Tips To Make Pretty Molded Salads

This is an article from a vintage tip sheet titled “The Art Of Salad Making” that was written by Mary Hale Martin, Libby’s Home Economist. She was a fictional persona created by Libby’s with the same purpose as Betty Crocker (another fictional character)–to provide helpful cookery hints and tips that would also promote the brand they represented. There’s no date on this sheet, but I believe she was around from the 1920’s through the 1950’s so it would be within that time.

Gelatin salads aren’t as popular now as they once were and I can’t remember the last time I had one, but I know lots of people still enjoy them. Since gelatin salads were (are) relatively inexpensive to make, many homemakers took care and pride in these salads and made them as colorful and interesting as they could to brighten up the dinner table–it was one way to be creative on a budget. Looking through old cookbooks you’ll see some real doozies!

This sheet was carefully filed in the vintage household binder I have that is over 70 years old and stuffed a few inches thick with recipes, clippings and advice, I love it! Here are the tips:

Make Pretty Molded Salads

Gelatin molds aren’t tricky to prepare, but a few “do’s” and “don’ts” may be helpful.

• Use the syrup from canned fruits as part of the liquid in gelatin salads for added flavor.
• For large molds cut the liquid to 1 3/4 cups for 1 package fruit-flavored gelatin, or 1 envelope unflavored gelatin.
• Chill gelatin until slightly thickened (unbeaten egg white consistency) before adding the solid ingredients. Carefully fold the well-drained fruits and vegetables into the thickened gelatin, distributing them evenly.
• A gelatin salad may be molded in several ways: in a large ring or fancy mold, in individual molds, or in a shallow pan.
• To mold fruits or vegetables in a definite pattern, arrange in a thin layer of slightly thickened gelatin. Chill until firm, then add the balance of the gelatin.
• To make molded layered salads, be sure each layer is firm before adding the next layer.
• Prepare large gelatin molds a day ahead of serving, so they will be thoroughly set before unmolding.
• Fill molds as full as possible for easy unmolding.
• To unmold, loosen edge of mold with spatula or a small knife which has been dipped in warm water. Then quickly immerse the mold just to the top in lukewarm water–hot water will melt the mold. Shake mold to loosen gelatin. Place serving dish over top of mold, invert, and lift mold of carefully.
• For large molds moisten the surface of the gelatin and the serving plate and unmold as directed above. When the two surfaces are wet, it’s easy to center the mold. Remove excess moisture with a towel.
• Surround large molds with salad greens after unmolding; they may break if unmolded on crisp greens. Individual molds may be turned out directly on greens.

Here are a few more tips I’ve collected:

• More festive in appearance, moulded salads should be prepared a day ahead and refrigerated. Never freeze.
• Ingredients should be chopped or sliced into small, uniform pieces.
• In some salads, the gelatin mixture requires partial setting and in others it is chilled only until it is the consistency of an unbeaten egg white before other ingredients are added. This helps to keep the ingredients evenly distributed throughout the mould.
• To fill mould: Rinse mould with cold water or brush with salad oil to make unmoulding easier. Fill mould to the top. Allow at least 6 to 12 hours for salads to set. Time will depend on size of mould.
• To unmould: Run a knife around edge of mould to a depth of about 1/2″ only in order to loosen the bottom edge. Dip mould quickly into a pan of warm water, then place the serving plate over the mould and invert plate and mould. Remove mould with care. If mould does not loosen after first dipping, repeat procedure. Do not leave the mould in the warm water too long as the gelatin will melt.

Source: A Guide To Good Cooking, Five Roses

Gelatin salads can be fun to make, but we also have Rainbow Jello to dig into–pretty fussy to make (for time) but it’s a cool treat that the kiddos would love .

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