From haute cuisine to Jell-O shots, oh, how the mighty have fallen. It’s been a long day for you and your companions on the royal hunt. Sitting down at the Château de Fontainebleau, known for its elegance and otherworldly charm, you await a sumptuous feast with Emperor Napoléon Bonaparte. And indeed, a towering hunk of meat awaits you. The only twist? It’s suspended above the table … floating in a magnificent, quivering molded jelly. This is no strange witchcraft, but rather a sign of the times. The times of the early 19th century, that is, when aspic, a gelatinous dish made of animal stock, was all the rage as both a head-turning centerpiece and a clever way to preserve meats and vegetables. How did this early predecessor to Jell-O become the symbol of fine dining? You can thank the world’s first celebrity chef, Marie-Antoine Carême, who popularized aspic (and the concept of haute cuisine) while serving everyone from England’s George IV to Russia’s Alexander I. | 