barry says hello to 2009 with a look back at 1959.

happy new year to all! i had a delightful new year’s eve celebration – old friends, new friends, champagne and jelled salad.

no, you heard me correctly: jelled salad.
since time immemorial my mother has made a gelatinous concoction of lemon jello, crushed pineapple and shredded cheddar cheese for us to wolf (slurp?) down for christmas dinner, and every year we patiently wait for christmas to come again so that we can have our festive treat, and every year i conveniently forget to mention this particular dish amongst the litany of others i mention to friends. until this year. not surprisingly, when i mentioned the salad to friends, it was met with a bit of incredulity, amusement and flat-out fear when i indicated it would be my contribution to the list of new year’s eve culinary delights.

so there it sat on new year's eve, jiggling slightly, surrounded by the other more favourable appetizers, whether in fear or in anticipation of midnight when it would ring in 2009 with a glass of bubbly. i’m happy to report that everyone there tried it, and i think that about 85/90% of the party-goers actually enjoyed the concoction.

here’s to a new year of trying new things.

barry’s mom’s pineapple-cheddar jelled salad.

1 – 3 oz. package lemon jello
1 c. hot water
½ tsp. salt
2 tbsp. lemon juice
4 oz. (1/2 pkg.) cream cheese, softened
¾ c. liquid, drained from pineapple
¾ c. crushed pineapple, drained
¾ c. grated cheddar cheese

1. dissolve jello into hot water. add salt and lemon juice.

2. with electric mixer, beat in softened cream cheese until mixture is smooth. add pineapple juice.

3. chill until slightly thickened.

4. fold in pineapple and cheese. spread/pour into mould. chill until firm.