Holly Jolly Jelly Shots

aka “Jello Squares”.

It was the holiday season. I had two weeks off from both jobs, and I was headed home to spend some time with my parents who just so happened to be hosting a Christmas celebration or two. And I was in the mood to put their spectacular kitchen to good use!

Enter: holly jolly jelly shots. Thanks Pinterest!

Ingredients:
-3 oz box of red jello (I used strawberry because I’m not a fan of cherry)
-3 oz box of lime jello
-3 envelopes of Knox unflavored gelatin
-14 oz can of sweetened condensed milk
-whipped cream
-water
-1 1/2 cups vanilla vodka (if you’re going the adult version route)

Directions:
1. Coat a square dish with cooking spray and wipe out with a paper towel.
I almost used a rectangular 9×13 dish but it definitely wouldn’t have turned out very well, so I highly recommend using a square one for this! I used an aluminum square pan and it worked perfectly.

2. Combine ingredients to make your three layers: red, green, and white.
This would totally work for other holidays as well. For Valentine’s Day, just do red and white layers…it’s up to you and  the options are limitless! St. Patty’s day, green and white. And so on.

I found that mixing each color in a large liquid measuring cup worked really well! The red and green will make about 2 cups of liquid, and the white will make 3 cups, so use measuring cups sized accordingly! 

For red color:
Sprinkle half an envelope of unflavored gelatin over 1/4 cup of water. Allow it to soak for a minute. Then add one box of red jello and immediately after, add 1 cup of boiling water. I boiled three cups of water total to use for the entire recipe and it worked well. Stir until everything has dissolved. Then, add 3/4 cup of vodka if doing the adult version. If not, add 3/4 cup water instead. Stir and set aside.

For green color:
Sprinkle half an envelope of unflavored gelatin over 1/4 cup of water. Allow it to soak for a minute. Then add one box of green jello and immediately after, add 1 cup of boiling water. Stir until everything has dissolved. Then, add 3/4 cup of vodka if doing the adult version. If not, add 3/4 cup water. Stir and set aside.

For white color (non-alcoholic layers if doing adult version):
Sprinkle two envelopes of unflavored gelatin over 1/2 cup of water. Allow it to soak for a minute. Then, pour in one cup of boiling water and a 14 oz can sweetened condensed milk. Stir until everything is dissolved and set aside.

3. Pour half of the red mixture (about 1 cup) into the prepared dish. Place into the refrigerator for it to set for 25 minutes. To determine if it’s set enough, press down lightly with your finger and it will feel solid. Once it’s set, move onto your white layer.

4. Pour 1/3 of the white mixture (about 1 cup) over the red layer. If there are any air bubbles with the white layers, do your best to pop them! A toothpick works pretty well for this, but it was definitely my least favorite part of the entire recipe. Then place in the refrigerator and allow it to set for 25 minutes.

5. Repeat the process with half the green mixture (about 1 cup). Then white, then red, then white again, and finally green. You’ll end up with SEVEN layers total. You can always add more layers if you’d like, but the amounts given are for seven layers.
If any of your mixtures start to solidify (the white will, guaranteed), just pop it in the microwave for a few seconds, stir, and allow to return to room temperature. The room temperature part is extremely important so it doesn’t melt the layer under it. If it does (mine did a bit), you’ll end up with a creamy mixture of the two colors in some spots. But if that’s the look you’re going for, then by all means, have at it! 

6. After all your layers are added and each have set, place the dish in the refrigerator for 2-3 hours or overnight.
I let mine sit for about 3 1/2 hours and it definitely could’ve gone another 2, if not just overnight. The longer the better!

7. When you’re ready to serve it, pull the edges away from the pan (I used a butter knife) and invert the entire dish on a cutting board.

Then cut into squares and top with whipped cream!

Original recipe found at tablespoon.com.