Unsweetened Fruit Juice Jello
Unsweetened Fruit Juice Jello is made with unsweetened fruit juice and Pomona’s Universal Pectin. Pomona’s Pectin contains no sugar or preservatives and jells reliably with low amounts of any sweetener or no sweetener at all.
Notes
Apple juice & white grape juice require lemon juice.
Servings 4 cups
Ingredients
- 4 cups unsweetened fruit juice
- 4 teaspoons calcium water see step #1
- ¼ cup lemon juice if required see note
- 4 teaspoons Pomona’s Pectin powder
Instructions
- Before you begin, prepare calcium water.
- To do this, combine ½ teaspoon calcium powder (in the small packet in your box of Pomona’s pectin) with ½ cup water in a small, clear jar with a lid. Shake well.
- Extra calcium water should be stored in the refrigerator for future use.
- Measure juice into sauce pan.
- Add calcium water and lemon juice (if using) and mix well.
- Bring juice to a boil. Turn off heat.
- Put 1 cup boiling juice in cup for immersion blender, or in food processor, or in blender. Add pectin. It is very important to vent the lid (if there is one) to let steam out. Don’t use an enclosed blender that can’t be vented. Blend for 10 seconds, then stop and scrape down the sides so all pectin clumps are in or on the liquid. Then blend for a full minute until all powder is totally dissolved.
- Turn heat on and bring juice in pan back to a boil. Add pectin-juice to pan of hot juice. Stir well while mixture returns to full boil. Remove from heat.
- Pour hot jello into serving bowl or individual dishes. Let cool down.
- Refrigerate until well jelled.
When is a good time to add fresh fruit? When it’s hot ? Room temperature? After refrigeration?
Can I use this in a large jello cake mold? Should it slide out as a conventional jello mold would?
We have never done it, but we cannot think of a reason why it wouldn’t work. 😊
4 teaspoon of calcium water? how much calcium powder to use?
The calcium water (1/2 tsp calcium powder mixed into 1/2 cup water) can be stored in the fridge for several months (will just need to be tossed if it has any floating bits or smell or color). It can also be stored in the freezer and will keep indefinitely, and will just need to be thawed before use. We also highly recommend labeling your jar of calcium water, as it seems to be the first item tossed when cleaning the fridge/freezer
What about water bath canning this recipe to have shelf stable jello on hand? What would be the processing time for half pints? I assume the same as any jelly recipe?
Hello Stanley,
We do not have a developed recipe for safely canning jello, so we are not able to advise on this.
Kindly Confirm if assumption is correct. Pomona pectin will set without water-bath or other canning methods.
Hoping to make jams/jellies/preserves for immediate consumption. Certainly will “can” if planning to consume at a later date.
That is correct!
Can step #7 work without a Blender or Food processor?
It may, though it can be very difficult to get the pectin to fully dissolve.
Fruit juice turns out great. I even messed around with condensed milk, which reacted funky at first, but then behaved and turned into jello as well. Great desert layered with fruit juice, fruits and condensed milk.