Cranberry Orange Salad

This is a new twist on an old recipe that I posted on here long ago: Cranberry Jello Salad.  The recipe is from my mother-in-law and it's my favorite gelatin salad to make for Thanksgiving and Christmas.  This year I wanted to change it up a little and decided to try it with some orange juice and a bit of orange zest.  I wish I had added a can of mandarin oranges instead of the zest because that would have added more color and better "orange" flavor.  The zest pretty much got lost in the cranberry sauce.  Next time I am definitely adding the oranges.  But even without them, I now like this salad better with the orange juice.

CRANBERRY ORANGE SALAD
 adapted from Cranberry Jello Salad

2 boxes (3 oz each) cranberry Jello (raspberry or black cherry will also work)
1 (14 oz) can whole cranberry sauce
1 (20 oz) can crushed pineapple, well drained
2 (15 oz each) cans mandarin oranges, drained
1 1/2 cups orange juice
1 1/2 cups boiling water

In a large bowl, dissolve Jello in boiling water.  Add cranberry sauce and stir until well mixed and no lumps (other than cranberries) remain.  Add pineapple, oranges, and orange juice and stir until combined.  Pour into 2 qt. serving dish and refrigerate at least 4 hours or until set.

Orange Dream Salad

I discovered this gem of a recipe in a family cookbook.  It's now my favorite Jell-o salad to make for holidays and get-togethers.  The flavor is creamy and mellow; the combination of orange and vanilla reminiscent of a Dreamsicle.

I've made this with both name brand and store brand puddings and gelatin and I strongly recommend sticking with name brand.  The flavor and texture really is superior.

ORANGE DREAM SALAD

1 small box cook & serve vanilla pudding
1 small box cook & serve tapioca pudding
1 small box orange Jell-o
2 large cans Mandarin oranges, drained
1 (8 oz) tub Cool Whip, thawed


In a medium saucepan, bring 3 cups of water to a boil.  Add the puddings and Jell-o and cook for 3 minutes stirring continuously.  Pour mixture into a bowl and refrigerate until chilled.  Fold in Cool Whip and oranges.

Orange Jell-o Salad

This recipe is from my late Aunt Renee. It's one of my favorite Jell-o salads and it makes a lot so it's great for company.

ORANGE JELL-O SALAD

2 large boxes (6 oz, each) orange flavored Jell-o
4 cups boiling water
1 (12 oz) can orange juice concentrate, thawed
3 small cans mandarin oranges, with juice
3/4 cup ice or cold water

In a large bowl, dissolve Jell-o in boiling water. Stir in orange juice concentrate, mandarin oranges with juice, and ice until thoroughly combined and ice melts. Pour into a 9x12 glass dish and refrigerate at least 6 hours.

Glass Block Jell-o Squares

Caralie saw this on Our Best Bites and insisted that we make it. I was hesitant because one of the ingredients seemed questionable to me and I was worried that they would be super sweet. I was pleasantly surprised! These are really good and are not icky-sweet at all. And they are super fun for kids (and adults too). Give them ample time to firm up, though.

GLASS BLOCK JELL-O SQUARES
from Our Best Bites

4 (3 oz) boxes assorted Jell-o flavors
2 packets unflavored gelatin (like Knox)
1 (14 oz) can sweetened condensed milk

Spray 4 small food storage containers (like Rubbermaid, Tupperware, or Ziploc) with cooking spray and set aside.

Bring 5+ cups of water to a boil. Combine 1 cup boiling water with one package of Jell-o until dissolved and pour into one of the containers. Repeat with remaining packages of Jell-o:

image via Our Best Bites

Refrigerate at least 4 hours, or preferably overnight.

When the Jell-o has set, bring another 1 1/2 cups of water to a boil. While this water is heating, sprinkle the 2 packets of unflavored gelatin over 1/2 cup of cold water in a large bowl. Allow to stand about 4 minutes. Pour boiling water over dissolved gelatin and stir to combine. Add sweetened condensed milk and mix well. Allow to come to room temperature.

Lightly spray a 9x13 pan with cooking spray. Cut the flavored Jell-o into small cubes and gently toss to combine in pan:

image via Our Best Bites

Pour the cooled milk mixture over the cubes and, if necessary, rearrange some of the colored Jell-o to make sure it is evenly distributed and not sticking out. Place pan in refrigerator and chill overnight. Cut into squares, rectangles, or various shapes with cookie cutters and serve.

Blueberry Dessert

Such a creative name. I came up with it all by myself. Sad. But this is a VERY yummy dessert and I totally recommend it to anyone who likes blueberry cheesecake.

The graham cracker crust is very thick, so if you are not a fan halve the crust recipe. OR you can skip making the crust and use two ready-made graham cracker pie crusts.

I do suggest using a full-fat cream cheese to avoid that layer from becoming a runny mess.

BLUEBERRY DESSERT
adapted from Blueberry Salad on Allrecipes.com

Crust:
3 cups graham cracker crumbs (about 2 sleeves)
1/2 cup sugar
1/2 cup (1 stick) butter, melted

2 (3 oz) pkgs. raspberry jell-o
2 cups boiling water
1 (20 oz) can crushed pineapple, drained
1 (21 oz) can blueberry pie filling
1 (8 oz) pkg. cream cheese, softened
1/2 cup sugar
1 cup sour cream
1 tsp. vanilla

Preheat oven to 375 degrees. In a medium bowl, combine crumbs, 1/2 cup sugar, and butter. Press into lightly greased 13x9 baking dish. Bake for 7 minutes. Cool completely.

In a large bowl, add boiling water to gelatin and stir until completely dissolved. Add pineapple and pie filling and mix thoroughly. Set aside.

In a medium bowl, beat cream cheese and sugar. Add sour cream and vanilla and beat until smooth. Spread over cooled graham cracker crust. Gently pour and spread gelatin mixture over cream cheese layer. Refrigerate at least 4 hours. Cut into squares to serve.

Strawberry Pretzel Jell-o Salad

Yes, this is a crappy photo. I forgot to take one until this was almost gone (it goes really fast). My mom-in-law got this recipe from a friend. It is Delicious. Some notes:

1. Use full-fat cream cheese. Fat-free does not set up and will ruin this lovely dish. We've been there, done that.

2. Crush your pretzels really well. No big pieces. I'd say "finely crushed," but in my mind that sounds like "powdered." No powdered pretzels - that's going too far. I usually stick the pretzels in a quart-size freezer-weight Ziploc bag and pound away with a meat mallet (on the smooth side). Or you can use a rolling pin or a food processor if you are a lucky duck and have one.

3. This is even better with raspberries (my mom-in-law's suggestion). I made the above salad with half frozen strawberries and half frozen raspberries. Don't be afraid if your frozen berries don't equal 20 oz. - mine were more like 24 oz. and it turned out fine. I also used a 3 oz. strawberry and a 3 oz. raspberry instead of one 6 0z. strawberry Jell-o.

STRAWBERRY PRETZEL JELLO SALAD

2 cups crushed pretzels
1/2 cup (1 stick) butter, melted
3 Tbsp. sugar
1 (8 0z) package cream cheese, softened
1 cup powdered sugar
1 (8 0z.) carton Cool Whip, thawed
1 (6 oz) package strawberry Jell-o
2 cups boiling water
2 (10 oz each) packages frozen sliced strawberries

Preheat oven to 400 degrees. In a medium bowl, mix crushed pretzels, melted butter, and 3 Tbsp. sugar together. Press into a 9x13 baking dish. Bake for 8 minutes. Cool completely.

In a large bowl, blend cream cheese and powdered sugar with an electric mixer. Blend in Cool Whip. Spread onto cooled crust.

In a large bowl, mix Jell-o with water until gelatin is completely dissolved. Add frozen berries and stir until berries soften and Jell-o starts to thicken. Gently pour over cream cheese mixture. Refrigerate for 4 hours or until firm.

Yum! Yum! Yum!

Cranberry Jell-o Salad

This is very simple, but my favorite Jell-o salad for Thanksgiving. I got it from my mom-in-law, Cindy. I actually prefer making it with raspberry.

CRANBERRY JELL-O SALAD

2 boxes cranberry or raspberry Jell-o
1 can whole cranberry sauce
1 can crushed pineapple, drained

Dissolve Jell-o in 1 1/2 cups of boiling water. Add 1 1/2 cups of cold water, pineapple, and cranberry sauce. Mix well and refrigerate until set.