Beet Jell-O Salad!

contributed by Mrs. Eric H. Spinney
The Bluenose Cookbook: Famous Yarmouth Recipes

As careful readers will recall, Dr. Husband and I spent some time north of the border this summer, in Nova Scotia to be exact, exploring some little bits of Dr. Husband's foreign ancestry.

Traveling around the peninsula, one realizes that the hardy Nova Scotians will throw just about anything in a pot and eat it, an observation borne out by the types of recipes I've found in my souvenir cookbook, The Bluenose Cookbook: Famous Yarmouth Recipes, published by the Ladies' Auxiliary of the Yarmouth Y.M.C.A.  Plenty of molded salads to be found here, as well as steamed vegetable puddings; fish balls, cakes, stews and chowders; extruded potato casseroles and enough fruit compotes that they could have published a book just of them.

I chose beets for today's dish because I had them on hand, and it's admittedly low risk since I've had good luck with beet/Jell-o combinations in the past.  Plus, unlike the easy sell for Dr. Husband, today I'll be serving to company!

The recipe is simple as can be, but here's a friendly tip:  Don't mix your ingredients in a glass bowl, precariously placed on the edge of a counter in your new kitchen that you're not used to yet. Or your first batch may end up looking something like this:

The second batch went a little more smoothly.

Beet Jello Salad - Mrs. Eric H. Spinney

1 can diced beets (15 oz.)
2 pkgs. lemon jello (3-oz. packages)
4 heaping tbsp. horseradish (that's a LOT of horseradish, friends. I used about half that.)
3 tbsp, vinegar
1 grated onion (medium)

Drain beets, add enough water to beet juice to make 3 cups. Boil this and add and dissolve jello powder.  To this add remaining ingredients.  Cut in squares, or use jelly molds.

Mrs. Spinney didn't instruct us to chill before cutting in squares, but I guess we're all on board with that, n'est ce pas (as they say in Canada)?

She also didn't mention the timing of adding your ingredients into the Jell-O...maybe because it's colder in Canada things set up more quickly, but I added everything all at once and found that the horseradish congregated at the bottom of the mold and the beets at the top. Nice layering effect, but if you want things more blended, let the Jell-O firm up a bit before adding things in.

Anyway, I know you're all only here for the cute video, so...

Our Rating:  One Screaming Husband!
(all dishes are rated from one to five Screaming Husbands. One Screaming Husband equals a happy home where all problems are solved during cocktail hour. Five Screaming Husbands signals the beginning of divorce proceedings.)