A JELLY GIFT

I think this would make a lovely Mother's Day "gift"! A jelly presented with things inside. Namely fruit. It's sweet, it's pretty, it's a "gift". It's healthier than cake. It puts less calories on the hips and what nots.

Jelled orange juice packed with lychees and a few ruby red strawberries for accent. A golden glob of sunshine gift-wrapped.   

Here's Happy Mother's Day to all mothers. :) Trials and tribulations. Love and laughter. Gratefulness and gratification. What a life.

A Mother's Day....it's full of surprises! And then some ~

I used Sarah-Jane's unique silicone moulds from siliconemoulds.com. I have made HAPPY chocolate cake, carrot CAKE cake, Easter egg madeleines, plum financiers, brioche and some milk jellies using Sarah's moulds and each had turned out perfectly moulded every time. But 'gift' moulds are the first I've ever come across. 

The mould comes in a set of two in one. But if you wanted to use only one you could easily cut it in two. Which I didn't. Because it was too pretty in pink to be cut. 

The recipe ~

Agar agar makes an unwobble-ble jelly. I have never used agar agar in powder form before so I had no idea how much powder to put in. I scrutinized the packet and spied "10 gm .......800 ml water." I was only using about 1 1/4 -1 1/2 cups of juice. So I used about 5 1/2 teaspoons of agar agar. It turned out very firm. I would reduce a little next time.  I think I prefer slightly wobble-ble jellies. This jelly reminded me of a very firm mattress.

Gelatine makes a wobbly melt-in-the-mouth jelly. Agar agar would not melt in the warmth of your mouth. You'll have to bite it to get it down. We are texture obsessed..

I do prefer working with agar agar because it doesn't need refrigeration. I know for sure that it will set. And set very firm. So there is no need to be delicate or for your heart to stop when un-moulding it. 

I remember mak ciks (aunties) leaving trays of bright red agar agar on the kitchen table while they went around with their other kitchen chores. Almost immeidately the agar agar would start to set, get firm and solid. Then I would watch and hear them being cut with a scrunch using one of those copper zig-zag-gy knives and the jellies would be served in slabs. Very pretty!

  
Approximately ................

1  cups orange juice
1/2 cup apple juice

Sugar to taste (if juice isn't sweet enough)

about 5 tsp agar agar powder (or slightly less for a less firm jelly)

Some lychees and a few strawberries to fill

Warm juice, sugar and agar agar powder until sugar and agar agar powder dissolves completely. Pour a thin  1/4 inch layer of jelly into the mould and chill for few minutes, about 5 minutes until the jelly just firms up a little. Drop in the fruits gently. If the mould is small you can fill up with fruits to the top and pour in the rest of the jelly liquid. If the mould is larger do a layer of fruit at a time and chill in between for about 10 minutes each time. Take it out, scratch the surface with a fork a little to ensure that the next layer of jelly adheres. arrange another layer of fruit and pour on jelly liquid again and so on and so forth until you reach the top.