Hate vegetables?
Here's one nifty solution to tackle your fear for those green beings (more likely aliens).
The answer could be the Veg Out Jelly, a konbu jelly with assorted vegetables that makes eating your greens a whole of fun.
I may not have an aversion to green food items but I have some finicky friends who steer away from vegetables. Even kids are often picky about their greens, hence I decided to play around with some ideas involving vegetables and jelly.
This super fun way of encasing assorted vegetables (baby corn, okra, cauliflower, peas and four angled beans) in jelly makes it much more interesting to eat. Great way to play with your food I reckon. Word of advice though, the four angled beans don't taste great blanched though so do omit that for a better tasting jelly.
Instead of the crunchier agar agar, I decided to use gelatine powder for a softer and wobblier jelly. However turning it out was a big challenge. The jellies aren't picture perfect but I l admit I do love the soft wobbly texture. Moreover, refrigerating the konbu jelly gives it just a faint hint of the seaweed that gives it a pleasant aroma that even kids will be happy to eat it. So here's to a fun way to eat your greens.
Incidentally, hop over to the Royal Selangor website for the links to the other bloggers as their ideas are so creative and delicious. Do also remember about the camera giveaway, the Olympus VG 110. All you need to do is suggest a creative way to use the mould for food. Send me your suggestions to booliciouskl@gmail.com or leave a comment on the blog. Deadline is by October 24.
For pictures of the Get Your Jelly On! challenge, see my Flickr set.
Veg Out Jelly (For 2 moulds)
assorted vegetables
2 baby corns, sliced
1/2 broccoli, florets only
1 okra, sliced
20g frozen peas
1 four angle bean, sliced
1 bunch micro lemon cress
konbu jelly
2 tablespoons gelatine powder
450ml water
4g instant konbu dashi powder
Blanch all the vegetables except the lemon cress. Set aside. Mix the gelatine powder with a little water. Set aside. Bring water to boil in a small pot. Add dashi powder; mix. Add the softened gelatine powder and mix thoroughly until melted. Remove from the heat. Pour jelly solution into a measuring cup.
Pour a little konbu jelly solution into the mould to fill the tip. Place a piece of okra on top. Refrigerate for 5 minutes to set. Pour a little konbu jelly solution into the mould and arrange the blanched vegetables and lemon cress. Refrigerate for 10 minutes to set. Repeat until the jelly solution reaches almost the top of the mould. Refrigerate until set.
To unmould: Loosen with a knife. Dip in hot water. Tilt over on plate. Serve immediately.