Jello Molds

Yesterday Kristin, Elizabeth, and I went estate saling. Over the course of four hours, we managed to hit six estate sales, two antique marts, and IHOP, but we all came away somewhat empty handed because most of the good stuff had been picked over by the Friday shoppers.

I did pick up some vintage Jello molds, though, little aluminum ones that are about a half cup each. When I got home, I put them in the dishwasher and then fell into a sleepytime coma on the couch for a few hours, and then this morning I made Jello:



Online, there were several tips on how to prep the molds to get Jello out of them without breaking when you unmolded it. I decided right away to skip running a knife around the inside edge of the mold, because those molds have fluted edges and I assumed that I would just slice the Jello to hell. I'm well aware of my own lacking knife skills.

Another tip said to spray the insides with cooking spray, tap out the extra, and then pour the Jello in. After it set, according the the internet, the Jello would "slide right out" when you inverted the mold and tapped it a little. This didn't happen. Or, more accurately, the spraying part happened, but it didn't work.

I tapped, and the Jello stayed put.

Given the failure of method number two and my lack of desire to try method number one, I opted to try the third method: Dipping the mold in hot water for "a few seconds" and then inverting it. When doing this, you have to be careful not to dip the mold in too far, or water will get into your Jello, but other than that, it seemed pretty easy, so I dipped:



and then inverted:



I dipped for too long, and my Jello got too hot and started melting. I ate the results, rinsed the plate, and tried again:



Perfect!

From now on, all Jello in this household will be served in tiny molds.