Vanilla Berry Chai Jello Treat

Stained Glass Jello Dessert made healthy...

i know, i know...we've all seen this one before.  commonly known as stained glass jello, but i bet you haven't tried this version.

it's lo-cal, lo-carb...no fat...NO GUILT...

it's FULL OF PROTEIN...and IT'S FUN !!! 

you see this type of jello dessert a lot in the Mexican markets, but it's usually made with sweetened condensed milk and sugary jello......and i've seen many recipes on the Internet all cute and colorful.  here's an example that i found at Mexicanfoodsandmore.com... BUT all the fun colors and flavors of jello are the pre-sugared ones and i don't see myself eating sweetened condensed milk in solid form anytime soon.

so i had a "light bulb moment"

why not use my vanilla protein drink as the milky base and use sugar-free jellos...

better yet...infuse different tea flavors into the colored jellos.

i dug out the Knox gelatin packets i had in the back of the pantry, put my lab-coat on and went to work.

the results have been delicious.  friends love the cute little squares i dole out and it's always a great conversation piece....

"where'd you get that?...what is that?...how'd you make that?...can i have some?..."

always followed by a big smile and a few giggles

this post is not so much a recipe as it is an idea,...

but i have put the ingredients for the treat i made shown in the photos.  you can see how flavors can easily be changed to suit what you have available.  i found that Worldwide Vanilla Pure Protein 21g or 35g protein (found at Trader Joe's) works well for the base and the Isopure (looks like this) Blue berry flavor worked well with it's icy blue color AND it added 40 more grams of protein to the batch.  look for Isopure at a nutrition store.  you could also try Gatorade G2 Icy Blue Berry or something else colorful.  i DID find that Gatorade wasn't as flavorful...Crystal light has some great flavors...cherry pomegranate is great

EASY PROTEIN JELLO TREAT

8 x 8 glass pyrex dish for finished product
2 cups vanilla protein drink
1 lrg box black cherry sugar free Jello (makes 8  1/2 cup servings)
16 oz of ice blue G2 Gatorade
OR 16 oz of Isopure Blueberry Protein drink
OR another flavor sugar free jello, 1 box
1 - 2 Chai tea sachet
dash cinnamon, cardamom and nutmeg, ginger

let me suggest a link to a GREAT blog post here at The food Librarian.  Mary has some fabulous photos and perfect instructions on making stained (broken) glass jello.  for an easy protein version, just substitute the condensed milk with the vanilla protein drink...NOTE...DON'T USE WATER...bloom your gelatin in 1 cup cold protein drink then heat in the microwave until completely dissolved then add the other cup protein drink and proceed.
use sugar free jello for the colors.
if you want to get creative or expand your flavors see below...

use chai ice tea for the water when making your colored boxed jello

also i like to add a small (small!) dash of cinnamon, cardamom, ginger and nutmeg to the vanilla protein drink.

if you are using another liquid, such as the Isopure Protein juice, Gatorade or what ever...use 2 gelatin packets for 2 cups of liquid....bloom your gelatin in 1 cup cold liquid for 5 minutes, give it a stir then heat in microwave until dissolved.  no need to boil, but don't walk away 'cuz it can over flow...not good.  stir...when completely dissolved add the other cup liquid and stir...pour into flat dish then refrigerate until completely firm.  cut into cubes....

 and again, refer to this great post/link, The Food Librarian, for finishing the project...i would write it all out, but Mary explains it so well and this would just get too long.

i'm sure you get the drift...it's not rocket science....
although you should win a prize for making it to the end of this post.

go wild with some fabulous flavor combos

i think i'll try something with chocolate protein drink?... next week when i'm done with this one.