No. 2723 — Moscovite Jelly (Gelée Moscovite)
English historical translation of Molokhovets recipe No. 2723 from the 1901 Russian cookbook, retaining original methods and measures.
Moscovite jelly differs from ordinary jelly in containing less isinglass and in not being clarified with paper. The edges should be frozen while the centre has the consistency of a soft-boiled egg, making the exterior snowy white and the interior red.
Prepare a syrup from 3½ glasses of water and ¾ pound of sugar, bringing it once to a boil with lemon and orange zest. Squeeze in the juice of 1 small lemon and 3–4 oranges; do not press the fruit too firmly, as the last juice will cloud the jelly.
Add ½ glass of dissolved gelatin made from 6 white sheets and 1 red sheet. Strain through a damp napkin, pour into a Moscovite-jelly mould and place on ice.
Once the jelly becomes as thick as a soft-boiled egg, cover the mould and put it in ice mixed with salt. Rotate it first one way and then the other until the outside freezes. Dip the mould briefly into hot water and unmould onto a serving dish.
To provide
¾ pound of lump sugar. 6 sheets of white and 1 sheet of red gelatin. | 1 lemon. 3–4 oranges; 3–6 pounds of salt for the outer ice bath. |