Three-ingredients Easy Berries Congealed Salad
This berries congealed salad is really easy to prepare and contains only three ingredients: berries, sugar and gelatin. It is a festive dessert and can be served and enjoyed at parties, holiday gatherings or birthdays.
Servings: 6
Calories: 62kcal
Equipment
- small pot
- spoon
- Stove
- muffin silicone molds
Ingredients
- 10 oz. frozen berries mix (I used blackberries, raspberries, strawberries, blueberries, red currants and cherries), divided
- 2 oz. sugar
- ½ cup water
- 1 envelope unflavored gelatin
Instructions
- Place 8 oz. berries mix in a small pot. Add the sugar and pour the water.
- Bring everything to a boil. Reduce the heat and simmer for about 10-12 minutes.
- Meanwhile, in a bowl pour 3 oz. of cold water. Sprinkle the gelatin and set aside for ten minutes.
- Prepare the muffin molds. Divide the remaining berries between the molds.
- After the boiling time is done, remove the pot from the stove. Using an immersion blender, puree the fruits. Run the pot content through a sieve, to discard all the seeds and pulp. You will get a beautiful purple syrup.
- Add the gelatin to the syrup and mix until everything is well combined, for about one minute.
- Pour the mixture over the fruits in the muffin molds.
- Let them outside until the liquid sets. Transfer to the fridge and refrigerate for at least one hour.
- To take the dessert out of the molds, carefully run a knife around the edges of the muffin cases. Make sure it reaches the bottom. Turn the mold upside down on the serving plate and move it delicately so you don’t break the treats.
- Enjoy!
Notes
- Use any fruits you like instead of the berries. You may even not use any fruit at all. For example, if you are preparing lime congealed salad, lime and lemon Jell-O work just fine.
- Many home chefs use pineapple when preparing congealed salad recipes. It contains a lot of pectin and helps with the structure and texture of the desserts.
- Cranberry or strawberry congealed salad have a beautiful red color which makes them perfect for Christmas dinner. You may take these two into consideration in case you feel stuck and don’t know what to cook for this year’s holidays. Decorate them with a bit of whipped cream and some crushed nuts and you will get a festive treat enjoyed by everybody in the house.
- If you want to make the congealed salad in a bigger mold, feel free to choose whatever you like. Only be aware that you will need a longer period of time for the salad to thicken. You will need to leave it outside for about one hour and refrigerate for two or three hours so everything is set. The salad has to be thick so you can cut it without breaking. The longer you keep it in the fridge, the easier it is to cut in squares. It is probably best to refrigerate it overnight so the flavors will have time to mix properly.
- Make sure you never boil gelatin. It is vulnerable to heat so leave the syrup cool to 212F before adding the gelatin. For this particular recipe, it is for certain that the syrup is cool enough because you have to strain it first. If you forget to let it chill a bit when preparing other recipes, it is possible to obtain a soft or a bit runny texture that is not so pleasant for a congealed salad.
- Resist the urge of reducing the sugar quantity. Sugar improves the gelatin’s rigidity because it helps with the formation of shorter protein chains so your dessert will be tender and soft. A smaller amount of sugar will have the same effect as a high temperature: your dessert will have a gooey texture.
- These are a few ideas to take into consideration when preparing a gelatin dessert. The end result can be spectacular and you will definitely receive a lot of appreciative words.
- Try this three-ingredients berries congealed salad and you won’t be sorry!