Depending on the fruit used, you’ll need to remove skins and seeds first. When using fresh fruit, first, make the fruit juice or purée. To get the healthiest fruit juice available, look for one that isn’t sweetened and one that isn’t from concentrate. While organic, pure fruit juices are definitely better than other store-bought options, I normally save fruit juices for desserts and occasional treats. The pasteurization process kills off the enzymes that keep the gelatin from gelling. While that’s great for making a gelatin dessert, keep that in mind the next time you buy a store-bought fruit juice thinking it’s the same as a juice that you’d make at home from fresh fruit! On the other hand, almost all store-bought fruit juices are pasteurized. They break down the bonds in the gelatin, keeping it from setting. If you puree or juice one of the above fruits while fresh or frozen, the proteases in those fruits remain intact. If wanting to make gelatin with any of the following fruits, you’ll either need to cook them long enough to break down the enzymes or you’ll need to use pasteurized juices.

( Gelatin popsicles are also delicious!) Fresh Fruits to Avoid (They won’t set!) Pineapple gelatin is one of my favorites.Just think, pineapple is so good at breaking down proteins that even your mouth can feel a bit tender after eating it! You may recognize some of these fruits as being natural meat tenderizers for the very same reason. A long time ago, I found out the hard way when I tried to make myself pineapple gelatin from the fruit I had at home. The proteases in these fruits break down the protein bonds of the gelatin, keeping it from setting. Some fruits have proteolytic enzymes that, when used fresh, will keep the gelatin from gelling. Certain fresh fruit purees, like pineapple, won’t allow the gelatin to set. While I normally love using fresh fruits when possible, in the case of making gelatin, there is good reason to choose fruit juice sometimes. If yours isn’t gelling, you may need to return the mixture to the saucepan and cook it a bit longer to ensure it is ready to gel. Once activated, the agar mixture will gel even at room temperature. If using agar, you’ll need to boil the mixture briefly to activate it. (You can slowly adjust up as needed, but too much makes a rubbery dessert.) If choosing agar powder instead of gelatin powder, use around half of a tablespoon of agar powder for every 2 cups of juice. “Gelatin” desserts made with agar will be firmer and less “creamy” than those made with gelatin. You can also use a type of seaweed called agar (or agar-agar) for those avoiding traditional gelatin. That amount of fruit generally makes around 2 cups of watermelon juice. When making watermelon gelatin, I normally use around a quarter of a small watermelon for each tablespoon of gelatin.

While I use fresh watermelon for my gelatin, I normally chose store-bought pineapple juice vs. By now, my favorite two are probably watermelon and pineapple. It’s fun trying out all sorts of different fruits to see how they’ll turn out. You can either add a sugar syrup, some honey or maple syrup, or use a low-carb sweetener like stevia. Some fruits, especially those lower in sugar and on the more tart side, might benefit from the addition of sweetness. Many fruits are sweet enough to make a sweet, delicious dessert without needing to add any sort of sweetener. You can use whatever gelatin you like, but I suggest trying grass-fed pastured beef gelatin if you can find it as the healthiest choice.

One tablespoon of powdered gelatin is normally the equivalent of a package of unflavored gelatin or four gelatin sheets. While you can use fresh fruit and purée it yourself, you can also use store-bought fruit juice.įor the gelatin, you can use powdered gelatin or gelatin sheets. Making a gelatin dessert is super simple and you only need two ingredients: fruit and gelatin. Plus, you have a whole new world of flavors available to you sans the artificial colors and ingredients! Ingredients You can reduce the amount of sugar or use whatever sweetener you prefer. The great thing about making a gelatin dessert at home is that you can control the ingredients. They do sell some pre-made gelatin desserts in the refrigerated section of the supermarket, though.Īfter seeing my son eat a bright red gelatin dessert at my mother-in-law’s house, I decided to try to make him a more natural alternative. We don’t have the Jell-O brand and the only available mixes generally only come in one or two colors or flavors. Here in Spain, packaged gelatin mixes aren’t very popular.

Organic plain gelatin