Recipe: Lemon Gelatin Salad (with mandarin oranges, pineapple, and yogurt)

LEMON GELATIN SALAD

2 packages (3-oz. each) lemon gelatin
1 1/2 cups boiling water
1 1/4 cups ice-cold ginger ale
1 (5-oz.) can mandarin orange sections, drained
1 tbsp. fresh lemon juice
1 large celery rib, finely chopped
1/2 cup canned crushed pineapple, well drained
1/2 cup low-fat lemon yogurt

Empty the contents of one package of lemon gelatin into a bowl. Pour in 3/4 cup boiling water. Let stand until the gelatin is completely dissolved, about 5 minutes. Mix in 3/4 cup ginger ale, orange sections and lemon juice. Pour the mixture into an 8-cup ring mold. Refrigerate until the gelatin is firmly set, at least 1 1/2 hours, or overnight.

Place the remaining gelatin in a bowl and dissolve in the remaining 3/4 cup boiling water, as above. Fill a large bowl with ice water. Add the remaining 1/2 cup ginger ale to the dissolved gelatin. Stir in the celery and pineapple. Mix in the yogurt.

Set the bowl with the gelatin mixture into the bowl of ice water. Stir until the gelatin thickens so that the fruit and celery remain evenly in suspension, about 10 minutes. Pour the mixture over the molded gelatin. Refrigerate until the mold in completely set, 3-4 hours. This salad keeps in the refrigerator, covered with plastic, up to 3 days.

To serve, briefly dip the mold into hot water. Cover the mold with a serving plate. Invert the mold, holding the plate securely in place so the gelatin drops onto the serving plate.

Note: If you don't have time to make the two layers, dissolve both packages of gelatin together, using all the liquids, increasing the amount of ginger ale to 1 1/2 cups. Eliminate the yogurt. Mix in all the solids, chill the mixture, and mold.

This salad serves 12 and contains 91 calories and 1 gram of fat per serving
Source: Dana Jacobi for the American Institute