By Jane Nickerson
- Total Time
- 1 hour 45 minutes
- Rating
- 4(129)
- Notes
- Read community notes
Charlottes look best when made in patterned molds, but you can also create a minimalist button shape by using a soufflé mold. If you want individual portions, divide the charlotte into four ramekins and cover with a layer of thinly sliced strawberries. Unmold or serve as is.
Featured in: Strawberry Charlotte, 1947
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Ingredients
Yield:Serves 8
- 3½teaspoons gelatin
- ½cup boiling water
- ¾cup sugar
- 1tablespoon lemon juice
- 1cup crushed or puréed strawberries, plus a handful of whole berries for garnish
- 3egg whites, beaten to soft peaks
- 1cup heavy cream, whipped to stiff peaks
Ingredient Substitution Guide
Nutritional analysis per serving (8 servings)
195 calories; 11 grams fat; 7 grams saturated fat; 0 grams trans fat; 3 grams monounsaturated fat; 0 grams polyunsaturated fat; 22 grams carbohydrates; 0 grams dietary fiber; 22 grams sugars; 3 grams protein; 31 milligrams sodium
Note: The information shown is Edamam’s estimate based on available ingredients and preparation. It should not be considered a substitute for a professional nutritionist’s advice.
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Preparation
Step
1
In a medium bowl, soften the gelatin in ¼ cup cold water. Add the boiling water to the mixture and stir until the gelatin is fully dissolved.
Step
2
Add the sugar, the lemon juice and the crushed strawberries and stir gently to combine. Let cool, then chill in the refrigerator until it begins to set.
Step
3
Whip the gelatin mixture until somewhat fluffy. Fold in the egg whites, followed by the cream.
Step
4
Pour into a 1-quart mold, which, if desired, may be garnished by placing extra whole strawberries on the bottom. Chill in the refrigerator until firm. To serve, unmold the charlotte by dipping the base of the mold in hot water and then inverting it onto a serving plate. Decorate with a few whole berries with the stems intact. Serve plain or use sweetened, crushed strawberries as a sauce.
Ratings
4
out of 5
129
user ratings
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Cooking Notes
Louisanova
The one and only true ancestor of the jello mold! Part of any "canasta day" at my mother-in-law's home in nothern Broward county. So nice to see it in this lovely format, with real ingredients. I can hear someone declaring a "meld" even now. Thank you!
Nancy M
Follow up message: The recipe without the egg whites was creamy and delicious. My guests raved. I had made it once before with egg whites. It had a lighter, fluffier texture. But to avoid the risk of salmonella, the whipped cream only version was the perfect solution.P.S. My guests appreciated my concern for their health.
Lesley
You can purchase pasteurized egg whites in the dairy section of most of the larger grocery stores.
Laura Sedor
I made this last night, and it turned out great. I actually messed up and forgot to add the sugar until embarrassingly late but no problems! Also I only used 1/2 C of sugar and that was just fine. Did not die from uncooked egg whites.
Chris
Wow this was crazy good and easy to make. Note that you should only dip the mold in hot water for a few seconds (I learned the hard way!).
Gina
Big success with family. I followed the recipe, but lacking a mold, used a spring form cake pan; lined with
ladyfingers. Delicious and easy. Next time I will cut down on the sugar.
Hopsing
This is so easy and so good and refreshing. I tried it without egg whites and while good, not as light. My granddaughter said, "Kinda like jello." So, not what I wanted. Egg whites made the difference between light "Charlotte" and Jello.
Irina
I had quite a bit of trouble removing this from the mold so it turned out a bit of a moussy mess but still tasted light and delicious and summery! Next time, I will make sure to strain the strawberry purée to get a smoother consistency and a more uniform pink color (like in the photo)!
Susan B
I made this for Easter lunch and it got rave reviews and many jokes about my jello mold dessert! I added 1/8 teaspoon of strawberry extract because I wasn’t sure the strawberries were flavorful enough. Very easy to make, light and delicious, and a beautiful presentation.
Huzzah Jane Nickerson
4/8/21, an appreciation of Jane Nickerson is in today's paper. This recipe IS good.
Sophie
Less sugar! Used golden caster sugar 150 ml
Sophie
1 quart = ca 950ml
Işıl
Here some tips and suggestions:- Before adjusting sugar taste the strawberries you have. If it is too sweet, reducing sugar might be considered.- I use high percentage fat (%32) heavy cream and while whipping added some confectioners sugar (1 tablespoon) into the heavy cream to get the stiff peaks. The whipping process took 8-9 min in my case.- I melted some bitter chocolate and dripped onto it randomly as a garnish. It looked fancy and doubled the taste.
Işıl
Perfect for hot summer days. I followed the exact recipe (with egg whites) and it doesn't taste too sweet. The flavor is well-balanced and the texture is more like frozen mousse instead of jello.
Hopsing
This is so easy and so good and refreshing. I tried it without egg whites and while good, not as light. My granddaughter said, "Kinda like jello." So, not what I wanted. Egg whites made the difference between light "Charlotte" and Jello.
Linda
I no longer use fresh egg whites, instead powdered. Results are great and no raw egg white problem. I like fluffier texture to all that whipped cream
Laura Sedor
I made this last night, and it turned out great. I actually messed up and forgot to add the sugar until embarrassingly late but no problems! Also I only used 1/2 C of sugar and that was just fine. Did not die from uncooked egg whites.
Nancy M
Follow up message: The recipe without the egg whites was creamy and delicious. My guests raved. I had made it once before with egg whites. It had a lighter, fluffier texture. But to avoid the risk of salmonella, the whipped cream only version was the perfect solution.P.S. My guests appreciated my concern for their health.
Nancy M
Made it for company and stopped when I got to the raw egg. Looked up current advice re eggs and the all sources say don't risk it. One source said substitute whipped cream, Since recipe has cream, I'm refrigerating the ingredients without the whites. We'll see what happens.
Dj
This recipe looks absolutely delicious and I would love to try it. I can not however eat raw eggs due to pregnancy. Does anyone know of a suitable alternative/substitution that will work well? Thanks!
Lesley
You can purchase pasteurized egg whites in the dairy section of most of the larger grocery stores.
Chris
Wow this was crazy good and easy to make. Note that you should only dip the mold in hot water for a few seconds (I learned the hard way!).
Cherie
Hi Jane,. I think I love this recipe already! I have a question though. Why do you soften the jello with cold water then add hot water to dissolve it? Why not the traditional other way around?
Does it really matter?
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