Low Carb/Keto Jello Salad Recipe: Want an amazing and oh-so-easy Low Carb and Sugar-Free Dessert? Look no further, this low carb Jello Fluff dessert is exactly what you need to satisfy your sweet tooth! (Is it a salad or is a desert? I’m not sure the answer, but what I do know is that it’s delicious!)
FYI: If you are not a low carb eater – don’t make this recipe. Make this Jello Salad recipe instead: Black Cherry Jello Salad. (It’s the traditional Jello Salad Recipe you are probably looking for.)
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A few years back, I shared a recipe for the traditional, family favorite jello salad we serve at every holiday gathering. That jello salad is probably in my top 10 favorite dishes ever and definitely makes the holiday meal, in my opinion! (The nearest holiday dish to rival it, is my mom’s mashed candied yam casserole, but the salad is definitely my favorite.)
I’m committed to sticking with my low sugar/low carb way of eating- especially through the holidays. (At some point, I’ll share our before and after weight loss pics, so keep your eye out for that.) I really wanted to come up with a few lower carb dishes that would fit seamlessly into our holiday menus. (Another good recipe I’ve been making a lot is my broccoli salad.)
Guy’s- I could have totally shared this recipe with you much sooner because I’ve made it at least 6 times now. The problem is, we just keep eating it before I can get pictures!
I knew it would be easy to remake this recipe since sugar-free Jello and heavy cream are very low on the carb scale. (Even though the cartons say zero, the jello and cream do have carbs. I think a product can have almost .9 carbs per serving and still be allowed to say zero in the nutritional facts.) I’ve seen jello salads made with cottage cheese so I wanted to try and combine a cottage cheese salad and my jello salad and see how it turned out.
I totally scored with this new recipe. In fact, I think I might like it better than the old recipe. The texture is a bit different from the original since I’m using different ingredients for the base. The heavy whipping cream and cottage cheese make for a “denser” jello salad than you’re probably used to, but I can’t begin to tell you how much my hubby and I love this recipe. It could be because we’re eating fewer sweets, but every little spoonful is like a bite of Heaven!
Recipe notes:
-Cottage cheese does have a few carbs per serving. Compare labels and look for one with more fat. As an example, the Horizon brand has fewer carbs than other cottage cheese brands w/ 4% milkfat.
Mmm, good- I could not wait to eat it!
Don’t forget to pin it!
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Low Carb Jello Salad Recipe: Want an amazing and oh-so-easy Low Carb and Sugar-Free Dessert? Look no further, this low carb Jello Fluff dessert is exactly what you need to satisfy your sweet tooth! (Is it a salad or is a desert? I’m not sure the answer, but what I do know is that it’s delicious!)
Ingredients
- 1 cup Cottage Cheese (highest fat./lowest carb count you can find)
- 1 packet of Sugar free Black Cherry Jello (the box w/ 4 servings)
- 1/2 cup of shredded colby jack or cheddar cheese (use more if you like)
- 1/3 cup chopped pecans (more if you like)
- 1 cup Heavy Whipping Cream
- 2 tbsp of your favorite cup for cup, no sugar sweetener. (I like Swerve)
Instructions
- Place whipping cream, mixing bowl and beaters in freezer for about 10 minutes before starting. (Helps the whipping cream whip faster and fluffier
- Mix the Jello powder and cottage cheese together until completely combined.
- Add pecans and shredded cheese to the jello mixture, combine.
- Whip the cream to the soft peak stage and add in your sweetener.
- Continue whipping cream until it forms stiff peaks.
- Gently fold whipped cream and jello mixture together until completely combined.
- Chill 2 to 4 hour before serving. (Though I never wait that long when making this for me, lol!)
Enjoy!
Notes
- Cottage cheese does have a few carbs per serving. Compare labels and look for one with more fat. As an example, the Horizon brand has fewer carbs than other cottage cheese brands w/ 4% milkfat.
- serves 6 to 8
- Carbs per serving: 2
Nutrition
- Serving Size: 1/8 of recipe
- Calories: 184
- Fat: 16
- Carbohydrates: 2
- Protein: 5
Keywords: low carb, sugar free, jello , dessert, fluff
Still hungry? More low sugar recipes you might enjoy:
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Tricia Goss says
What purpose does the shredded cheese serve? Just wondering if it's optional as the idea is a little off-putting to me lol Could you use shredded unsweetened coconut instead? Looks delish!
Jamie says
The purpose of that shredded cheese is delicious-ness. You just have to try it.
~Jamie
maranza says
I just made the fluff and I questioned the addition of the cheese too, but let me tell you – this stuff is da bomb!! I didn't change a thing. It is wonderful.
Jamie says
I'm so glad you liked it! I don't know why the cheese is so good, but it is! My family has been making a regular version of this recipe for years ( https://scatteredthoughtsofacraftymom.com/2013/11/favorite-holiday-recipes-black-cherry.html) So when I remade it to be lower carb, I knew I had to keep keep the shredded cheese.
Ericka says
Can I sub anything for the nuts (nut allergy here) or just leave them out entirely? Thanks!
Jamie says
Leave them out or sub with whatever you normally use to sub for nuts. The pecans taste really good, but they also give the fluff a nice texture.
Marissa says
I like to use CocoWhip which is similar to cool whip but has coconut oil instead of hydrogenated oils. Tastes just as good, if not better than cool whip.
Jamie says
I have never seen this before! Is it sugar free?
Pamela Frederick says
I messed up my first try at this…..I started out putting the ingredients inside the chilled mixer bowl. Didn’t realize I should have combined the first few ingredients in a separate bowl.
Luckily, I had enough ingredients to do a second try. This time things worked as they should have. The little bit I licked off the spatula was good. Looking forward to having a serving after dinner this evening.
Thanks for the recipe.
P. Frederick
Jamie says
Hope yo enjoyed it!
Deb says
Just made this and I’m telling you to use the cheese! Seems like it doesn’t make and sense and you’re right, ! But boy oh boy it is delicious with it! Don’t cheat yourself!
Jamie says
Couldn’t agree more, lol!
Elaine says
Is the carb count based on six or eight servings?
Jamie says
6 I belive
Angie says
Dang! Just made this and it was a smidge too sweet so I added a little more cottage cheese, heavy whipping cream, a pinch of nuts, and a sprinkle of cheese and it was spot on perfect! I feel like I’m waddling now after taste testing it before serving! Yum yum!!
Jamie says
The desired sweetness level will definitely vary from person to person. Lately, I’ve been doing a version of this for a snack – just the cottage cheese and pecans sprinkled with a bit of the black cherry jello powder. (I don’t measure, I just give it a taste.) It’s so good! I’ve tried several jello flavors, but definitely keep coming back to the black cherry!
Jodi says
Does the carb count include the carbs for the Heavy Whipping Cream?
Kerri says
This is wonderful! Can’t wait to serve it tomorrow for Easter brunch.
Lisa says
Made this for Easter as I wanted to have some sort of jello fluff but had just started Keto.
I could only find SF cherry, not black cherry. Like you said, it’s pretty dense, so with the leftovers I added more cottage cheese and liked it better. But the flavor is awesome!
PS- Add the cheese!
★★★★
Jamie says
So glad you liked it! Definitely keep your eye out for the black Carry. That flavor just has a little something special that makes it really really good with this recipe.
Chell says
Heaven… all I can say… not many options for a desert when watching carbs. This stuff is AWESOME. A friend tried it with orange sugar free jello…. delicious as well.
★★★
Mary says
Can you substitute the cottage cheese with something else?
Jamie says
You could probably substitute it with anything you want, but it wouldnt be the same if you did.
Mary says
Can you really taste the cottage cheese, not a big fan
Jamie says
I’m not either but all you really taste is the jello. All I can say is give it a try.
Sue Scully says
Hi. I have just made this dessert and I don’t know what went wrong. I used my stand-up mixer. For the life of me, I could not get the cottage cheese to blend smoothly. I whipped it for 10 minutes and hardly anything. I then put it in the micro wave and there were still lumps. It tastes great but looks lumpy. Thank
Jamie says
It is supposed to be lumpy from the cottage cheese.
Colleen says
I do not like Cherry anything, other flavors can be used?
Jamie says
I’ve tried other flavors but did not care for them. Everyone is different, so give it a shot. Sometimes I just sprinkle the black cherry jello into cottage cheese and eat that. So maybe try that first. If you find a flavor you like making it that way, then give the full recipe a shot. (cream and pecans are $$, that’s why I recommend just trying it with cottage cheese first.
cslee says
should i use yello cheddar or white cheddar cheese
Jamie says
yellow
shirley says
The cottage cheese and heavy whipping cream give this a heavier texture than a normal jello salad, but if you’ve been eating low carb for a while, you are probably used to the low carb stuff being a bit different from the high sugar versions.
All that being said, this is really good! I like to load mine up with extra pecans.
★★★★★
Vicki says
oh yum .. only had strawberry jello but … oh yum
★★★★★
Nicole says
Omg I have tried so many low carb/keto desserts and had to throw them away because they were so awful. I had almost given up on desserts entirely and then I found this!!! It’s so amazing! I absolutely love it. I’m almost in tears! If you’ve been on the low carb/keto struggle you’ll know how desperately you want something sweet that tastes good! Thank you so much!!
Jamie says
I am so glad you like it! Hubby and I have this as a snack quite often. Most of the time, we just want a quick fix and leave out the cream and cheese and just eat the cottage cheese, topped with a few pecans and a sprinkle of the jello powder (as much as you need to achieve your favorite amount of flavor.)
Teresa Hickey says
can this be made a day in advance or should it be made day of?
Jamie says
I would make it a few hours before. The longer it sits, the consistency changes. It still tastes good, but is not as light and fluffy.
Jodi says
I have made this a few times now.
First time was with the dark cherry as suggested , it was nice but a bit sweet.. Perhaps because it has been ages since having something sweet.
The following time , I figured I would try something different , and prayed it would be just as nice. I used a little less stevia than before , but instead of the dark cherry I used orange mango. It was heaven!!!
I use fresh shredded colby instead of cheddar too. You really don’t notice the shredded cheese in it. In fact , if you had it served and never made it , you wouldn’t even know it’s 90% cheese content.
Thank you so much for this amazing recipe!!
Can’t wait to try more flavours , as I like to be adventurous with this one!
★★★★★
Susan says
Can it be frozen?
Jamie says
I don’t believe so.
Susan Huth says
How long would this keep in the fridge? I cook for just me and would like a snack that I can grab for a few days. Would the whip cream be a problem?
Jamie says
It will last for several days. Although it seems like it becomes denser over time. My guess is that it might be because the longer it sits, the more time the gelatin has to work?
Cherie says
I am on Keto and have mixed instant pudding pack with 3 cups of heavy cream and it’s to die for and lasts several days in the drug but does have carbs.
I have been considering mixing a box of jello with the 2 or 3 cups of heavy whipping cream and possibly 1/2 brick of cream cheese too. Have you done this? I can’t find anything on the internet.
Victoria Nelson says
Hi Cherie, a friend and I have experimented with the sugar free jello/cream cheese/heavy cream you asked about. She loves using the sugar free orange jello. I prefer a berry flavor. We used a full 8 oz. brick of softened cream cheese (beaten until smooth) and blended in the jello powder thoroughly before slowly beating in 2 cups of heavy cream. We each felt the need to add a little sweetener to reduce the tartness. She used a teaspoon; I used a tbsp. It was delicious. I scooped it into individual serving containers with lids, put them in the refrigerator and ate one each evening for dessert. They should keep as long as your cream cheese and heavy cream would have kept in the refrigerator after opening. Note: The jello didn’t totally dissolve and left tiny little “lumps” in the cream cheese, so I may need to experiment more with that step to get it smoother. Don’t get me wrong, it was still delicious and I ate every bit of it! I’ve also been thinking of experimenting with combining sugar free jello with sugar free pudding and heavy cream. Like raspberry jello with white chocolate pudding. There are a few carbs in each serving of any of these recipes, but these treats keep me from diving head-first into a carton of ice cream.
Jamie, I can’t wait to try your recipe. I’m not a fan of cottage cheese, so I’m hoping beating it well makes it smooth enough that I won’t be bothered by it. Otherwise, I may substitute cream cheese for the cottage cheese. The idea of the shredded cheddar doesn’t bother me at all, but some unsweetened shredded coconut sounds awesome as well. And pecans! I wish pecans were totally carb-free because everything is better with loads of pecans!
Sharon Eddins says
Can this be used with cool whip?
Jamie Sanders says
I haven’t tried it, but I am assuming it can. I have a slightly different jello salad with cool whip here: https://scatteredthoughtsofacraftymom.com/favorite-holiday-recipes-black-cherry/ There is no cottage cheese in it.
Karen says
Oh my goodness! I missed this dessert so much since going low carb. At first I was very apprehensive about the cheese in it but I made the recipe as written & added about 3 chopped strawberries to it. This dessert was amazing! Thanks for sharing!!
★★★★★