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This Creamy Strawberry Gello Salad is a healthy remake of an old church potluck favorite I remember from my childhood! My daughter loves it – it’s the perfect kid friendly dessert for springtime! THM S, low carb, sugar free
What is a gello/jello salad?
A Jello salad is usually set with – you guessed it – Jello. It’s relatively firm and can be molded because it holds its shape.
This Creamy Strawberry Gello Salad is set with plain beef gelatin because Jello obviously contains a lot of sugar! I’ve added my own flavorings (real strawberries!) and sweetener and am in love with the result. This gello salad holds its shape but it’s not super firm and gelatinous.
I like to use a combination of gelatin and glucomannan in puddings and gello salads for a nice firm set without the “jiggle” of gelatin or the sliminess of glucomannan.
An heirloom piece
The recipe made more than what fit into this dish, but I HAD to use this dish. It was part of Ryan’s grandma’s collection, and before she passed away she marked a dish for each grandchild. When I saw this one I immediately thought “Jello salad!” I think the pink of this strawberry gello salad is so pretty with the white milk glass.
I’m a firm proponent of using special dishes in everyday life. This beautiful dish is proudly displayed on the dining room table more often than not, filled with fresh fruit. I also used it when photographing this broccoli salad recipe!
TIPS
- Set this gello in individual fancy glasses for a gourmet-looking dessert!
- Yes, this strawberry gello salad uses cottage cheese! You don’t taste this! It just adds creaminess and protein with fewer calories than something like cream cheese or whipping cream. Use a good blender so you won’t be left with any lumps.
Seen it before?
This recipe is an adaptation of the Berry Gello Salad on page 137 of Necessary Food, my first cookbook! If you’ve made that one you should definitely make this one – I think you’ll like it even better!
Helpful info:
- Fresh strawberries = a little over 2 cups of puree per pound of berries.
- Frozen whole strawberries = a 24 ounce bag yields about 3 cups of puree
YOU MAY ALSO ENJOY:
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STARTING THM
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MY RECIPE INDEX
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RECIPE INDEX BY FUEL TYPE/ALLERGY/THEME
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My Salad & Dressing Recipes
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My Strawberry Recipes
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Jiggly Cranberry Orange Salad
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Sweet & Spicy Cinnamon Gello Salad – Necessary Food, page 135
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Mandarin Orange Gello Salad – Necessary Food, page 136
Creamy Strawberry Gello Salad
- Total Time: 20 minutes
- Yield: 7 (3/4 cup) servings
Description
This Creamy Strawberry Gello Salad is a healthy remake of an old church potluck favorite I remember from my childhood! My daughter loves it – it’s the perfect kid friendly dessert for springtime! THM S, low carb, sugar free
Ingredients
BLOOM:
- 1/4 cup cold water
- 1 1/2 tablespoons beef gelatin
AFTER 5 MINUTES, ADD TO GELATIN AND WHISK TO DISSOLVE:
- 1 cup water just off the boil
ADD TO BLENDER ALONG WITH DISSOLVED GELATIN:
- 2 cups strawberry puree (just blended up strawberries, measured after blending)
- 1 cup heavy whipping cream
- 1 cup low fat cottage cheese
- 2 tablespoons THM Super Sweet Blend (or more, to taste)
- 1 1/2 teaspoons vanilla extract
- 1/2 teaspoon citric acid
- 1/4 teaspoon salt
- 1 teaspoon glucomannan
Instructions
Whisk the gelatin into the cold water and let it stand for 5 minutes.
Add the just-boiled water to the bloomed gelatin and whisk until the gelatin is dissolved. Add the gelatin to a blender.
Add the remaining ingredients to the blender. Add the glucomannan right before blending so it doesn’t clump. Blend until smooth, scraping down the sides of the blender as needed. Let the mixture sit for a bit, then blend a few more seconds.
Taste and add more sweetener and/or citric acid as desired. Blend after any additions. Pour the gello into a pretty dish to set. (Pop as many air bubbles on top as you can for a smoother finish.) Cover and refrigerate overnight to firm up before serving.
This gello salad holds up well for 24 hours and is best fresh. Beyond that it gets more weepy and watery as gelatin salads do (especially after it is cut into), but it’s still good!
Notes
Set this gello in individual fancy glasses for a gourmet-looking dessert!
Puree made from fresh or frozen strawberries will work in this recipe.
Gelatin: If using Knox gelatin (which sets a little firmer than beef gelatin), I would try about 3 1/2 teaspoons.
Cottage cheese: You don’t taste this! It just adds creaminess and protein with fewer calories than something like cream cheese or whipping cream. Using a good blender you won’t be left with any lumps.
Sweetener: Feel free to use your favorite low glycemic sweetener to taste in place of the THM Super Sweet Blend.
Citric acid: Believe it or not, this really makes the strawberry flavor pop. You can find it in the canning/preserving section of Walmart or a grocery store.
Glucomannan: You can probably use xanthan gum in place of the glucomannan if you don’t have it. I like to use a combination of gelatin and glucomannan in puddings and gello salads for a nice firm set without the “jiggle” of gelatin or the sliminess of glucomannan.
Allergy info: gluten free, egg free, nut free
- Prep Time: 20 mins
- Cook Time: 0 mins
- Category: Salad, Dessert
- Method: Blender
- Cuisine: THM S, low carb, sugar free
Wonder if I could use kefir in place of the whipping cream
You’re welcome to try but it will definitely be different and possibly not as thick.
I love this! I actually replaced 1/4 c cream with almond milk to cut back on the calories and it still turned out great. I have both of your cookbooks and use them often. Thank you so much for sharing your delicious recipes with us! One of my faves is your oven baked pork ribs.
So glad you liked it, Rose!
I have always loved desserts like this. Couldn’t wait to try it. Absolutely heavenly! Thank you for this recipe.
Looking forward to trying this!
I use 1/2 C Tupperware containers to make homemade pudding/ jello cups for my kids’ lunch boxes. It is perfect portion control and prevents the “weepiness” after being cut.
That’s a great idea!
Can you use frozen strawberries? Or will it not set up
Puree from fresh or frozen strawberries will work. Just blend and measure to get the amount needed for the recipe.