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Gelatin Recipe for Healthy Home Cooks

If you’ve ever followed a Jell-O recipe, you know that there are really only a couple of critical steps, but a healthy homemade version does offer a few more options. For example, if you’d like to add a bit of fiber to your dessert, you can puree some fresh fruit (avoiding those we’ve listed above) to add to your gelatin mixture once it’s simmering on the stove.

Course Dessert
Keyword gelatin
Prep Time 5 minutes
Cook Time 10 minutes
Setting Time 20 minutes
Total Time 15 minutes

Ingredients

  • 1 tablespoon grass-fed gelatin
  • 2 cups cold water

CHOOSE ONE of the following

  • 2 tablespoons raw honey
  • 2 tablespoons maple syrup
  • 1/2 cup fresh fruit juice (if you choose this option, reduce cold water to 1 1/2 cups)
  • Juice from 1 lemon

Optional

  • 1 cup pureed fruit

Instructions

Bloom Your Gelatin

  1. Adding gelatin to hot water straight away will cause clumping, so be sure to start by mixing your powdered gelatin with room temperature or cold water to hydrate the crystals. This process is called “blooming.”
  2. In a small bowl, add powdered gelatin to one cup cold water, stirring to incorporate. Allow to sit for five minutes before moving to the stove.

Prepare the Fruit

  1. If you plan to blend fruit into your dessert, you can do that while the gelatin is blooming. Add your fresh or frozen fruit to the blender with your lemon juice and blend until the consistency is smooth and evenly pureed. If you’re using frozen fruit, you might consider using a few tablespoons of water to get things moving in the blender if the lemon juice isn’t enough.

Heat

  1. Add gelatin mixture and the rest of the water to a saucepan over medium heat. You DO NOT want boiling water at any point in this process. It will damage the gelatin’s ability to set in the refrigerator. Stirring occasionally, bring your mixture to a light simmer before adding your other sugar source and fresh fruit puree. Total time on the heat shouldn’t exceed 10 minutes.

Set

  1. Once you’ve removed your gelatin mixture from the heat, pour into a bowl, silicone molds, or cookie sheet to set. You’ll need to allow it to set in the refrigerator for at least 25 minutes, but as long as 24 hours before enjoying.