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A delicious, fruity twist on a classic dessert
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You can add almost any kind of fruit to Jell-O to make a colorful, delicious dessert. Start by washing, cutting, and layering your fresh fruit in a bowl or Jell-O mold. Then, mix regular Jell-O powder with water, or try using homemade vegan gelatin instead. Pour the gelatin mixture over the fruit and put the dessert in the refrigerator for about 2 hours. Once the Jell-O sets, remove the dessert from the bowl or mold and enjoy!
Things You Should Know
- Wash, cut, and layer fresh fruit into a Jell-O mold.
- Mix a 6 oz (176 g) box of gelatin powder with 1 c (240 mL) each of boiling and cold water.
- Pour the liquid gelatin into the mold over the fruit pieces. Refrigerate the Jell-O for 2 hours so it sets.
Ingredients
- 6 oz (176 g) box of gelatin powder (Jell-O brand or other brand)
- 1 c (240 ml) of boiling water
- 1 c (240 ml) of cold water
- .5 pounds (8.0 oz) of green grapes (optional)
- .5 pounds (8.0 oz) of red grapes (optional)
- .5 pounds (8.0 oz) of strawberries (optional)
- .25 pounds (4.0 oz) of raspberries (optional)
- Other fruits of your choice like bananas, pears, or canned pineapple
- 1.5 tsp of agar-agar flakes
- 1 cup (240 ml) of red grape juice or green apple juice
- 1 cup (240 ml) of water
- .25 cups (59 ml) of white sugar
- A few drops of green food coloring (optional)
Steps
Section 1 of 2:
Jell-O with Fruit Recipe
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Wash your fruit and slice it into small pieces. Thoroughly rinse your fruit under cold water in a colander. Then, slice it into small, bite-sized pieces using a knife and a cutting board. If you are using grapes, halve them to look extra pretty. If you’re using strawberries, remove the tops and cut them into halves or quarters. Slice a banana into coins. [1] X Research source
- Your Jell-O dessert will look gorgeous if you choose types of fruit that have different colors, like green grapes, raspberries, and banana slices.
- Avoid fresh pineapple, kiwi, mango, ginger root, papaya, figs or guava. These fruits react with the Jell-O in a way that stops the Jell-O from solidifying, leaving you with a very mushy Jell-O. However, if you use canned pineapple, it doesn’t have this effect. [2] X Research source
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Layer your fruit in a bowl or Jell-O mold. Start by putting a layer of all of one kind of fruit. If you’re using a .5 pounds (8.0 oz) of strawberries, then put them all in a layer. On top of that, layer your next kind of fruit, and continue until you used all of your fruit. Keeping the fruit in distinct layers will look really pretty once the Jell-O is set. [3] X Research source- Make sure you don’t use a bowl that curves inward at the opening, or the Jell-O won’t be able to come out when you flip it upside-down.
- The bowl's width will determine the fruit layers' thickness. Use a tall, narrow bowl for thick layers, or a wide, shallow bowl for thin layers, whichever you prefer.
- Don’t worry if the fruit doesn’t fill the whole bowl. The Jell-O will get into all the cracks between the pieces of fruit.
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Pour a 6 oz (176 g) box of gelatin powder into a bowl. Use the entire contents of a box of any flavor of dessert gelatin. Jell-O is just one brand name for dessert gelatin and you can buy different brands at your local supermarket. [4] X Research source
- This size of Jell-O is often labeled as “Family Size.”
- Ideally, you should have about 14 fl oz (410 mL) of liquid Jell-O mixture for this. [5] X Research source
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Add 1 c (240 mL) of boiling water and stir until the powder dissolves. Boil a cup of water and pour it into the bowl with the gelatin powder. Stir until the powder dissolves entirely. This will take about 2 minutes. [6] X Research source
- Use a fork, whisk, or rubber spatula to stir the powder.
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Add 1 c (240 ml) of cold water to the mix and stir for a few seconds. The cold water will help get the gelatin to the right temperature and dilute it. If you are using canned fruit in your dessert, use the juices from the fruit can instead of cold water.
- Since the gelatin powder is already dissolved, this won’t take as much stirring.
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Pour the Jell-O liquid mixture over the fruit. Cover the fruit completely with the Jell-O mixture. Shake the bowl a tiny bit, so that the Jell-O filters down to cover the fruit at the bottom of the bowl. [7] X Research source
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Place the bowl in the fridge for 2 hours. [10] X Research source The cold will make the Jell-O set. If the Jell-O hasn’t set completely after 2 hours, let it refrigerate for another 30 minutes.
- If the Jell-O hasn’t set after 2.5 hours, something likely went wrong in the process. You may want to try again or make sure your fridge is fully cold.
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Turn the bowl upside down onto a plate. Your Jell-O dessert should fall out onto the plate. If it doesn’t slide out easily, place your bowl into a shallow dish of hot water, which will melt and loosen the Jell-O just a little bit. Once you see a bit of melting, take out the bowl and turn it upside down onto a plate. The Jell-O will slide right out. [11] X Research source
- The layers of colorful fruit will peek through the semi-translucent Jell-O. If you can’t see them too well from the outside, you’ll be able to see them once you slice the Jell-O.
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Refrigerate your dessert until you are ready to serve it. You can eat the Jell-Oright now if you’d like, but refrigerate it if you’re preparing it to serve it later. [12] X Research source To make sure it doesn’t dry out, seal it in a container or cover it in plastic wrap. Jell-O fruit cakes are great for summer potlucks, holidays, celebrations, or just for a fun treat after dinner.
- This treat lasts about 5 days in the refrigerator.
- When you’re ready to eat your Jell-O fruit cake, cut it into slices with a sharp knife, just as you would with an ordinary cake.
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Section 2 of 2:
Vegan Jell-O Recipe
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Pour agar-agar, fruit juice, water, and sugar into a pot on the stove. To make red Jell-O, combine 1.5 tsp (3 g) of agar-agar flakes , 1 c (240 ml) of red grape juice, 1 c (240 ml) of water and 1 ⁄ 4 c (59 ml) of white sugar. To make green Jell-O, combine 1.5 tsp (3 g) agar-agar flakes, 1 c (240 ml) of green apple juice, 1 c (240 ml) of water and 1 ⁄ 4 c (59 ml) of white sugar. [13] X Research source
- Put your burner on high heat so that the mixture boils more quickly.
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Boil the mixture for 2 minutes and stir it regularly. Bring it to a boil, and once it’s fully boiling, start your timer for 2 minutes. After 2 minutes, remove the pot from the heat. If you’re making green Jell-O, add in a few drops of green food coloring; if you’re making red Jell-O, add in a few drops of red food coloring. [14] X Research source
- Pour your vegan Jell-O mixture into the Jell-O mold in the recipe provided above.
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Community Q&A
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QuestionMy jello mold is broken. I'm covered in jello. What do I do wikiHow? I need help.Community AnswerMake the best of the situation. Be the jello mold you always dreamed of being.
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QuestionCan I add fresh strawberries to Jello?Community AnswerYes.
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QuestionCan you use fresh watermelon as your fruit?Community AnswerYes.
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Tips
Tips from our Readers
The advice in this section is based on the lived experiences of wikiHow readers like you. If you have a helpful tip you’d like to share on wikiHow, please submit it in the field below.
- To prevent the fruit from settling at the bottom, put the jello in the fridge to thicken up first. Then, add your fruit pieces to the partially-set jello.
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Expert Interview
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References
- ↑ https://momsdish.com/recipe/602/jello-fruit-cake-dessert
- ↑ https://www.scientificamerican.com/article/bring-science-home-fruit-gelatin/
- ↑ https://momsdish.com/recipe/602/jello-fruit-cake-dessert
- ↑ https://www.recipezazz.com/recipe/aunt-bettys-holiday-jello-fruit-salad-mold-2530
- ↑ https://momsdish.com/recipe/602/jello-fruit-cake-dessert
- ↑ https://www.food.com/recipe/abears-diet-jello-281740
- ↑ https://momsdish.com/recipe/602/jello-fruit-cake-dessert
- ↑ https://www.recipezazz.com/recipe/aunt-bettys-holiday-jello-fruit-salad-mold-2530
- ↑ https://www.thekitchn.com/how-to-make-a-layered-jello-mold-243630
About This Article
Article Summary
X
To add fruit to jello, start by adding 1 cup of boiling water to a bowl of gelatin powder. Mix the water and gelatin until the powder dissolves, then add 1 cup of cold water and stir. Next, put the bowl in the fridge for 90 minutes, which will give the jello the consistency of unbeaten egg whites. To add the fruit, stir in 1 cup of chopped canned or fresh fruit to the jello, but be careful not to add extra liquid as this will stop it from setting. Finally, return the jello to the fridge for at least 4 hours to let it set. For tips on how to make designs using fruit, read on!
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Reader Success Stories
- "I knew there were some fresh fruits that could not be used in Jello, but didn't remember which ones. I also never knew the reason why these fresh fruits could not be used. Thanks for answering both of my questions!" ..." more
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"I knew there were some fresh fruits that could not be used in Jello, but didn't remember which ones. I also never knew the reason why these fresh fruits could not be used. Thanks for answering both of my questions!"
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"Knowing which fruits should not be added helps me tremendously! Also, knowing when to add the fruit is more crucial than I previously thought.
Thank you for a very easy-to-understand article!"
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"The info about the consistency of the jello needed before adding fruit, and that the fruit should be dry."
"It let me know when to add the fruit and how to add it in. It also told me what fruits not to use."
"The fruits that can be put in the Jello helped, and at what stages of the to put in the fruits."
