How to Make Healthy Homemade Jello. Yes, really! This homemade gelatin recipe is made from natural ingredients, and natural sweeteners, without any dye or additives. (Bonus: it’s Dairy-free, gluten-free & paleo-approved!)
It’s January, the month of healthy eating resolutions, sugar-free challenges, Whole30 and All The Things. This I know. And yet, here I am, sharing a recipe for healthy homemade gelatin (like, homemade Jello from scratch, y’all!). And I don’t feel one bit bad about it.
Gelatin can be a great healthy snack or healthy dessert. It tastes great, it’s easy to make, and there are even some health benefits, too!
Here’s why I love this healthy jello recipe (and why I think you and your kids will, too!)
- IT’S EASY TO MAKE. If you can stir, you can make this recipe!
- IT’S FRESH-TASTING, BRIGHT & BEAUTIFUL WITHOUT ANY DYES OR ADDITIVES. All the color is from the beautiful natural colors of the juice you choose. Plus, there’s no refined sugars, artificial flavors, food dyes, artificial colors, or additives!
- HOMEMADE JELLO IS FREE OF ALL MAIN ALLERGENS–gluten, dairy, egg, soy, nuts, fish, etc. But it does contain gelatin which is derived from beef bones (so it’s not vegan). Because of that, the quality of the gelatin I use is crucial to me.
Here’s all you need to get started on a batch of healthy homemade Jello…
Simple Ingredients To Start
So, what’s in homemade Jello recipe? Just 2-3 INGREDIENTS! Let’s take a look:
- Juice. The base of this homemade jello is fruit or veggie juice! I’ve made this jello with all different flavors of 100% juice, fruit and veggie juice blends, light juice, etc. You can even use green juice, if you prefer.
- Grass-Fed Beef Gelatin. The key ingredient for this jello recipe is grass-fed beef gelatin. Note that this is NOT gelatin protein powder, collagen protein powder, etc. We recommend brands like Vital Proteins Grass-Fed Beef Gelatin or Great Lakes Grass-Fed Gelatin.
- Maybe: A Little Natural Sweetener. Since the gelatin will dull some of the sweetness of the juice, I recommend adding 1-2 Tablespoons of honey or agave syrup to the juice to bring it back up to its usual vibrancy. (You can also use cane sugar, if you like for AIP!)
What Kind Of Juice Works?
Almost any flavor of juice can be used for homemade gelatin! I recommend 100% fruit or fruit/veggie blend juices. The only exception is fresh pineapple juice. (The enzymes in pineapple can break down the gelatin so it won’t gel properly.)
My favorites are a peach-mango fruit & veggie blend (the orange one you see pictured), blueberry-pomegranate, and cranberry raspberry. (all 3 are pictured in the video/photos)
If you’re aiming for a certain color (for a party or special occasion), you can also even use store-bought sweetened juices like fruit punch or lemonade, though they’ll have added sugar.
How To Make Homemade Jello, Step By Step
As always, you can find the full recipe with ingredient amounts, detailed instructions, and tips in the recipe card below.
- Bloom The Gelatin. Pour 1/2 cup of the juice into a liquid measuring cup or small bowl. Sprinkle gelatin powder over the juice and stir to combine. Set aside for about 5 minutes while you heat the juice. The gelatin will thicken up significantly during this time, and should be VERY thick and grainy looking.
- Heat The Remaining Juice. While the gelatin blooms, add the remaining 3 1/2 cups of juice to a medium saucepan and heat over medium-high heat until steaming. (It doesn’t need to come to a boil or simmer, but should be VERY hot.)
- Melt The Bloomed Gelatin. Add honey/sweetener (if using) and the bloomed gelatin to the hot juice and stir to dissolve completely. This is a crucial step, so make sure it’s completely dissolved!
- Set. Pour gelatin mixture into a 2-quart ceramic pan (8×8, 9×9, or 11×7 works!) or heat proof containers and cover the pan with plastic wrap. Chill at least 3-4 hours or until set completely.
- Serve & Store. Enjoy once it’s set or store in the refrigerator. My recommendation for the best texture/flavor is to enjoy within 4-5 days, though it usually won’t spoil or break down until the 7-10 day mark.
How To Make Jello With Fruit
If you want to make homemade jello with fruit, this recipe should work for that, too. Just like when you make boxed jello, you’ll want to let the jello set partially before adding the fruit. So, follow the recipe through step 3, then add the gelatin to your container. Chill the jello for about 1-1 1/2 hours before stirring in the fresh fruit or frozen fruit. You want it to be roughly an egg white consistency (not fully set!) before adding the fruit. The exact time will vary based on the container size and the temperature of your refrigerator.
Collagen vs. Gelatin
To be super clear: you cannot use collagen powder to make jello. You need gelatin powder for this recipe. Collagen and gelatin are great sources of protein and known to benefit digestion, gut health, hair, skin, nails, and joint health. They contain the same amino acids, but each behaves differently. Here’s a quick snapshot of collagen vs. gelatin:
Collagen
- Also called collagen peptides, or hydrolyzed collagen
- Digests faster than gelatin.
- Can be used in hot or cold liquids. I use collagen in hot and cold things all the time, from smoothies, to soups, to herbal tea and sauces.
- It’s flavorless (though I wouldn’t recommend drinking it mixed with straight water) and doesn’t have any gritty or chalky texture.
Gelatin
- NOTE – We’re specifically using powdered gelatin, NOT gelatin-based protein powder
- Creates a gel or Jello effect when prepared.
- Commonly used in gut-healing diet protocols, like AIP (Autimmune Paleo), GAPS (Gut and Psychology Syndrome) and SCD (Specific Carbohydrate Diet). Gelatin digests more slowly, and coats the small intestine, which can help with healing the gut.
- Must be “bloomed” first in cold liquid to plump and thicken the gelatin granules, then dissolved in hot liquid.
- ONLY dissolves in hot liquids. If you attempt to put it in cold liquid without heating it later, it will bloom but won’t dissolve. (And create an unpleasant thick lumpy texture.)
FAQ + Tips And Tricks For The Best Homemade Gelatin
CAN I USE SOMETHING BESIDES JUICE FOR JELLO? This recipe was specifically formatted to work with fruit juice or vegetable juice, but some folks have also made it with herbal tea with decent results.
IS HOMEMADE JELLO VEGAN? No, I’m sorry. It’s dairy-free, but homemade jello is made with gelatin, which is animal-derived. I haven’t tested it with a vegan gelatin substitute, but this article about vegan gelatin alternatives (like agar agar) might be helpful if you need a vegan version.
CAN I MAKE JELLO WITHOUT ANY ADDED SWEETENER? It’s totally up to you and your taste preferences. Some juices are sweeter than others. I never sweeten juice for drinking, but the gelatin does dilute the juice flavor slightly, and I find that adding the honey or agave brings it back up to its regular flavor. Again, it’s totally up to you!
HOW LONG WILL HOMEMADE JELLO KEEP IN THE FRIDGE? My recommendation for the best texture/flavor is 4-5 days, though it usually won’t spoil or break down until the 7-10 day mark.
Did You Make This Recipe?
Tell me all about it! Leave a star rating below when you try our Healthy Homemade Jello recipe. I can’t wait to hear how it goes!
How to Make Healthy Homemade Jello
Ingredients
- 4 cups of juice See notes
- 2 Tablespoons unflavored beef gelatin* such as Vital Proteins or Great Lakes. Do NOT try with collagen or protein powder.
- 2 Tablespoons honey agave, or cane sugar (optional)
Instructions
- Bloom The Gelatin. Pour 1/2 cup of the juice into a liquid measuring cup or small bowl. Sprinkle gelatin powder over the juice and stir to combine. Set aside for about 5 minutes while you heat the juice. The gelatin will thicken up significantly during this time, and should be VERY thick and grainy looking.
- Heat The Remaining Juice. While the gelatin blooms, add the remaining 3 1/2 cups of juice to a medium saucepan and heat over medium-high heat until steaming. (It doesn’t need to come to a boil or simmer, but should be VERY hot.)
- Melt The Bloomed Gelatin. Add honey/sweetener (if using) and the bloomed gelatin to the hot juice and stir to dissolve completely. This is a crucial step, so make sure it’s completely dissolved!
- Set. Pour gelatin mixture into a 2-quart ceramic pan (8×8, 9×9, or 11×7 works!) or heat proof containers and cover the pan with plastic wrap. Chill at least 3-4 hours or until set completely.
- Serve & Store. Enjoy once it’s set or store in the refrigerator. My recommendation for the best texture/flavor is to enjoy within 4-5 days, though it usually won’t spoil or break down until the 7-10 day mark.
Notes
- Gelatin. You must use unflavored beef gelatin for this recipe, not protein powder, collagen, or gelatin-based protein powders. ONLY gelatin will work.
- Juice. Almost any flavor of juice will work for homemade jello! I recommend 100% fruit or fruit/veggie blend juices. The only exception is fresh pineapple juice. (The enzymes in pineapple can break down the gelatin so it won’t gel properly.) My favorites are a peach-mango fruit & veggie blend (the orange one you see pictured), blueberry-pomegranate, and passion fruit.
- Nutrition. the exact nutrition facts will vary based on what juice/juice blend you use. Please consider this an estimate (calculated with a 100% juice peach-mango fruit & veggie juice blend)
Video
Nutrition
Nutrition facts are an estimate only and will vary based on brands and amounts used.
Find it Online:
https://www.onelovelylife.com/healthy-homemade-jello/Recipe originally shared January 2019. Fully updated with more detailed notes, step-by-step photos & new video and republished January 2025
If I use Knox Gelatin powder how many of the envelopes will I need to use to equal the 2 tbsp? Thanks.
Judith – I haven’t made this with Knox gelatin yet, but a quick Google search tells me there’s about 2 1/2 tsp. per envelope. 2 packets would get you 5 teaspoons. (6 tsp. = 2 Tbsp.) If you wanted to try it with 2 packets, your gelatin would likely still set, but be softer set than if you use part of the 3rd packet to get all the way up to 2 Tbsp. If you want to get the full 2 Tbsp., it sounds like you’ll need 3 envelopes.
Just made this today! I have made other homemade gelatin recipes and they always water down the juice with boiling water. I had thought about trying it this way, then forgotten. I am happy I stumbled across this recipe! It is so good! I only had Organic juice box juices at home, next time I’ll get Cherry juice or something with a stronger flavor. All in all it is really good and this will be my forever recipe now.
Yes! Yes! Yes! This is what I love to hear! I’m so glad you loved it. It’s my kids’ FAVORITE. Thank you so much for taking the time to leave a review. It’s so helpful!
Would this work with something thicker than juice, like a puree? I want to make this for my 8 month old to play with for Valentine’s Day and use some of the fruit purees I’ve made him 😊
Kimberly – I’m not totally sure, but if it’s for play it might be worth a try! (I know several have used thicker juices and nectars with good success)
I made apple cherry jello and it was delicious! I want to make this for milk teas, but I’ll need a little bit firmer jelly. I may use 1/2 cup less liquid next time:) I love this recipe. So healthy for you too.
Ooh yum! That sounds great!
I feel silly admitting this but was not able to locate the video referred to (I’m on a desktop computer). I am looking forward to making homemade ‘Jello’ and wanted to watch the process that you shared. Very excited to have found this recipe!
Connie – No worries! The video usually pops up right away in a new little window and will scroll with you while you scroll down. You may have accidentally closed the video without knowing it! I’d refresh your page and see if it comes up again. Otherwise, you can watch it on Facebook! 🙂
I made this last week with blood orange juice and used a little sugar instead of honey because I don’t really like honey and it worked great. It was firmer like a knox blox bit still very tasty.
I’m so glad you enjoyed it Renee! Thanks so much for sharing and taking the time to leave a review!
Best jelly!! Reminds me of jelly my mother made.
I’m so glad you loved it Olga!
Thank you for this! My daughter is having her wisdom teeth out and I feel so much better giving her this rather than the boxed kind full of food color and artificial flavor.
I hope her procedure and recovery go smoothly! (And I hope the jello helps!😉)
Please let me know which juice should be used for making blue jelly. or should I just go with some blueberry essence and blue food colour……definitely won’t be healthy, but I need to make blue jelly please help me out a little!!
Zoya – I have never made blue jello before, but if you can find a blue fruit punch you could probably use that! Most other juices would have too much natural color to take blue dye well. You could maybe use White Grape juice + blue dye?
can i use collagen protein powder instead of gelatin to make this recipe?
Giselle – No, collagen will not work in this recipe. It doesn’t gel the way that gelatin does and will not set up. I’m sorry!