Mama Jones' Famous Cranberry Relish Mold

Mama Jones' Famous Cranberry Relish Mold

I've been itchin' in anticipation because turkey day is getting so close. I posted my favorite recipes to put on the table a couple days ago, and y'all should totally make some of those... err or all of them. Either one works for me really. Well today, Peej & I got crackin' on potentially our family's favorite dish... Mama Jones' Cranberry Relish Mold. Now normally any time I hear the word, "mold", I do NOT want it. But, this my friends, is very different. It's so popular that we often have to make two of them because one almost always gets eaten before the important day. This relish might not look like anything special, but it truly is an important part of our family tradition. Fresh cranberries, oranges, apples, and toasted pecans are finely chopped up, and then stirred together with some flavored jello to hold the mold in place. I'm not quite sure where the original recipe came from, and neither do my parents, but I know it tracks back to my grandmother, MiMi, and my great grandmother, Mama Jones. These were the first women in my family to truly love cooking and make it a part of their daily life, so we always have to make this dish in honor of them. And if we don't, then I'm pretty sure my dad would slap us blind. Sometimes we add some fresh jalapeno in when we're feelin' extra spicy, but that decision is purely up to y'all!! Enjoy :)

fresh cranberries, orange peel, + cara cara oranges

Adding in the toasted pecans...

For the Cranberry Relish Mold:

1lb Fresh Cranberries

3 Large Oranges, Zested (using a peeler) & Cut into Quarters

2 Granny Smith Apples

2C Sugar

1C Toasted Pecans, Finely Chopped

2 Packs of Flavored Jello (we like raspberry, black cherry, or cranberry flavored)

1 Packet of Unflavored Gelatin

2C Strained Juice + Water

1 Medium Jalapeno, Finely Minced (optional, if you want it spicy)

Directions:

1. Toast the pecans in a pan, and then finely chop them by hand. Set them aside.

2. In the bowl of a food processor, grind the cranberries, apples, orange zest peels, and quartered oranges (remove the bitter white pith with a sharp knife) until it is coarse and finely chopped (if you want to add in the fresh jalapeno, mince it up with the other fruit). Pour the mixture into a large mixing bowl and stir in the sugar. Let it sit for 20-30 minutes to extract as much juice as possible.

3. Strain the juice from the chopped fruit into a large measuring cup, and then fill it up with water in order to reach a total of 2C of liquid (orange juice or cranberry juice can be substituted for water instead).

4. Bring the 2C liquid to a boil and add in 3 packs of gelatin, stirring to dissolve. Let it cool slightly to set and thicken before adding it to the fruit. Pour the gelatin liquid over the chopped fruit and stir to coat and combine. Pour into a mold of your choosing.

5. Refrigerate overnight or until it has completely set and chilled.

Here are some pictures of our early Thanksgiving prep...

Southern Braised Collard Greens + Roasted Garlic-Boursin Mashed Potatoes

these... are my jam.

whippin' them up!!

Roasted Garlic-Boursin Mashed Potatoes that will turn into mashed potato casserole, yum :)

Chunky Biscoff Cookie Crust for Cheesecake

The always popular, Pumpkin-Pecan Pie Cheesecake

Homemade Mulled Five Spice Simple Syrup for Autumn Moscow Mules

Watermelon Mojito Jello Shots in Lime Wedges

Watermelon Mojito Jello Shots in Lime Wedges

Yesterday was the busiest day ever. My gawd. I was preparing from morning until night for a celebration of one of my best friend's 21st birthday fiesta!! Tomorrow I'll post some pictures and my ideas for her Mexican themed bash... including a liquor shot filled pinata. YES IT'S A REAL THING. There was a bunch of confetti, lots of booze, and a gourmet taco bar with 12 different homemade toppings!! So check back for the deets, y'all. But today, I'm sharing my Watermelon Mojito Jello Shots in Lime Wedges. I have seen ideas floating around the internet for classic mojito jello shots in limes and I have been dying to try them. However, I could not get it out of my mind how I wanted to make watermelon flavored shots. Wouldn't that be adorbz?! UM, well it was. The filling includes watermelon puree, lime juice, steeped fresh mint, and rum (along with gelatin). You pour the jello mix into the lime halves, let them set until hard, cut them into wedges, and finally garnish them. I finished them off with more fresh minced mint & dyed black raw sugar for the perfect watermelon effect. And they were a HIT. They were gobbled up in minutes. Now there is a forewarning here, these are not for the faint of heart. It is a process, a very tedious process. Especially hulling out and peeling the lime rinds of its' pulp. So, if you aren't willing to slave away to prep these guys, you could just pour the jello into plastic shot glasses. Although, they certainly are not as cute. The choice is yours however. I know for sure that these will be a Summer classic and a party favorite from now on!! Enjoy :)

hollowed out lime shells.

fresh mint steeping in the jello mixture 

look at those colors... it screams summer doesn't it?? 

wittle baby watermelons.

For the Watermelon Mojito Wedge Jello Shots:

1 ½C Fresh Watermelon Puree (strained of pulp into a juice)

1C Sugar

4 Envelopes of Unflavored Gelatin

½C Fresh Lime Juice

Pink Dye, Optional (to make them a little brighter)

4 Stems of Fresh Mint Leaves

1C White Rum

Fresh Minced Mint, For Garnishing

Homemade Black Raw Sugar or Watermelon Pop Rocks, For Garnishing

Directions:

1. Preparing the Watermelon Mojito Jello: In a pot, combine the watermelon juice and sugar over medium heat and stir until the sugar dissolves. Remove from heat and stir in the gelatin. Add the lime juice and 4 mint stems (with leaves). Allow that to steep for 10-15 minutes. Remove the mint stems and stir in the rum if using.

2. Prepping the Limes: In the meantime hollow out your lime shells (we used roughly a large bag of limes for all the jello filling). This is probably the hardest part of making these. I used a small sharp knife to carve around the inside of the limes and then a melon baller to scoop out the centers. If the insides don't look perfect don't worry! Mine looked far from perfect. Be sure to leave the limes cut in halves until after the jello has set, then you can slice them into wedges.

3. Finishing the Shots: Fill each lime shell with the jello mixture and sprinkle in some chopped fresh mint (from the remaining leaves on that 3rd stem). Place in the refrigerator and allow them to set for at least 3 hours. Cut into wedges and finish by garnishing with fresh chopped mint and a sprinkle some black raw sugar (or watermelon pop rocks if you are feeling crazy) for the “watermelon” look.

source: mojito jello shots.