The moon is NOT made of green cheese, but this Jupiter-influenced appetizer is definitely cheesy!

We wanted to honor the Red Planet by creating a layered presentation that would represent the ruddy tones of the Martian atmosphere.  Shaken together the drink is reminiscent of an Old Fashioned.  The addition of seltzer helps tamp down the sweetness and provides a refreshing sparkle to the drink. 

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We were at a loss for a while, but finally settled on Jupiter for our planet. We chose it because it’s a giant planet with—as of January 2009—49 official, named moons and 14 more unofficial ones still under consideration. Though we wanted to make some reference to the Roman version of Zeus (talk about a master of sexual harassment!), we finally decided to settle for a simple representation of the planet itself. And, to stand for an edible Jupiter, a cheese ball. Ultimately we determined to flatten that ball on one side, presenting just the most recognizable side of the planet. We tried out two different cheese ball recipes—one using gruyère and thyme (recipe courtesy of Bon Appetit), the other smoked gouda (from Martha Stewart). We ultimately used both, but made our representation of Jupiter from the gruyère and thyme recipe.  We used ground roasted and salted pepitas and ground toasted Chico almonds to create the coloring of the planet surface and some roasted red pepper slivers to create the Great Red Spot that is Jupiter’s most prominent feature.
 
Next we determined to make 49 moons of different sizes. They included craisins, stuffed olives, stuffed dates (stuffed with the gouda mix noted above), toasted tamari almonds, and spinach balls (no particular recipe—fresh spinach, kale, eggs, cheddar and mozzarella, panko, whatever). To place our planet and its moons in context, we added glow-in-the-dark stars and tiny lights. 

Grease a round Jell-O mold using canola oil. Place on the bottom of the mold, alternating them, canned Oregon sweet black cherries and walnut halves. Do not discard the cherry juice from the can. Save it for making the Jell-O. 

Make 7 to 8 packages of black cherry Jell-O according to the directions on the box, EXCEPT for one of the cold cups of water use the cherry juice from the can and fill the remainder of that 1 cup with Maneschewitz Concord grape wine.  (Yes...that wine!) 

Stir liquid Jell-O until all dissolved.
 
Using a turkey baster, gently just cover the black cherries and walnuts with the liquid Jell-O. Then refrigerate until Jell-O is firm. This will keep the cherries and walnuts in place when you add more liquid Jell-O. Otherwise, they will float around. Once firm, add another shallow layer of Jell-O (maybe and inch) on top of that and refrigerate again until firm. Then gently fill the mold and refrigerate until ready. 
 
To de-mold, carefully run a very sharp knife along edges to loosen Jell-O from sides of mold. Soak mold briefly in warm water (put mold in sink and then fill gently with warm water around the mold).  Then put serving platter for mold on top of the mold (what will be the bottom once unmolded).  Flip and gently lift mold off of the hello.  Voila!  You will see the pattern of cherries and walnuts on top!  Fill middle with parsley for decoration. Serve!​