Dessert Recipes
Jello Watermelon Bars
These sweet, jiggly bars will make you feel like a kid again — but this recipe is all grown up! It’s all-natural homemade jello made with fresh watermelon, tangy lime juice, and sweet strawberry juice, topped with creamy, fluffy whipped crème fraîche. The crust is made with crushed Gelson’s pretzels for a nice crunchy, salty contrast to all that puckery sweetness. It’s the ultimate summer dessert, but these bars are so cheery and nostalgic, we’d definitely make them all year round.
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Dessert
Jello Watermelon Bars
Serves: 16
For the pretzel crust:
3 ¼ cups (5 oz) pretzels
1 stick unsalted butter, melted, plus more for greasing pan
¼ cup granulated sugar
½ tsp vanilla extract
½ cup Gelson’s Organic all purpose flour
1 egg white, beaten
For the strawberry watermelon jello:
4 cups diced watermelon
¼ cup freshly squeezed lime juice
½ tsp kosher salt, divided
1 lb hulled strawberries
¾ cup granulated sugar
¼ tsp kosher salt, plus more to taste
2 packets (4 ½ tsp) Knox gelatin powder
For the whipped crème fraîche:
½ cup cold crème fraîche
1 cup cold heavy whipping cream
¼ cup confectioners’ sugar
Lime zest, for garnish
Directions
- Preheat the oven to 350º. Grease a 9x9” pan with butter and line it with parchment paper, so it hangs over 2 opposite sides of the pan.
- To make the crust: In a food processor or resealable bag, pulse or crush the pretzels into a flour-like consistency. You should have ¾ cups worth of pretzel flour.
- In a large mixing bowl, stir together the butter, sugar, and vanilla with a rubber spatula until well combined. Fold in the pretzel flour and all purpose flour until just combined.
- Transfer the dough to the prepared pan and press it into an even layer. Bake for 15 minutes.
- Transfer the pan to a wire rack and immediately brush the crust with the egg white, making sure to coat the entire surface. Let cool to room temperature, about 30 minutes.
- To make the strawberry watermelon jello: In a blender, puree the watermelon, lime juice and ¼ tsp salt until smooth. Strain the juice through a sieve and into a large bowl and set in the refrigerator. You should have 2 ¼ cups of watermelon juice.
- In a medium pot, combine the strawberries, sugar, 2 tablespoons of water, and ¼ tsp salt. Bring to a simmer over medium heat and cook until the strawberries soften and are muted in color, 12 to 15 minutes.
- Five minutes before straining the strawberry juice, transfer 1 cup of watermelon juice to a small bowl and stir in the gelatin. Set aside.
- Strain the strawberry juice through a fine mesh sieve into a bowl, gently squeezing the strawberries against the sieve to release their juices. Discard the strawberries. You should have 1 ⅔ cups of strawberry juice.
- Immediately stir the gelatin mixture into the hot strawberry juice, whisking to dissolve. Pour the remaining watermelon juice into the strawberry juice, whisking to combine.
- Strain the juice through a fine mesh sieve into the pan and over the crust. Chill the bars in the refrigerator for 4 to 6 hours or until the jello sets.
- To serve: In a stand mixer fitted with the whisk attachment, combine the crème fraîche, heavy cream, confectioners’ sugar, and a pinch of salt. Beat on high speed to stiff peaks, about 2 minutes.
- Transfer the bars to a cutting board and spread the whipped cream on top. Garnish with the lime zest and slice into 16 bars. Leftover bars can be stored in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 3 days.
Recipe adapted from: Easy Gay Oven