = The Philippine Star|access-date = 6 April 2014}} Carrageenan gelatin substitute are traditionally known as gulaman in the Philippines. It is widely used in various traditional desserts and are sold as dried bars or in powder form.{{cite journal |last1=Buschmann |first1=Alejandro H. |last2=Camus |first2=Carolina |last3=Infante |first3=Javier |last4=Neori |first4=Amir |last5=Israel |first5=Álvaro |last6=Hernández-González |first6=María C. |last7=Pereda |first7=Sandra V. |last8=Gomez-Pinchetti |first8=Juan Luis |last9=Golberg |first9=Alexander |last10=Tadmor-Shalev |first10=Niva |last11=Critchley |first11=Alan T. |title=Seaweed production: overview of the global state of exploitation, farming and emerging research activity |journal=European Journal of Phycology |date=2 October 2017 |volume=52 |issue=4 |pages=391–406 |doi=10.1080/09670262.2017.1365175 |s2cid=53640917 |language=en |issn=0967-0262}}{{cite news |last1=Montaño |first1=Marco Nemesio E. |title=Gelatin, gulaman, 'JellyAce,' atbp. |url=https://www.philstar.com/business/science-and-environment/2004/09/16/264974/gelatin-gulaman-145jellyace146-atbp |access-date=11 November 2021 |work=The Philippine Star |date=16 September 2004}} Unlike gelatin, gulaman sets at room temperature and is uniquely thermo-reversible. If melted at higher temperatures, it can revert to its original shape once cooled down.{{cite journal |date=12 November 2021|title= Things you need to know about gelatine |journal= Food Magazine-Philippines |pages= 99 }} Carrageenan jelly also sets more firmly than agar and lacks agar's occasionally unpleasant smell during cooking. The use of carrageenan as a gelatin substitute has spread to other parts of the world, particularly in cuisines with dietary restrictions against gelatin, like kosher and halal cooking. It has also been used in prepackaged Jello shots to make them shelf stable at room temperatures.

Konjac is a gelling agent used in many Asian foods, including the popular konnyaku fruit jelly candies.

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File:A_pot_of_strawberry_jelly.jpg

Gelatin consists of partially hydrolyzed collagen, a protein which is highly abundant in animal tissues such as bone and skin. Collagen is a protein made up of three strands of polypeptide chains that form in a helical structure. To make a gelatin dessert, the collagen is mixed with water and heated, disrupting the bonds that hold the three strands of polypeptides together. As the gelatin cools, these bonds try to reform in the same structure as before, but now with small bubbles of liquid in between. This gives gelatin its semisolid, gel-like texture.{{Cite journal|title=What is Jell-O? How does it turn from a liquid to a solid when it cools?|url=https://www.scientificamerican.com/article/what-is-jell-o-how-does-i/|journal=Scientific American|access-date=23 October 2016|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20161024090851/https://www.scientificamerican.com/article/what-is-jell-o-how-does-i/|archive-date=24 October 2016|df=dmy-all}}

Because gelatin is a protein that contains both acid and base amino groups, it acts as an amphoteric molecule, displaying both acidic and basic properties. This allows it to react with different compounds, such as sugars and other food additives. These interactions give gelatin a versatile nature in the roles that it plays in different foods. It can stabilize foams in foods such as marshmallows, it can help maintain small ice crystals in ice cream, and it can even serve as an emulsifier for foods like toffee and margarine.

Although many gelatin desserts incorporate fruit, some fresh fruits contain proteolytic enzymes; these enzymes cut the gelatin molecule into peptides (protein fragments) too small to form a firm gel. The use of such fresh fruits in a gelatin recipe results in a dessert that never "sets".

Specifically, pineapple contains the protease (protein cutting enzyme) bromelain, kiwifruit contains actinidin, figs contain ficain, and papaya contains papain. Cooking or canning denatures and deactivates the proteases, so canned pineapple, for example, works fine in a gelatin dessert.

Gelatin dessert in China is defined as edible jelly-like food prepared from a mixture of water, sugar and gelling agent.[http://files.instrument.com.cn/FilesCenter/20060626/2006626158325356.pdf] {{dead link|date=January 2022}} The preparation processes include concocting, gelling, sterilizing and packaging. In China, around 250 legal additives are allowed in gelatin desserts as gelling agents, colors, artificial sweeteners, emulsifiers and antioxidants.{{Cite web|url=http://gb2760.chinafoodsafety.net/index.php?m=additives&a=product&catid=360|title=GB 2760-2014 食品安全国家标准 食品添加剂使用标准|website=gb2760.chinafoodsafety.net|access-date=2017-07-20|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160829133512/http://gb2760.chinafoodsafety.net/index.php?m=additives&a=product&catid=360|archive-date=29 August 2016|df=dmy-all}}

Gelatin desserts are classified into 5 categories according to the different flavoring substances they contain. Five types of flavoring substance include artificial fruit flavored type (less than 15% of natural fruit juice), natural fruit flavored type (above 15% of natural fruit juice), natural flavored with fruit pulp type and dairy type products, which includes dairy ingredients. The last type ("others") summarizes gelatin desserts not mentioned above. It is typically sold in single-serving plastic cups or plastic food bags.

File:500px photo (49967732).jpeg

Although eating tainted beef can lead to New Variant Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease (the human variant of mad-cow disease, bovine spongiform encephalopathy), there is no known case of BSE having been transmitted through collagen products such as gelatin.{{cite web |url=http://bseinquiry.gov.uk/evidence/seac/seac.htm |title=BSE inquiry: A consideration of the possible hazard of gelatin to man |date=1992–2000 |author=Spongiform Encephalopathy Advisory Committee (SEAC) |url-status=dead |archive-url=http://webarchive.nationalarchives.gov.uk/0061016123923/http://bseinquiry.gov.uk/evidence/seac/seac.htm |archive-date=28 February 2006 }}

File:Gyümölcs-íz Hitlerszalonna.jpg]]

• Aam papad, a mango preserve from the Indian subcontinent
• Almond jelly, a sweet dessert from Hong Kong
• Cedrate fruit, from Northern Iran, is made into a jam called morabbā-ye bālang
• Chakkavaratti, a Southern Indian jackfruit preserve made with jaggery.
• Coffee jelly features in many desserts in Japan
• Jellied cranberry sauce is primarily a holiday treat in the U.S. and the UK.
• Götterspeise, a German dessert made of gelatin or other gelling agent
• Grass jelly, a food from China and Southeast Asia, often served in drinks
• Bocadillo, a Latin American confectionery made with guava pulp and panela
• Hitlerszalonna ('Hitler's bacon'), sold today as gyümölcs íz. The original name comes from the scarcity of real bacon during wartime. This dense fruit jam was eaten by Hungarian troops and civilians during World War II. It was made from mixed fruits such as plum and sold in brick-shaped blocks.
• Konjac, a variety of Japanese jelly made from konnyaku
• Jell-O was named the official snack food of the U.S. state of Utah in 2001. A bowl of lime flavored gelatin was featured on a pin for the 2002 Winter Olympics held in Salt Lake City.
• Mayhaw jelly is a delicacy in parts of the American South.
• Muk, a variety of Korean jelly, seasoned and eaten as a cold salad
• Nata de coco, jelly made from coconuts originating from the Philippines
• Turkish delight, a jelly type of Turkish dessert
• Yōkan, a sweet, pasty jelly dessert from Japan often made with beans, sweet potato or squash

{{Portal|Food}}

• Aspic
• Jello salad, a variation on gelatin desserts that include other ingredients
• Jelly bean
• List of desserts

{{Reflist}}

{{Commons category|Gelatin desserts}}

{{Cookbook|Rainbow Jell-O}}

• [http://www.historicfood.com/Jellies.htm Jelly, Flummery and Creams] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180128082607/http://www.historicfood.com/Jellies.htm |date=28 January 2018 }}
• [https://web.archive.org/web/20160304023203/https://prospectbooks.co.uk/samples/Jellies.pdf Peter Brears Jellies and Their Moulds Prospect Books 2010]
• [http://foodhistorjottings.blogspot.se/2013/06/macedoine-and-other-eccentric-victorian.html Ian Day (blog) Macedoine and other eccentric Victorian jellies]

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Category:British desserts

Category:Gelatin desserts

Category:Jams and jellies