Dining Among The Saints: Married Into a Mormon Family and Seeking Redemption in the Jell-O Belt

Maisoneuve ^ | DECEMBER 1, 2007 | Mona Awad

[Alex Murphy]

Last fall, my husband's Mormon family invited us over for a potluck. Potlucks are a big deal for Latter-day Saints in Salt Lake City, and my in-laws are no exception. Naturally, I wanted to impress them. Naturally, I cracked open The Essential Mormon Cookbook, by Julie Badger Jensen.

Unfortunately, no matter where I turned in Jensen's cookbook, I was called to commit atrocities. After flipping past Jell-O recipes that involved suspending melon chunks in a trembling, plutonium-green blob ("Loveable Lime Jell-O"). After skipping everything that called for a can of Campbell’s soup into which meat, noodle or bean was thrown to either sink or swim. After pondering the dredging of chicken breasts in Russian dressing, apricot jam and dry onion soup mix ("Amazing Apricot Chicken"). After mulling the hithering and thithering of salads with mini marshmallows, pineapple tidbits and Craisins. And after toying with, then quickly dismissing, the possibility of making a cheese ball (dry ranch dressing, chopped chives and cheddar strings), I gave up.

[Elsie]

One teeny, tiny patch of common ground.

I'll bet we have acres in common!

[JouleZ]

I used to love Jello, until I found out it is made with (who knows what) cow parts.

&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&

Hooves, it’s made of melted cow and horse hoofs. They melt them in large vats and then dry the product, add sugar and that’s why Jell-o has a jiggle. Sorry if this puts anybody off but I still eat it, rarely, but on occasion.

[varina davis]

LOL, I still think about the cow parts whenever I make jello.