What is it about this silly salad that evokes such holiday memories, it makes me salivate for Christmas. I mean really, the all-purpose holiday Jell-O salad is hardly the star of the table, but there is something about it that is very comforting, very retro and very satisfying.
However, my kids don’t trust the Jell-O salad, it could be a generational thing They eye it very suspiciously as it jiggles its way around the table. They don’t like it. I think they are missing out, but I understand.
In fact, I have had my own issues with Jell-O salad as a kid. You see, I always wanted the topping to be sweet. I expected it. It looked like whipped cream, I wanted whipped cream. However, after taking a bite, the topping was always savory…sour cream or cream cheese mixed up with unsweetened whipped cream. I hated that. I vowed that as an adult, my topping would be sweet. And it is.
Who knows if we are all using the same recipes, which seem to be passed through families over the years. No real secrets, except at one point I do remember celery in this salad and notice it is NO longer in here.
This is just a yummy salad served on the side that screams CHRISTMAS to me.
Christmas Cranberry Salad
1 can (14 ounce) whole-berry cranberry sauce
2 packages (3 ounce) raspberry gelatin
2 cups boiling water, divided
1 Tablespoon lemon juice
1 cup heavy cream
1/4 cup granulated sugar
1 package (8 ounce) cream cheese, room temperature
Cooking spray
1 cup chopped pecans or walnuts
Dissolve gelatin in 1 cup boiling water. In another bowl, mix together cranberry sauce and the remaining water; add the gelatin mixture and lemon juice. Pour into a 13 x 9 dish or any size dish you like that has been coated with cooking spray. A smaller dish will give you a thicker salad (which I like) and take longer to gel together. Refrigerate until firm.
Beat cream and sugar until stiff peaks form. In another bowl, beat cream cheese and 1/2 cup of the whipped cream you just made. Fold in the remaining whipped cream. Spread over the gelatin mixture and sprinkle with the nuts. Refrigerate for several hours.
One Year Ago: Coconut Cream Pie
Two Years Ago: Autumn Salad with Red Wine Vinaigrette
