American Plate - Bite #81: Jell-O

Even though there are plenty of Bites on the list that reach far back into American history and have changed over time, strangely it may be the weird concoction called Jell-O that has gone through the most iterations of use and reputation.

Phase 1: In the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries, animal bones and cartilage were simmered down into a stock that would gel when cooled, forming the basis for a lot of classic French dishes. Rich people were also enamored with transparent fruit gelatins for dessert.

Phase 2: In 1894, Charles Knox developed unflavored gelatin, which could be sold door-to-door in sheets. Shortly thereafter, in 1897, Pearle Wait invented an instant, fruit-flavored gelatin that his wife May named "Jell-O". As America rolled over into the twentieth century, the Waits sold their patent to Francis Woodward, who decided to take the bull by the horns and declared Jell-O "America's most famous dessert." The gambit worked, and the public took him at his word, boosting sales quickly. It helped that big names like Normal Rockwell (who illustrated some Jell-O ads) and Jack Benny (who plugged it on his radio show) were involved. It even made its way to the White House, where Eleanor Roosevelt had the cook serve molded Jell-O desserts in the '30s.

Phase 3: In the 1950s, Baby Boomers hop in. This is the generation that has brought us those hilarious cookbooks full of incredibly vile concoctions, and it's no surprise that they thought Jell-O was the height of culinary sophistication. Not only was it served at Independence Day celebrations and church picnics, but it made its way into actual recipes to be presented with pride at dinner parties.

Phase 4: In the 1980s, Jell-O was a cheap and colorful way to delight the kids. The cupcake and donut crazes were decades away, and I remember looking forward to trips to Grandma's house, thanks in part to the assumption that there would be a bowl of lime Jell-O waiting for me there.

Phase 5: Aside from its welcome use in Jell-O shots at colleges and parties, and its less-welcome use showing up sweating under lamps at buffet restaurants, Jell-O has mostly faded from the cultural consciousness. 

I wanted to do something more than just whipping up a single flavor, so I did the layer method: Prepare a box of Jell-O, let it set, and then repeat twice so that you get a rainbow effect. I remember I once did this with a full set of six boxes, but went with three this time. Actually, since I used the sugar-free kind, it worked pretty well as a dessert for calorie counters. 

Jell-O may no longer be in the regular dessert rotation in American households, but given how many stages it's gone through, we may well see it surge again.