Strawberry Jello Parfait
A fun Jello recipe for Valentine’s Day, these Strawberry Jello Parfaits are simple enough for kids to make and a delicious take on the classic – they taste almost like a strawberry cheesecake!
Strawberry Jello Parfait Recipe
Jello is one thing I always have in my cupboard.
Whether we’re eating it, making it into a sensory experience, or using it to make play dough, it’s always in high demand.
So when Ella wanted to make something special for Valentine’s Day, Jello was an easy choice! A few simple hacks take your standard box of strawberry Jello and transform it into a gorgeous dessert that kids will be so proud to serve.
The red, pink and white layers of this parfait are perfect for Valentine’s Day and it tastes kind of like a cheater cheesecake. The creamy Jello mousse and smooth Jello layers provide a fun texture contrast that makes this dessert more interesting than a plain old bowl of Jello.
You can swap out the flavor of Jello to your personal preference, or change this recipe up for different holidays:
- green Jello parfaits for St. Patrick’s Day
- purple for Easter
- orange for Halloween
- a tray of red and green ones for Christmas.
The trick to getting that fun diagonal design in your Jello parfaits is to place them in a loaf pan at an angle. The loaf pan securely holds them in place as you pour in the Jello and allow it to set. We didn’t have any issues with our glasses rolling around in the pan, but if you do experience this you can secure them with a kitchen towel.
Of course, you can always just make your parfaits into flat, even layers – but I think the diagonal layers turned out so pretty!
Ella had so much fun making this recipe herself. The only step I had to help with was pouring in the boiling water to make the Jello (and I also wiped the glasses clean of spills a few times).
We used a kid-safe strawberry slicer to allow her to cut the strawberries into perfect, even slices herself. I like this one because it uses wires to cut the strawberries, rather than blades. I do encourage her to keep her fingers away from the wires but if she does accidentally touch them, we’re not risking her cutting her finger like she would with a blade. (I get a lot of my kid-friendly kitchen tools from this site – they are great-quality and everything we’ve purchased has been really easy and safe for Ella and my daycare kids to use.)
I have a post dedicated to teaching kids how to hull and cut strawberries here.
More Fun Jello Recipes
- Heart Cut-Out Jello Squares
- Jello Frosted Grapes from In the Kids Kitchen
- Candied Jello Popcorn from In the Kids Kitchen
- Layered Jello Jigglers from The Soccer Mom Blog
Jello Parfait Ingredients
Scroll down to the printable recipe card for full measurements.
Tip: you can use real whipped cream in place of the cool whip, if desired.
Kitchen Tools You May Find Helpful
- Mixing Bowl
- Measuring Cups and Spoons
- Whisk or Spatula
- Piping Bag with Star Tip <– a basic piping set will have all you need
- Parfait Glasses
- Strawberry Huller
- Strawberry Slicer or Knife
How to Make Strawberry Jello Parfaits
Prepare your strawberry Jello according to package directions.
Pour 1 1/2 cups of the liquid Jello mixture into a liquid measuring cup with a lip, reserving 1/2 cup of the Jello for the mousse layer.
Place your parfait glasses sideways into a loaf pan, with the bottom angled against the bottom and side of the pan, and the top coming out at an angle on the other side, as shown.
If the glasses are rolling around a bit, secure them with a kitchen towel.
Divide the Jello mixture among the parfait glasses. (For three, pour in 1/2 cup; for four, pour in just over 1/3 of a cup.)
Place the glasses in the fridge to set, about 1 hour.
Allow the reserved Jello to cool but not solidify, and stir in 1 cup of the Cool Whip and optional vanilla extract. Refrigerate until the Jello in the glasses has set.
Remove the Jello parfait glasses from the fridge and remove from the loaf pan.
Spoon in the pink mousse layer, dividing equally amongst all glasses (about 1/4 cup each).
Scoop the rest of your Cool Whip into a piping bag fitted with a star tip.
Swirl the Cool Whip on top of the Jello Parfaits.
Cover and refrigerate until ready to serve.
Just before serving, hull and slice your strawberries and use to garnish your Jello parfaits.
Pin this Easy Jello Parfait Recipe for a fun kitchen project with the kids:
Grab your free printable for our strawberry Jello parfait recipe:
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Strawberry Jello Parfait
A fun Jello Parfait recipe for Valentine's Day, this strawberry Jello Parfait is a super simple no-bake dessert for kids to make and tastes like a cheater strawberry cheesecake.
Ingredients
- 1 3oz package Strawberry Jell-O
- 1 1/2 cups Cool Whip
- 1 teaspoon Vanilla Extract, optional
- 4 Strawberries
Instructions
- Prepare your strawberry Jello according to package directions.
- Pour 1 1/2 cups of the liquid Jello mixture into a liquid measuring cup with a lip, reserving 1/2 cup of the Jello for the mousse layer.
- Place your parfait glasses sideways into a loaf pan, with the bottom angled against the bottom and side of the pan, and the top coming out at an angle on the other side, as shown.
- If the glasses are rolling around a bit, secure them with a kitchen towel.
- Divide the Jello mixture among the parfait glasses. (For three, pour in 1/2 cup; for four, pour in just over 1/3 of a cup.)
- Place the glasses in the fridge to set, about 1 hour.
- Allow the reserved Jello to cool but not solidify, and stir in 1 cup of the Cool Whip and optional vanilla extract. Refrigerate until the Jello in the glasses has set.
- Remove the Jello parfait glasses from the fridge and remove from the loaf pan.
- Spoon in the pink mousse layer, dividing equally amongst all glasses (about 1/4 cup each).
- Scoop the rest of your Cool Whip into a piping bag fitted with a star tip.
- Swirl the Cool Whip on top of the Jello Parfaits.
- Cover and refrigerate until ready to serve.
- Just before serving, hull and slice your strawberries and use to garnish your Jello parfaits.
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Nutrition Information:
Yield:
4Serving Size:
1Amount Per Serving: Calories: 126Total Fat: 7gSaturated Fat: 6gTrans Fat: 0gUnsaturated Fat: 1gCholesterol: 0mgSodium: 33mgCarbohydrates: 14gFiber: 1gSugar: 13gProtein: 1g
Sugar, Spice and Glitter uses an auto-generate nutrition calculator. Nutrition information isn’t always accurate unless analyzed in a scientific lab, so these should be considered more of a guideline than medical information.
I hope your kids love getting to make their own strawberry Jello parfaits and are so proud to share their beautiful desserts with whoever is lucky enough to eat them!
For more fun kid-made recipes, check out our Easy Strawberry Tarts or our Giant Rice Krispie Hershey Kiss.
Red combined with white. So attractive!
thank you!