Friday, August 22, 2008

From the "WTF?" Files

While grocery shopping the other day at my beloved Tesco, I found this: prepackaged Jell-O (or "Jelly", as they call it over here - which leaves me wondering, what do they call actual Jelly then?!) in square form, oddly resembling soap.

Ok, first of all - who the hell is that lazy that they can't be bothered to make Jell-O?! All you do is add water and chill! Second of all, who eats prepackaged Jell-O?! Gross.

11 comments:

David T. Macknet said...

Oooh, you should go to a pharmacy! Lots of fun stuff there: I found Blackhead Blitzer and just had to take a shot of it.

As to the jell-o ... it's kinda gross anyway, isn't it? I mean, it's made from rendered down animal bits. So, it's sweetened hooves. Yum?

Squirmy Popple said...

I've seen pre-packaged jell-o in little individual cups, but never in a huge block. It is, indeed, gross.

Anonymous said...

This isn't ready to eat like the cups. You're supposed to break cubes off and melt it in hot water, then you leave it to set and you have your jelly. I used to eat it raw when I was a kid. Awesome.

Jennifer said...

George - that makes it even more amazing and bizarre. And you ate it raw?! NASTY. Wasn't it really concentrated?

Anonymous said...

It was very sweet, tough and chewy, with a coating of oil (added so you can get it out of the plastic). Disgusting really but pretty cool when you're that age. Probably gave me brain damage or something.

Anonymous said...

I was wondering what you do with it since there is no cup to hold it or anything :P

Anonymous said...

George cleared up the first comment I had. This is the stuff we make jelly out of and I also have been known as a child to sneak into the larder to gnaw on a couple of cubes.

Query: If jelly/jello doesn't come in this form in Canada, what do you make the jelly bit of trifle from?

We do have another type of jelly here too. It comes in a jar just like jam and is basically jam that has been strained through a cotton jelly or jeely bag to get the lumps out.

Every day is a school day!

Jennifer said...

Christine - you too would eat this stuff concentrated?! Blargh!

Jell-O (a.k.a. Jelly) comes in the form of powder and all you do is add water to it and chill. Must be just as strange to you as it is to me to have cubes of concentrated Jelly! Here is a link of pic: http://supercolonblow.files.wordpress.com/2007/10/jello.jpg

Also, I don't make trifle 'cause it's gross and I don't know about other Canadians but it's not a big dessert trend. Although if people did make it, I suspect they would use the powdered Jell-O.

And the Jelly you mentioned (jam-like stuff), is the Jelly I know in Canada! Not cubes of weird stuff.

Anonymous said...

Jen, a good trifle is not to be trifled with. I apologise for that. Trifle is only overshadowed in the ranks of great English desserts by Jam Rolypoly and other suet based delights.

Anonymous said...

Jen, you just pour the solution into a bowl or a mould and let it set. Trifle is a king amongst desserts incorporating as it does that other culinary delight, custard, which I love in all its forms.

Jennifer said...

George/ Robert, apologies but Trifle brings together two elements which I find repulsive: jellied fruit and custard.