Every kid loves Jell-O, and no young (or young at heart) vegan should have to go without just because the "Jell" in Jell-O stands for "gelatin," a decidedly non-vegan ingredient. Us Agar agar instead! It's made from seaweed, and works to gel desserts every bit as well as gelatin, but with no Karmic side effects. To stick with the true '70s nostalgia theme, be sure to dump something in there before your vegan Jell-O has a chance to set. My mom's favorite "additive" was canned fruit cocktail, which is pretty normal. Probably the grossest thing I ever saw added was meat... I kid you not, I had a girlfriend once whose weird aunt Agatha brought lime Jell-O with chunks of ham floating in it to a family reunion. First runner up (also from Aunt Agatha), orange Jell-O with shredded carrots and broccoli florets... EeewwW!
Let's start with the plain stuff... What you add from there is up to you!
Ingredients:
1 quart juice (any variety)
4 teaspoons Agar agar flakes (which you should be able to find at any health food or Asian grocery store)
1. In a medium saucepan, bring half the juice to a boil over medium heat.
2. Add the agar agar and stir until thoroughly blended. The amount of agar agar needed will vary depending on brand. The basic rule is, large agar agar flakes, use the full 4 teaspoons. Finer flakes (or agar powder), use less. Experiment to find the perfect measure for the agar agar brand available to you.
3. Remove from heat and add remaining juice. Blend well.
4. Transfer to dish or Jell-O mold. Refrigerate until firm.
Note: Name brand Jell-O, with cow-hoof-derived gelatin in it, won't set up if you add certain fruits, such as pineapple or kiwi. Agar agar based vegan Jell-O does not share this defect! Add anything you want!