Orange Jelly Dessert

Homemade gelatin dessert made with unsweetened juice and honey.  

My family has always been partial to jelly type salads and desserts and I've been happy to make them but since the boys have grown up and have families of their own I seldom make these dishes anymore.  But the other day I was thinking I'd like something jiggly for dessert but didn't want to make up a sugary Jell-o (not that I'm opposed to sugar in desserts!!!).  I was thinking more about something fruity but not a baked dessert.  I knew I had a recipe for a homemade orange gelatin dessert that I'd never made before.  So no time like the present to try it out.

This is the recipe scribbled on the back of the repair bill.

This particular recipe was given to me by a former student of mine.  Steven's mother had come to pick him up after school and he wanted her to give me the recipe.  I remember her giving it to me but for the life of me I can't remember how I happened to scribble it on the back of a computer repair bill!  It's been tucked away in my recipe box for almost 15 years but now that it's seen the light of day it shall remain in sight.  
This dessert tasted nice and refreshing and made a good ending to a heavy meal.  I can't wait to make it with other juices.  I'm thinking a pureed strawberry and apple juice would be delicious.  

Printable recipe at end of post.

Orange Jelly Dessert
2 envelopes plain gelatin (2 tablespoons)
4 scant cups orange juice, divided
3 tablespoons honey
3 seedless oranges, sectioned without membrane*

Pour 2 cups of the juice in a small saucepan.  Sprinkle gelatin over the juice and let soften for about 1 minute.  Add honey and place over low heat until gelatin is dissolved.  Stir in remaining 2 cups of juice.  Pour into a medium bowl and place in refrigerator until juice is the consistency of egg white.  

While juice is setting, section the oranges, making sure to remove any membrane that may be attached.  When juice is set to egg white consistency, stir in orange pieces and place back in refrigerator until set, at least 2 more hours or overnight. 

Serve with whipped cream if desired.  Makes 6 servings.

* If desired a can of well drained mandarin oranges can be used in place of the fresh oranges.

Sectioning an orange without leaving a membrane is called "supreming."  Follow the directions below to have nice clean orange sections. 

1. Cut a slice off top and bottom of orange. Using a sharp knife remove orange skin from top to bottom. 
2. This orange is just about peeled.  Use a plate under the orange to catch the  juice.  
3. When orange is peeled, insert knife between membrane and fruit and slice through.  Repeat on opposite side until you have a clean section of fruit cut.
4. When you are finished you should have just the membrane hanging unto the core of the orange and a nice pile of orange sections minus the membrane.

I used a mixture of 2 brands of orange juice.  They both taste good and I needed to finish off the large bottle.  I used a scant 4 cups of juice because I knew the oranges would be juicy and that would make up the difference.

Sprinkle plain gelatin over 2 cups of the orange juice.

Heat orange juice mixture until gelatin is dissolved.

Does anyone remember when Jell-o had a banana orange flavoured jelly?  I think it must have been back in the 1970s or 80s.  (I can hear some of you say, "How should I know?  I wasn't born yet.")  I decided to add a sliced banana along with the oranges.  Those two flavours taste good together.

You can see the banana slice but the orange pieces blend in with the juice.  This was my grandmother's serving dish.

Any jelly dessert wouldn't be complete without a dollop of cream.  Of course, that would be our beloved Fussell's cream. We just love it.😋

To print click on arrow upper right side.⇩