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Russian Jelly
1/4 box gelantine or 1 tablespoon granulated gelatine 1/4 cup cold water 1 cup boiling water 2/3 cup sugar 1/2 cup Sauterne 1/4 cup orange juice 1 1/2 tablespoons lemon juice Make same as other jellies, cool slightly, and beat until frothy and firm enough to mould. Turn into mould and chill.
A whipped wine jelly: the same gelatine base as a moulded wine jelly, but beaten as it thickens so it sets pale, foamy and light. The timing of that beating is the whole trick.
- The gelatine measureA "box" of granulated gelatine was sold in packet form, and the recipe itself gives 1/4 box as the equivalent of 1 tablespoon, i.e. roughly one modern envelope (about 7 g). Because whipping inflates the mixture and both the wine and the citrus acid work against the set, you may want up to 1 1/2 envelopes for a jelly that will stand up out of a mould.
- "Make same as other jellies"Soften the gelatine in the 1/4 cup cold water for five minutes, dissolve it completely in the boiling water with the sugar, then stir in the Sauterne and the fruit juices. Strain before cooling if you want it clear-bright.
- The hinge: catch it at the right stage"Cool slightly" means chilled until the mixture is syrupy and about the consistency of unbeaten egg white — the point where a spoon drawn through leaves a trail. Beat too early and it will not hold air; beat too late and it breaks into lumps rather than foam.
- BeatingAn electric mixer will do in a few minutes what took considerably longer by hand. Beat until the colour lightens and the volume roughly doubles, then pot it immediately; it firms fast once aerated.
- SauterneIn American books of this period "Sauterne" usually meant a domestic dry-to-medium white, not the sweet French Sauternes. Any decent dry white works; if you use a genuinely sweet wine, cut the sugar to about 1/2 cup.
- Moulding and unmouldingRinse the mould with cold water rather than oiling it. Chill at least four hours, or overnight; dip the mould briefly in warm water and invert onto a wetted plate so the jelly can be slid into place.
- YieldAbout 2 cups of liquid, which whips up to roughly a quart — six small servings. Serve cold, on its own or with a soft custard sauce.
- Uncooked alcoholThe wine goes in after the gelatine is dissolved and is never heated, so the alcohol remains. Worth knowing if you are serving children.