for use in desserts. When it is to be used as a thickening agent in
dessert making, it is ground and sold in this form, or it is mixed with
sugar, flavoring, and acid, when all that is necessary to make it an
appetizing dessert is that it be dissolved in hot water. In both of
these forms, it is sold under different trade names. The gelatine itself
does not provide any appreciable food value, but it is a means of
conveying various foods, such as eggs, milk, sugar, and many kinds of
fruit and fruit juices, all of which are more or less valuable for their
constituents. In addition, it produces desserts that are appetizing and
that may be garnished and served in many attractive ways.

43. To be most satisfactory, gelatine desserts should usually be made
just heavy enough with gelatine to retain the desired shape. The heavier
they become, the more rubbery they are in consistency and the less
dainty and agreeable. Their consistency can be regulated by the
proportion of liquid to gelatine that is used.

The general method of preparation followed when plain gelatine is used
in desserts consists in first soaking the gelatine in sufficient cold
water to moisten it, then dissolving it in hot liquid as near the
boiling point as possible, and finally cooling it in order to allow it
to solidify. As cold is absolutely essential for the mixture to
solidify, it is often difficult to prepare a gelatine dessert in the
summer time. Therefore, when a dessert of this kind is desired in the
warm weather, it should always be begun long enough before it is to be
served to allow it to become thoroughly solid. As it is usually
difficult to tell how much time this requires on a warm day, even with a
refrigerator or other cold place, it is much safer to overestimate the
time required than to underestimate it.