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My mother used to make this Pear Lime Gelatin recipe that was so good and so pretty for dinner parties. I would like to replicate it, but without buying the pre-packaged lime Jello, as I'm trying to reduce the amount of preservatives, artificial flavors and colors, etc.

Would a package of organic unflavored gelatin, 2 Tbsp of organic cane sugar, and the juice of one lime achieve similar results to a package of lime Jello? It's the proportions I'm most unsure of. I'm okay if it's a little less sweet, but maybe someone will suggest adding something else. I'll post the recipe below if it helps, but also because it's a great recipe!

Pear Lime Gelatin

Mom's Version: Drain a 29 oz can of pear halves, reserving juice. Set pears aside. Measure the juice. If it does not equal 1 1/2 cups, add water. Pour into saucepan. Bring to a boil. Add a package of lime Jello. Stir until dissolved. Cube a package of cream cheese. Add to gelatin gradually. Whisk until smooth. Cover and refrigerate until cool.

Mash reserved pears. Fold into gelatin mixture. Fold in 1 cup of Cool Whip. Pour into a serving bowl and refrigerate until set.

The adaptations I'd like to make: Use organic fresh pears and pear juice instead of canned pear halves. Peel, core, and cube 3(?) pears. Steam for 3 minutes. Use 1 1/2 cups of pure pear juice. After bringing pear juice to boil, add a packet of unflavored gelatin, 2 Tbsp of sugar, and squeeze in the juice of a lime. Sub in Organic CocoWhip Coconut Whipped Topping for Cool Whip

Any suggestions for adapting would be wonderful! Thank you!

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    I seriously doubt one lime will give you sufficient lime flavor... have you looked for a recipe? like this one?
    – Catija
    Commented Sep 3, 2015 at 0:12
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    On the other hand, pear juice will probably have a lot more pear flavour than the syrup from a can of pears does. There will be little colour from these ingredients so it will probably end up looking pretty pale.
    – Ross Ridge
    Commented Sep 3, 2015 at 3:29
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    Zest the lime, and include that in the gelatin. There's probably more lime flavor in there than in the juice.
    – Joe
    Commented Sep 3, 2015 at 14:37
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    Your version will be much less sweet. There is about 1/3 cup sugar in a small box of Lime Jello. Also, your pear juice will not add as much sugar as the liquid from canned pears if they were in syrup.
    – Debbie M.
    Commented Sep 3, 2015 at 15:41
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    Juice of one lime ignores the zest of one lime. There's a lot of good limey flavor in the skin. Grate it fine, don't let it go to waste.
    – Wayfaring Stranger
    Commented Sep 4, 2015 at 19:14

1 Answer 1

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Mix 1.5 cups of pear juice and add lime juice, zest and sweetener to taste. Keep messing with it until you like the way it tastes. Don't worry about making too much by continuing to mess with it, you can always drink any extra. Once you like the flavor, then bloom 1 packet (.25oz) of gelatin in 1 cup of the room temperature liquid. Once it blooms, add 1 more cup of the liquid and bring to a low simmer, stirring frequently. That should completely dissolve the gelatin. If not, keep it at a low simmer, continuing to stir, for another minute or two. Don't let it boil.

From that point, continue with your plan.

If you want natural green color, you can accomplish that with spinach. It won't make your dessert taste like spinach, I promise. Just boil a few handfuls of spinach in a minimum amount of water for 15-20 minutes. Let the water almost boil away. Once it cools, use a blender to completely liquefy the spinach. If you Google "Natural Green Food Coloring" you will find several commercial sources that could probably bring you closer to lime green.

Let us know how it goes!

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