Sometimes, when something is really good or when something comes together just right or you have an epiphany, you say that you can hear the angels singing. I’ve always wondered: If something is really, really bad, can you hear the choir in Hell singing? Does Hell even have a choir? Do they even sing? Well, for the sake of argument, let’s assume that there is a choir of devils whose job it is to sing when things are really, really wrong, and when you look at this picture, you can hear the lonely song coming from that hellish choir.
And when they are finished singing, they will probably have to eat it.
Pickle. Olive. Jell-O.
This recipe is from Victoria, who submitted it during our Gelatin Contest last year. Victoria writes:
My Grandma, Agnes, (1888-1973) made this for Xmas when my Mom was growing up:
Package of green jello (Lime)
Green stuffed olives, sliced
Sweet Gherkin pickles, sliced
Make the jello according to package directions, mix in the olives and sweet pickles, pour into loaf pan, chill til set.
Grandma made this for the red and green-ness for Christmas! It actually doesn’t taste that bad..my Mom still makes it..
Tom peered over my shoulder the entire time I made this.
“So, is this all that’s going in it?”
“Yep.”
“Just pickles.”
“Yep.”
“And olives.”
“Yep.”
“And that green Jell-O”
“You got it.”
“Oh, I got it, all right.”
“At least it’s pretty, right?”
”That slice of gelatin is NOT pretty.”
“What is that smell?”
“What smell?”
“The smell coming off of this thing. It smells like my grandparents’ basement.”
“You big baby. Just eat it!”
“I’m pretty sure it tastes like their basement, too.”
“Really?”
“Actually, no. It’s not that bad. It’s just sort of…shocking. It’s a really strange combination. Tastes very 1950’s.”
The Verdict: Very 1950’s
From The Tasting Notes:
A really unusual flavor combination, but not terrible. It would pair well with cigarettes or maybe a nice pipe.
Seriously though, despite the looks of this thing, it didn’t really taste all that bad. Not something I would like to eat everyday, but definitely edible!
Thanks, Victoria!
It is a thing of beauty.
Holy…
Pickle. Olive. Jell-O. Three words that should never occur within a paragraph of each other.
I give Tom a lot of credit for eating this stuff, but he definitely gets extra points for tasting it after saying it smells like his grandparents’ basement. Wowsers.
By the way, there is a choir in hell. They sing this: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0XMy9WeI_fw
Lime seemed like a strange pairing to me — I was picturing something more in the mustard category. And so, I went searching, and look what I found! Can you try this next? http://allrecipes.com/recipe/harry-family-mustard-mold/
Hahaha! Lucky for me, I have “recipe radar”. I already know how good it is just by reading it, or looking at it!
LOL! Love the expressions on Tom’s face. Actually..if you used bread and butters instead of sweets..with the olives–sweet; sour; salty. Might not be bad.
I think I much prefer my husband’s family’s traditional red-and-green Christmas recipe: Sex in a Pan with pistachio for the pudding layer and maraschino cherries as the topper.
I remember my grandmother making a version of this, only the olives had pimento centers, the pickles were dill, and the gelatin was tomato based. It certainly was different.
HaHa! Tastes like the 50’s and pairs well with a cigarette!
I think this is further proof that your palates have become accustomed to horrible Jello dishes. I bet you wouldn’t have found it so edible toward the beginning of your culinary experiments!
It doesn’t look that bad to me, it kinda looks good. I LOVE olives..maybe ill try this recipe too!
I actually remember a dish like this. Wasn’t it called aspic or something. It was terrible, though.
This one really brings back childhood memories–one of my mom’s favorites was jello with green olives, bing cherries, walnuts and cream cheese balls. Can’t imagine the pickles!
Just reading the statement “it would pair well with cigarettes” made me LOL!
I’ve eaten my share of Midwestern JELLO “salads” with pineapple and shaved carrots, but this is just. Wow. It’s festive in a technicolor sense. I love Tom’s commentary.
I saw this and a filk of Jonathan Coulton’s “Skullcrusher Mountain” popped into my head. “You like pickles, you like olives, maybe you don’t like Jell-O so much…”
this is made of 2 two things i hate the most; pickles and olives. of course there in like everything