Howdy, Jigglers! Today I am tackling what is probably one of the most popular non-dessert Jell-O recipes ever invented, the Sunset Salad. Even my mom, who doesn't cotton to the idea of using Jell-O for anything outside of fruit salads, liked this colorful mold of carrots and pineapple.
Before proceeding any further, I would just like to say how much I love the look of this salad as styled here. It is a triumph, and it sets a big, scary precedent for how this salad should look. Even the garnishes look luxe, and I'm particularly happy to see that carrot ribbons predate Instagram.
Back to the actual recipe, though. Because this salad is so beautiful when clear, I broke down and just bought orange Jell-O and followed the recipe to the letter instead of using orange juice and unflavored gelatin. I also omitted the pecans. Okay, I did make one substantial change: I added another tablespoon of unflavored gelatin to the Jell-O to make sure the molds would hold their shape nicely, plus I just prefer harder gelatin in general.
The recipe is very simple to make, but I was disappointed in how little it made. I filled four individual molds of various sizes (one small, two medium, and one large), but I couldn't have filled my Bundt pan even halfway with this recipe, and it wouldn't have filled my fish mold either. Again, my suggestions are to follow.
I think this turned out looking close to as nice as the photo from the book. It certainly looks nice, and I enjoyed how it tasted as well, enough to eat it with lunch all week and then miss it when it was gone. The carrots provide a crunchy contrast to the tropical fruit flavors of the gelatin, but they are sweet enough not to be incongruous with the overall taste. It tastes very bright and summery as well--this would be a perfect side at an Easter dinner or a spring picnic to get you out of those winter blues.
Now, if I were to make this again (and this recipe might have to go into the venerable "I plan on making this again" pile), I would do it a little differently. For best visual and taste appeal, I would leave all ingredients the way I left them except I would double the quanity of water and dissolve a package of pineapple Jell-O alongside the orange Jell-O. This would achieve the orange-pineapple effect that the recipe calls for, and it would make the mold prettier and bigger. If you try this, you might want to increase the amount of carrots and pinapple a little, maybe a quarter or a third, but no more. That way the mold will be a little clearer and provide more of a "things are floating in the Jell-O" aesthetic, as seen in the recipe photograph.
As-is, though, the Sunset Salad was still a superb success for a Jell-O recipe with vegetables in it. For anyone who doesn't dig carrots, this might be just what you need to get that beta carotene in. General Foods gets a gold star for this one.
