LeRoy Pennysaver & News

LE ROY PENNYSAVER & NEWS - FEBRUARY 9, 2020 by Lynne Belluscio The second full week of February is National Jell-O Week which is a little misleading, because it was the Utah State Legislature, not the Jell-O Company which declared National Jell-O Week in 2001. Actually, they declared Jell-O the official state snack, so I’m not sure how it became a national event, but each year we get calls asking about it. This year, the week also includes George Washington’s birthday and Valentine’s Day and my son’s 25th wedding anniversary. And it is the Historical Society’s annual membership drive. So, to celebrate all of this, I’ve decided to make a layered Jell-O recipe in a heart mold, using cherry Jell-O in deference to President George Washington, and serve it on a silver plate formy son’s silver anniversary. We have quite an assortment of heart shaped Jell-O molds in the collection. George Washington is featured on the cover of one of the old Jell-O recipe books, and I found a good recipe for a layered Jell-O on the internet. Surprisingly, when I went to Walmart to buy cherry Jell-O, they didn’t have any and neither did Wegmans. (Those are the places to find Jell-O at the best price. Walmart was 76 cents and Wegmans was 99 cents. Tops is always the most expensive, unless it’s on sale.) And to promote the membership drive for the Historical Society, because the Historical Society is also celebrating its 80th anniversary this year, anyone who was born in 1940, will receive a free membership this year. Just fill out the form at the bottom of the page, and give us the date of your birthday, and we’ll add you to the membership list this year. Of course, if you’re not 80, and want to join the Historical Society, you will find that for $25, you’ll receive the four newsletters, and free admission to the Jell-O Gallery all year and a discount in the gift shop . And you will receive a personal invitation to come and celebrate our anniversary on Friday night May 8. Eighty years ago, a group of local LeRoyans decided it was time to organize a historical society. Dave Frost’s grandfather, Roy McPherson was elected president and guided the organization through the first several years. At first, they met at the Woodward Library but in 1942, Allen Olmsted, who had grown up in LeRoy, and had moved to Buffalo to become a successful business man in the patent medicine industry, donated the LeRoy House to the Historical Society. The Historical Society had four meetings a year, with lectures on the pioneers and local industries. They had card parties and historical pageants, and the DAR donated hundreds of objects and papers. Other people donated antiques to furnish the house, and soon it was open when volunteers could give tours. Eventually, the school building behind LeRoy House was given to the Historical Society too. The wooden section of the school was in rough shape and was a fire hazard, and it was razed, but the two-story limestone addition, built in 1898 for the Union Free School remained, boarded up, and filled with “stuff.” There weren’t too many kids in town, who hadn’t snuck into the basement to see the carriages and the “old car.” Then in the early 90s, plans were begun to open a Jell-O exhibit, and volunteers began refinishing the floors and ceilings in the old school. New wallboard and electricity was installed, and an entrance was built just in time for the opening of “There’s Always Room for Jell-O” in June 1997. Many doubted it would attract any visitors, but it did. And it continued to attract people about 10,000 a year. And buses showed up, over 50 a year. And now twenty-three years later, the Jell-O Gallery is still going strong. The Historical Society continues to oversee the LeRoy House and Jell-O Gallery and the research library and archives as well as the transportation exhibit. For over thirty years, students from the Wolcott Street School have participated in the Hands on History programs. And each week, for thirty years, folks can catch up on some history news in the LeRoy Pennysaver - - yes, there have been over 1500 articles written! So here is the Layered Cherry Jell-O recipe. You can make them in a square pan and then cut them into squares, or you can make them in a heart mold. (We have some for sale in the Jell-O Museum gift shop.) The Jell-O is a five-layered red and white ribbon dessert. Ingredients: • Three 3 oz boxes of red Jell-O • 5 envelopes of Knox unflavored gelatin • 1 can sweetened condensed milk • Spray mold with Pam. First layer: Mix 1 box Jell-O with ½ envelope of Knox gelatin. Add 1 cup boiling water and stir until dissolved. Let cool to room temperature and pour into mold. Refrigerate for 15 minutes (make sure your refrigerator is level) Second layer: Mix 1 can of condensed milk with 1 cup boiling water. In small bowl, sprinkle 2 envelopes of Knox over ½ cup cold water and let stand. Then add ½ cup boiling water to dissolve gelatin. Combine milk mixture to Knox mixture and stir well and let cool to room temperature. Pour 1 cup of milk mixture over Jell-O layer in mold. (Pour into tablespoon and let it overrun on the Jell-O.) Refrigerate for 15 minutes or until firm. Reserve rest of mixture. Third layer: Repeat 1st layer and refrigerate until firm. Fourth layer: Pour remaining of milk mixture and refrigerate. Fifth layer: Repeat 1st layer Refrigerate mold for at least three hours. When ready to unmold, slip knife around edge of mold, and set for a short time in hot water until Jell-O releases. Place plate on top of mold, and then flip over. A Nice Valentine’s Day – National Jell-O Week – Silver Anniversary George Washington’s Birthday and Historical Society Membership Gift ANNUAL MEMBERSHIP DUES Jan. 1, 20 ___ - Dec. 31, 20 ___ □ Family. ...............................35.00 □ Individual or Sen. Cit.........25.00 □ Sustaining...........................50.00 □ Supporting........................100.00 □ Life (Individual). ..............400.00 Enclosed is an additional contribution of: _______ Name:_______________________________ Address:_ ____________________________ E-Mail:______________________________ Telephone:_ __________________________ VISAORMASTERCARD#: _ ___________________________________ EXPDATE: ________ Contributions to non-profit educational insitutions are tax deductable. Please make check payable to: LeRoy Historical Society MAIL TO: LeRoy Historical Society 23 East Main Street, PO Box 176 LeRoy, NY 14482-0176