Family recipes from Windy Pinwheel for you and your family.
Each of us, here at Windy Pinwheel, have our own family traditions. Among those traditions are great family recipes, like Cranberry Jello. We hope to capture a couple of them here to share with you so that you can share in our family recipes at your dinner table. We feel that rather than leaving these on an index card in a recipe box inside of our cabinets and cupboards to collect dust, it is better to share with our audience so that you too can get the same enjoyment we do out of these foods and dishes. Please give these a try. You’ll be glad you did. Bon appétit!
Windy Pinwheel
When it comes to holiday traditions, nothing comes to mind more than this simple dish to serve at Thanksgiving and Christmas dinner. This holiday family recipe, Cranberry Jello, is one of the staples that I’ve had in my house since I was very young. In fact, I have to keep calling my mother every year for the recipe because I can’t seem to write it down each year. Anyway, it gives me an excuse to call her, right? I love this dish so much that my holidays are not complete without it. Contrary to what it looks like by name, this dish is delicious!
In fact, whenever there is a potluck close to this time of year, this is my go-to dish. I always find that there is a question or two about what it is, why it tastes so good, and how to make it. You see, you can’t really taste each individual ingredient, it is kind of a unique taste, unlike anything else I’ve ever tasted and boy, is it tasty.
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Anyone can make this dish in minutes. First, you begin by gathering the ingredients:
- 3 ounces grape Jello or strawberry Jello (grape Jello is preferred if you can find it).
- 3/4 cup water (must be boiling).
- One can Cranberry Sauce.
- 1 cup Sour Cream.
- A couple drops of Lemon Juice (optional).
Bring 3/4 cup of water to a boil in a pot (quart-sized or larger). Mix the Jello into the boiling water (this is a critical step; you need to do this step first or the ingredients won’t mix together properly). Once the Jello is dissolved, mix in the Cranberry Sauce and Sour Cream until they are equally dispersed. Next, add the optional Lemon Juice drops (less than 1/8 of a teaspoon will do). Place the mixture into a container that can fit in your refrigerator or freezer and that’s it!
Tip: Mix all of the ingredients while you still have the pot on the stove because the heat will break down the Sour Cream and Cranberry Sauce or use a blender to mix the ingredients until they are smooth for the fastest way to make the mixture before cooling.
Windy Pinwheel
The Cranberry Jello needs to chill until it is solid; similar to all Jello dishes. It is best that you make this dish the night before your meal so that you can put it in the refrigerator overnight. Or, if you’re like me and you find yourself making this dish the day of your dinner (lack of preparation on my part in most cases), you can always throw this in the freezer early in the morning (usually while the Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade is on television).
I can’t tell you enough how much this dish means to me to have it at the table for Thanksgiving and Christmas dinner. It is just too good and all of the memories that come with the taste of it bring a smile to my face. I highly recommend that you try this yourself and report back on how well it tastes to you.