Homemade & Healthy Jello (just 3 ingredients!)
Real Food Recipes Recipes
Jello is such a fun food, and can easily be made with just a few healthy ingredients, making this homemade and healthy jello a great healthy snack or dessert option! Top it with some homemade whipped coconut cream for bonus points and that extra MMM factor.
J-E-L-L-O.
(You totally just sang that, right?)
Ooh I just love the jiggle! The cool sensation as it glides over your tongue. The way it reflects light like glass.
It’s such a FUN food.
But most store-bought jello is filled with some pretty nasty ingredients.
Let’s take a closer look at a popular sugar-free jello:
Gelatin, adipic acid, disodium phosphate, malodextrin, fumaric acid, aspartame, artificial flavor, acesulfame potassium, salt, red 40.
Some of these are more innocent than others, but all except the first are just unnecessary (and it’s safe to assume that the gelatin used is not from a quality source but from sad animals born and raised in CAFOs). Aspartame is a neurotoxin. Red 40 is derived from coal tar (a carcinogen) and has been linked to behavioral issues in children and banned in other countries (or accompanied by a warning label). “Artificial flavor” is a very sketchy term that covers a whole host of chemicals. Malodextrin is derived from corn — likely GMO and heavily sprayed with pesticides.
I could keep going but I’m sure you get the picture, and it ain’t very pretty.
Luckily, homemade and healthy jello is so simple to make!
It’s just 3 simple ingredients (4 if you’d like to add sweetener) and takes less than 5 minutes.
Plus, gelatin has a ton of health and beauty benefits. And this homemade and healthy jello is a great way to include more gelatin in your diet.
Ingredients
Ingredients- 3 cups fruit juice (fresh squeezed or I use this additive-free, not-from-concentrate, pure 100% juice)
- ¼ cold or room temp water
- ¼ cup hot water (not quite boiling)
- 1.5 tablespoons quality gelatin from grass-fed cows
- Optional: Raw honey or additive-free liquid stevia extract (to taste)
Directions
Add the gelatin to the cold water and stir until the texture is smooth and consistent. Add the hot water and stir again (this will thin the mixture back to a water-like consistency). Add this gelatin mixture to the fruit juice (sweetened if you so choose) and stir some more.
Then pour your jello mixture into small jars or a larger container, and place it in the fridge to set for at least 2-3 hours (or you can pop it in the freezer if you’re impatient!).
Last but not least, enjoy!
Can you add fruit to this recipe? Will it still gel up? How long do you let it set before you add fruit?
I wonder if it’s the grapefruit juice… I know you can’t make jello with pineapple because of the enzymes. Perhaps grapefruit is similar with the acids?
Ooh that sounds like a fun idea! Just use the same ratio of liquid/fruit to gelatin used in this recipe.
Hey I wanted to make watermelon Jello, and I wanted to use real watermelon, plus I was planning to make it IN the watermelon skin.. Do you think it wiuld work if I shred the watermelon in a food processor? And how much gelatin would I need for 3.5cups of liquid to make it fingerjello?
I tried to follow the directions carefully, but mine just didn’t set right, even after 5 hours. I used grapefruit juice and a tsp of honey. It turned out really soft and pretty gross looking (and feeling) actually…like slimy applesauce. Any idea what went wrong? Not enough gelatin?
No, it would not give the same gel consistency.
Would arrowroot powder be a suitable replacement for gelatin in this (or any other) recipe?
Top scientific research has proven time and again that GMOs are not harmful to humans. Further more your statement that GMO corn is heavily sprayed with pesticides is simply not true. The development of GMO crops has in fact allowed farmers such as myself to use considerable less . Before making such statements I would invite you to visit an actual grain farm and talk directly to the farmer.
Hey, Kim!! Ooh I’d love to get that recipe from you… 🙂
There is a great wrinkle filler you can make with gelatin and milk…
Hi, Dori Ann. Well honestly, if your son has “severe” gut problems and is overweight, gelatin will likely not do much to help him. He likely needs major dietary changes that focus on gut healing — gelatin is just one small part of the equation in my gut healing protocol. Have you looked into a functional medicine practitioner for him? Gut health is so SO important to overall health and well-being (just consider the fact that 80% of the immune system is in the gut!).
Yes, it’s made from bones and cartilage.
Isn’t gelatine made from the hoofs and noses etc. of animals???
I read with great interest the benefits of gelatin, in particular the gut benefits. You mentioned eating your jello nightly. My adult son suffers from severe gut problems. How much should he eat? He also is overweight and has sleep problems
Thank you, love your sight
Jello IS great for nails and skin. There are so many ways to incorporate it in your diet and not just the sweet jello way either.
Jelled Vegetable Melange
For the hot liquid I like to use hot beef broth.
For the cold liquid a veggie juice cut back to 3/4 cup and cold.
Various finely chopped/ minced veggies~ onion, celery, carrot,leak, spinach, cauliflower bits,broccoli bits, chopped black olive, mushrooms….whatever takes your fancy or rather your flavor buds.
Chill till firm. Serve on a bed of baby kale or spinach. Serve with toasted bread with melted cheese of choice and one or two boiled eggs.
Wallah!!! A totally wholesome, delicious, and colorful meal.
Toast with cheese.
Shred cheese.
Toast bread lightly {butter is an option}
Sprinkle toast with cheese
Broil till cheese is melted.
Hey, Janet. Great question and this was something that was confusing me as I was doing research. I actually just removed it from the post after reading this from Great Lakes: http://www.greatlakesgelatin.com/consumer/noMSG.php Hope that helps clear things up for you as well.
I have just read about the benefits of gelatin and at the end of the article was the following comment.
‘It’s important to note that gelatin may not be appropriate for those with a severe histamine intolerance or sensitivity to MSG.’
Could you explain how the above is related to gelatin. I did not see any reference to MSG in your article.
Thanks