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Homemade Lemon or Lime “Jello”

July 20, 2012 by KimiHarris 27 Comments

Thanks for stopping by! If you're interested in healthy eating check out my free gifts! and subscribe to get regular email updates. *Some links may be affiliate.*
Thanks for stopping by! If you're interested in healthy eating check out my free gifts! and subscribe to get regular email updates. *Some links may be affiliate.*

Lime GelatinSummer has really hit my neck of the woods with a vengeance. 90 degrees has become the norm and the mercury (well, I guess most thermometers don’t use mercury anymore, right?) has even topped 100 a few times.

Not good baking weather, eh?

It’s hard because my boys are involved in a lot of sports this year and boy-oh-boy are they craving treats.

They are super hungry from all the physical activity, but mom is hot and really doesn’t want to be turning the oven on to bake cookies, bars, or anything of the sort.

Really, once the weather gets above 80 degrees, my oven basically goes on vacation–especially since we got our last electric bill. Sigh.

Well, if you’re like me and are trying to provide healthy, simple snacks for yourself and your family during the summer months, then this recipe is for you.

My boys love this recipe. I “found” it when one of them was sick. You know –one of those “I don’t want to eat anything” days. I got out an old box of gelatin that I’d had sitting in my cupboard, took a tour of the internet looking for a way to make my own gelatin, and after tinkering for a bit, we settled on this recipe.

This gelatin really hits the spot and we’ve been making it on and off ever since. I hope you enjoy it as well.

Homemade Lemon or Lime “Jello” or Gelatin Squares

Makes 2 8×8 square pans of dessert.

Ingredients
3 Tbsps gelatin, granulated (3 packets) (I recommend Great Lakes Brand. See Notes. For Gelatin Squares, use twice as much gelatin.)
3/4 cup of the healthiest sweetener available to you– (I used xylitol for a candida-friendly version)
12 scoops stevia extract* (NuNaturals is one good brand. You can also substitute up to 1 1/2 cups of another sweetener.)
1 1/2 cups boiling water
3 cups cold water (divided)
1 1/8 cup lemon or lime juice (or some of each for Lemon Lime Gelatin! I used Dream Foods Organic Lemon. I LOVE this brand!)
1/2 teaspoon grated rind (optional. Use lemon rind for lemon gelatin, lime rind for lime flavored.)
Method
1. Pour 1 1/2 cups of the cold water into a bowl (I recommend filtered water. You can see why in my post on Is Your Water Safe?). Let sit to soften while you boil the water.
2. Add the boiling water to the gelatin and stir until the gelatin is dissolved.
3. Add the rest of the ingredients–sweeteners, lemon or lime juice, and rind, if using), and stir to combine.
4. Pour mixture into 2 8×8 pans.
5. Chill until set.
6. Spoon into serving dishes (if making regular gelatin), or cut into squares (if making gelatin blocks), and enjoy!

*NOTES:

– Stevia is super sweet. One scoop is only 1/32 of a teaspoon and equals about 2 Tbsp of sugar. These tiny measuring spoons are on my shopping list to make scooping stevia more convenient.

– I recommend using Great Lakes Gelatin. It’s made from pastured cows from Argentina that haven’t been treated with antibiotics or hormones. One money saving tip: You can save by purchasing a large container. According to the company, gelatin doesn’t spoil :-)!

Of course, you can make Homemade “Jello” with regular or whole juice as well. I’m working on that recipe and hope to have it to share soon.

This recipe is super versatile. You can add chopped fruit to this prior to chilling, but don’t use fresh pineapple because the enzymes in it will cause the gelatin not to set. Canned pineapple is fine.

One fun serving idea is to purchase small ice cube molds and pour the gelatin into them for molding. Or, you can use cookie cutters to cut the gelatin squares into fun shapes!

Looking for other “No Bake” Summer Recipes to feed your hungry brood (or yourself)? How about:

  • Very Berry Mousse
  • Chocolate Chia Pudding
  • Chocolate Coconut Squares (like Almond Joy)
  • Almond Butter Truffles
  • Chocolate Almond Chip Coconut Milk Ice Cream

Do you have a favorite No Bake Summer Treat?

 

Adrienne Urban of Whole New Mom is a wife and a homeschooling mother of two boys, one of whom has Asperger’s and life-threatening food allergies. In her past life she worked in the financial services industry and also taught in Japan. She has a passion to help others navigate the sea of information on the road to healthier lives while trusting God for the results of their efforts. Because she loves to (and can’t afford not to :-)), she specializes in frugal living and simplifying special diets (allergen-, gluten- and sugar-free). You can also find her on Facebook and Twitter.

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KimiHarris

I love beautiful and simple food that is nourishing to the body and the soul. I wrote Fresh: Nourishing Salads for All Seasons and Ladled: Nourishing Soups for All Seasons as another outlet of sharing this love of mine. I also love sharing practical tips on how to make a real food diet work on a real life budget. Find me online elsewhere by clicking on the icons below!

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Filed Under: Dairy Free, Desserts, Gluten Free, Snacks

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Reader Interactions

Comments

  1. Jen

    July 20, 2012 at 12:01 pm

    looks yummy! can’t wait for the juice version…. I am trying to convert a recipe from my MIL that my husband loves to real food and it uses strawberry or raspberry jell-o pack 😉 I should be able to find an all juice raspberry I think.

    Reply
    • Adrienne @ Whole New Mom

      July 21, 2012 at 4:04 am

      I think the conversion is going to be quite simple, but I want to make sure. I’ll try to make it soon!

      Reply
  2. Lauren @ Empowered Sustenance

    July 20, 2012 at 12:39 pm

    Thanks for recommending the gelatin–I would much prefer to buy gelatin from pastured cows. We also rarely use our oven in the summer, too. This morning I really wanted to test a recipe, though, so I woke up at 6:30 to use the oven before it got hot outside! I think I will try this recipe using only stevia.

    Reply
    • Adrienne @ Whole New Mom

      July 20, 2012 at 1:13 pm

      Early morning baking is about the only way to go…or putting a convection oven in the garage :-). Hope the stevia works well. I think it works best with other sweeteners.

      Reply
  3. Erin

    July 20, 2012 at 2:12 pm

    108 degrees today in my neck of the woods. Timely recipe!

    Reply
    • Adrienne @ Whole New Mom

      July 20, 2012 at 7:12 pm

      :-). We had that just this past week. It was definitely not baking weather.

      Reply
  4. Lisa

    July 20, 2012 at 4:02 pm

    I think my littles would like this. Thanks for the gelatin recipe. I recently saw a recipe for make your own gummy worms with fruit juice, a ton of gelatin, and heavy cream poured into straws. I want to try it, but I didn’t want to use gelatin from feed-lot cows (eww). Gonna order some!

    Oh, and I use my purple clay crockpot when it’s too hot for the oven. One way to keep the kitchen cool!

    Reply
    • Lisa

      July 20, 2012 at 4:02 pm

      gelatin *recommendation*, not recipe. Sorry.

      Reply
    • Adrienne @ Whole New Mom

      July 20, 2012 at 7:13 pm

      Is a purple clay crockpot different than a regular one? I have a gummy recipe that just uses applesauce I think. I am interested in trying it. Thanks for the reminder.

      Reply
  5. Sheri

    July 21, 2012 at 6:04 am

    It’s so funny Kimi, cause I’ve been playing around with Gelatin recipes too the past week or so as well. I’m also low carb so instead of using juice I used 1/4 organic lemon oil and it came out really well. I also found a company in Canada that has organic gelatin power, it’s a bit more expensive but I bought a small package to try it out.

    http://www.gobiofood.com/organic-gelatin-powder-p-1987.html?osCsid=ef2c499dba0cc5e23f06f2c3387f3889

    Reply
    • Adrienne @ Whole New Mom

      July 21, 2012 at 9:58 am

      The lemon oil is a great idea. But I’m sure you know that lemon and lime juice are considered to be extremely low carb. Lemons, limes, and cranberries are allowed fruits on the acti-candida diet. Take care!

      Reply
    • Sheri

      July 21, 2012 at 5:04 pm

      That’s 1/4 tsp lemon oil 🙂

      Reply
  6. Sheri

    July 21, 2012 at 5:05 pm

    Yes, Adrienne, but I had the oils so I was experimenting. thanks.

    Reply
  7. julie

    July 21, 2012 at 5:54 pm

    Do you have any idea how much liquid stevia would equal the dry stevia in the recipe? Thanks! Can’t wait to try it!

    Reply
    • Adrienne @ Whole New Mom

      July 23, 2012 at 7:22 am

      Hi Julie. Converting can be tough, but I would start w/ trying 2 drops for every 1 Tbsp sugar. I am always wondering about these conversions and the labels tend to not be consistent, but try that out and let me know. Even the info on the scoop size seems to not be consistent. Sigh.

      Reply
  8. Holly

    July 22, 2012 at 4:40 am

    Kimmi, See if you can find a copy of Kick the Junk Food Habit with Snackers by Maureen and Jim Wallace. There are many recipes that don’t require cooking.

    Reply
  9. Caralyn @ glutenfreehappytummy

    July 23, 2012 at 10:41 am

    those look awesome! so refreshing and perfect for summer!

    Reply
    • Adrienne @ Whole New Mom

      July 23, 2012 at 11:26 am

      Thanks Caralyn!

      Reply
  10. Laurel

    July 24, 2012 at 9:11 am

    I make my own jello too, but make it extra firm because I think the gelatin is good for my creaky joints. Four cups of bottled juice (cran grape or something similar) and 1/2 cup Great Lakes gelatin. Makes jello that I can pick up and run out the door with, along with no artificial colors/flavors.

    Reply
    • Adrienne @ Whole New Mom

      July 24, 2012 at 11:15 am

      Hi Laurel. It is really good for you. Do you find it helps? I will try your recipe! I typically make one kind of each b/c my kids like it both ways, but I do like getting the extra protein into them. I’ll have to figure out how much protein that is – how much does this make? Do you put it in an 8×8 pan?

      Reply
  11. April @ The 21st Century Housewife

    August 1, 2012 at 5:35 pm

    Gelatin is such a wonderful summer treat, and your recipe sounds delicious. It’s great that it is all natural as well!

    Reply
  12. Amy Best

    August 10, 2012 at 7:11 pm

    Made this tonight, yum! Thanks so much for the allergen and sugar free dessert, makes me so happy! 🙂

    Reply
  13. Peggy

    August 13, 2012 at 10:13 am

    I am so far behind on my e-mails this summer that I just now read this post! What a great idea!! We have a canister of gelatin in our cabinet and a bunch of older berries/peaches in our freezer which need used up. and just in time for school! gelatin fruit blocks!!

    Reply
  14. Barbara Mitchell

    March 12, 2014 at 6:40 am

    I want to make a cake for St Patricks day it calls for 2 pks of lime gelatin I only can fine plain how do I make it to be lime

    Reply
  15. Jennifer

    July 5, 2014 at 7:16 pm

    I made this recipe tonight…just put the jello in the fridge. But I have a question about the “3 cups cold water, divided.” Why does it need to be divided? I never saw anything in the instructions about adding the second half of the cold water. I went ahead and added it at the end. I hope I read the recipe correctly…1 1/2 cups boiling water + 3 cups cold water for the total recipe. Is this correct? Thanks!

    Reply
    • Amy

      November 21, 2014 at 9:38 am

      Did yours turn out? I have that same question !

      Reply
    • karen a barber

      January 14, 2022 at 5:44 pm

      The ingredients are 1 1/2 cups boiling water and 3 cups cold water (divided)
      But the recipe says
      1. Pour 1 1/2 cups of the cold water into a bowl Let sit to soften while you boil the water.
      2. Add the boiling water to the gelatin and stir until the gelatin is dissolved.

      Let Cold water sit to soften…I guess she uses the Bloom method as I do…
      I use the cold to soften (bloom) then hot to melt

      Reply

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The information you find here at The Nourishing Gourmet is meant to help you become a better cook! This site is primarily for sharing family friendly recipes. It's not meant to give medical advice or to make any health claims on the prevention or curing of diseases.This site is only for informational and educational purposes. Please discuss with your own, qualified health care provider before adding in supplements or making any changes in your diet. Also, any links to sponsors or affiliates (including Amazon) may give me a percentage of the sale or a pay per click. Thank you for supporting this site.

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