Not Your Grandmother's Jello Salad

As a child, I didn’t eat the traditional turkey meal on Thanksgiving Day. No, my plate was piled with salad (funny, now that I own a salad restaurant) and, most important of all, cranberries.

My mother used to make this delicious cranberry apple chutney – it was my favorite part of our holiday meal. Her recipe actually inspired my latest obsession: the jello mold. 

Of course, I can’t help but bring back a mid-century trend and make it modern. Have some fun with this festive take on my favorite holiday dish!

Here’s what you’ll need to start:
A large, full-size bundt pan
3 (24 oz) bags of cranberries 
3 cups cane sugar
3 cups water
Zest and juice of 2 whole lemons
1 teaspoon cinnamon
1 ounce unflavored gelatin (I used 4 envelopes of Knox gelatin)
2 tart apples, granny smith or pink lady
Mist of cooking spray (avocado oil preferred)
4 cardamom pods, crushed and seeds removed (optional)
3 star anise (optional)

How to:
In a saucepan, combine all ingredients except for the gelatin and apples. Bring to a boil until cranberries pop, about 10-15 minutes.

While the cranberry mixture is heating, slice apples to your liking. 

Dissolve gelatin in a quarter cup of hot water. Once dissolved, combine with the hot cranberry mixture.

Mist bundt pan with cooking spray.

Fold apples to the cranberry mixture, then pour into the bundt pan.

Refrigerate overnight.

To remove the mold, fill a large bowl with hot water. Set the bundt pan in for 30 seconds to 2 minutes, until the mold is removable. Place a plate on top of the mold and flip the bundt pan over.

Maven tip

No mold, no problem. If you don’t want to create a mold, you can skip the gelatin and serve the cranberry mixture in a bowl as a delightful relish.