Sugar Free Orange Jello Salad
Creamy orange jello salad is a simple old fashioned dish with a healthy twist using sugar free orange jello, fresh whipped cream, cottage cheese, mandarin oranges, pineapple chunks, and chopped pecans.
This salad can pass as a creamy dessert, but it’s a healthy one filled with protein and filling fats. Just a small portion will satisfy a sweet tooth.
Share this for your next potluck dish or keep it all for yourself! This holds up nicely and can be refrigerated for up to 5 days!
Table of Contents
Orange Jello Salad
I can’t tell you how much I’m anticipating some potluck gatherings this summer. It feel like FOREVER since we had anyone over to the house or went anywhere! Other than just a quick social distanced meet up with our adult kids, we’ve been homebodies!
It’s looking up though and I could be more excited about the impending parties I have been planing in my mind.
Ingredients for Creamy Jello Salad
This dish more like a fruit salad, except it is creamy with the cottage cheese and whipped cream.
- Sugar free orange flavored gelatin or jello – I used Simply Delish brand sweetened with stevia extract and erythritol. This adds flavor and acts as a stabilizer for the whipped cream.
- Mandarin oranges – one of the smallest varieties of the orange family. Subtly sweet and just the right amount of citrus to add to this orange jello salad. Be sure to drain well. In fact, I pat them with a clean towel or paper towel to blot out the moisture.
- Pineapple chunks – grab a pineapple and cut your own. This way you can dice the pineapple into what ever size you want. It’s economical too.
- Nuts– I like pecans in this salad. Walnuts are also delicious. Feel free to leave them out if you are concerned about nut allergies. I highly recommend to keep them in if this isn’t your concern. The texture it adds to the salad is perfect!
- Heavy whipping cream – we using real whipping cream, which just takes a couple of minutes to get it nice and fluffy. In a pinch, you can use ready made whipped topping. Although, I don’t believe it tastes as good as the real thing!
How To Make This Salad
Ready to put this orange jello salad together? It couldn’t be any easier! You need a hand mixer. Use the whipping whisk if it comes with the mixer. Otherwise, the two beater method works just fine.
Heck, even a regular whisk will do the job. Plus, your get in a good arm workout!
Chill the beaters and mixing bowl
For best results, I like to place the beaters (or whisk) and the mixing bowl in the refrigerator or freezer to get them really cold. This helps the fat cling to itself and give us the light and fluffy texture we want.
As you are whipping the cream, slowly add the orange gelatin. At this point, you can add a couple of drops of food coloring if you want a brighter color to make the orange stand out.
Personally, for me, the less ingredients the better, so I don’t add coloring.
Once you are satisfied with how creamy the whipped cream is, then you fold in the cottage cheese, pineapple chunks, mandarin oranges, and pecans.
Orange Jello Salad With Cottage Cheese
Most people don’t realize there is cottage cheese in this recipe. It adds depth to the salad and natural protein! I prefer the small curd and use full fat, but any variety will be fine in this recipe.
However, if you would like to make this without the cottage cheese (or extra protein!), then leave it out.
You will need to adjust the whipping cream by decreasing it to one cup instead of using 1 1/2 cups as noted in the recipe card.
How To Store Leftovers
The orange gelatin acts as a stabilizer for the whipped cream, which will hold its fluffy texture for days. This can be stored in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 5 days. IF it lasts that long!
Since I blotted the fruit, there was no weeping from the mandarin oranges or pineapple. It scooped up just like I had just made it after several days of storing in the refrigerator.
Can you freeze jello orange salad? Yes! You can freeze this salad for up to 3 months in airtight freezable containers. If you want, divide in 1/2 – 1 cup portions for a quick individual treat. Defrost in the refrigerator overnight or enjoy as a frozen treat!
What To Serve With Jello Salad
The dishes that go well with this orange jello salad are endless. I tend to serve with grilled foods. Here are some delicious ideas:
- Grilled Ribeye Steak – paired with the salad makes a hearty meal and ready in under 15 minutes!
- Teriyaki Turkey Burgers – if you dice fresh pineapple for your jello salad, then be sure to add this recipe to your menu. This is served with fresh sliced pineapple for a tropical twist.
- Bacon Wrapped Barbecue Chicken – finger licking good! This is also another recipe that you can incorporated fresh pineapple. I grilled pineapple skewers to add to this dish.
- Grilled Pork Chops – another simple protein to add to your menu. Depending on the thickness of the chops, this can be ready in 15 minutes!
Let me know what you serve with your orange jello salad! Will you serve as a side dish or a dessert?
Sugar Free Orange Jello Salad
Ingredients
- 1 1/2 cups heavy whipping cream
- 1 7 ounce sugar free orange flavored gelatin
- 1 16 ounce cottage cheese, small curd
- 1 11 ounce mandarin oranges, drained
- 1 8 ounce pineapple tidbits, drained
- 1/3 cup pecans chopped
Instructions
- Place large glass or stainless steel bowl and beaters in the refrigerator or freezer for 15 minutes.
- Add the whipping cream to the mixing bowl and begin beating on low speed.
- Slowly incorporate the orange gelatin when the whipping cream begins to thicken. Increase speed when it is safe to do so (without the splatter). Mix in all the gelatin.
- Fold in cottage cheese, drained mandarin oranges and pineapple. Add nuts.
Notes
Nutrition
Disclaimer
Please note that the nutritional information provided are guidelines and may vary based on the brand of products used. For your specific nutritional goals use My Fitness Pal or Verywell Fit recipe calculators. All content within this site is not intended as medical diagnosis or treatment and should not be considered a substitute for professional medical expertise.
So you put the dry jello in the cool whip . You don’t make the jello first? Please let me know in going to make it now
You not make the jello separately, just use the powder. Check the video for details.
Can this be made using Cool Whip instead of heavy whipping cream?
Hi Pamela, Yes, you can use pre-whipped topping. I haven’t tried it yet, but I would fold the jello into the whipped cream, then add the other ingredients. Let me know if you try that method.
Found your blog while searching for a recipe for an orange gelatin salad that uses the Simply Delish version. 1 box of Simply Delish works ok for the recipe? Similar recipes that use Jello call for a 6 oz box of Jello and the Simply Delish is only 0.7 oz (so not even an ounce). It just didn’t seem like it could be enough but I wanted to double check.
Hi Jasmine, the works as written. I’ve made this several times and it came out delicious.
Awesome! Giving it a try this week. Thanks so much for responding. 🙂
Made this creamy orange gelatin dessert, sugar free and it was wonderful! I added 2 small boxes of the gelatin. Very refreshing! Yummy!
I’m so glad you enjoyed this jello salad. Thanks for swing by!