Holiday Jell-O Salad Trial: Dairy-free, Soy-free, Gluten-free

When we got married, my husband gave me a list of recipes that he told me I needed to master, since they were traditions in his family. Among them was a fruit filled Jell-O salad. Fortunately for me, it was easy to put together. Unfortunately for Joseph, it calls for sour cream. So I decided that we needed to change the recipe so Joseph could participate.

The Changes

The only thing I changed was to substitute plain coconut yogurt for the sour cream.

The Method

Thaw the strawberries and mash the bananas.

mashed bananas

Bring two cups of water to a boil, then stir in the Jell-O until it’s dissolved. Add in the strawberries with its juice, the mashed bananas, and the pineapple with its juice. Pour half of the fruit mixture into a 13″ x 9″ pan.

Put the pan in the fridge to set (about 2 hours). Leave the rest of the Jell-O mixture out at room temperature.

When the Jell-O in the fridge is set, scoop the yogurt into a bowl and stir it to soften it. Take the Jell-O out of the fridge, and spread the yogurt on top of it in a thin layer.

Pour the remaining Jell-O mixture on top of the yogurt. Refrigerate at least 2 hours, but preferably overnight.

Holiday Jell-O Salad

Dairy-free, Soy-free, Gluten-free 

Ingredients:

• 1 6oz package strawberry or strawberry-banana Jell-O
• 2 cups water
• 3 bananas, mashed
• 1 20 oz can of crushed pineapple
• 1 lb container frozen sliced strawberries (should have juice), thawed
• 2 6 oz containers plain coconut yogurt

In a large saucepan, boil the water. Dissolve the Jell-O in the boiling water, then add the mashed bananas, pineapple with its juice, and the thawed strawberries with their juice. Stir to combine.

Pour half of the Jell-O mixture into a 13″ x 9″ pan. Refrigerate for 2 hours, or until set. Leave the other half out at room temperature.

Scoop yogurt into a bowl and stir to soften. Remove Jell-O from the fridge. Spread the yogurt over the Jell-O in a thin layer. Carefully pour the rest of the Jell-O mixture over the yogurt layer. Refrigerate until set (2-8 hours)

Makes about 12 servings

What I Thought

This version doesn’t have the full tang of the original, however, the coconut taste of the yogurt really makes this dessert taste tropical. I quite liked it. My husband gave it 4+ out of 5 stars, and said this was a good change to the traditional Jell-O salad. Joseph quite liked it too, and ate down two helpings in rapid succession. My daughter somehow only ate the yogurt layer. Still, I’ll definitely be making this again.

Shared on Allergy Friendly Saturday, Slightly Indulgent Tuesday, Allergy-Free Wednesdays and Gluten-free Wednesdays