Red White and Blue Jello

What 4th of July celebration would be complete without the kiddos running around with a cup of red, white, and blue jello? We love jello desserts of all kinds and layering patriotic colors in fun little cups is one of our favorite holiday treats.

Making these layered jello treats is fun and versatile. You can layer the red white and blue jello however you’d like and in any kind of cup, bowl, or dish. We use sweetened condensed milk and gelatin to make the white layer and it’s the perfect patriotic compliment to our red and blue.

Red White and Blue Jello Ingredients

• 3 oz. box red gelatin
• 3 oz. box blue gelatin
• 2 packets of plain gelatin
• 1 can sweetened condensed milk
• whipped cream
• sprinkles for decorating (you can find the ones I used here through this referral link)

Okay, so I wanted multiple layers of each color in my cup. The challenge is that you have to chill each layer for at least an hour, so that the jello sets, before you can add the next layer. What this means is that once your jello is mixed, you must pour it all into the cups to firm up. Since I was working with just one box of each color of jello and I only needed to make 6-8 cups, I divided each packet in half and mixed only half at a time.

So, if you’d like to do multiple layers of each color, simply divide your jello packets and the sweetened condensed milk portions in half. I weighed out 1.5 oz. of each jello color to be accurate.

How to Make the Layered Jello Cups

Let’s start with the blue jello. Remember that we’re only mixing half of the packet of blue jello, so we need only half of the water. Dissolve 1.5 oz. of blue jello into ½ cup boiling water. Then pour in ½ cup of ice cold water and stir. Divide the blue jello mixture evenly amongst the cups.

Place the cups on a baking sheet or a plate so that you can easily transfer them in and out of the refrigerator for each layer. Chill the cups until the blue layer of jello is solidified – about 1 hour.

Now it’s time for the white layer! Take one gelatin packet and sprinkle the whole thing over ½ cup of cold water. Stir 3.5 ounces of sweetened condensed milk into ½ cup of boiling water. Pour the milk mixture into the gelatin/water mixture and stir well, Now, pour your white gelatin to create a new layer over the blue layers in all your cups. Place in the refrigerator to chill until solidified.

Continue mixing and pouring each layer until your jello cups are full. Chill well between each layer. After I finished my first red layer, I could tell that only two more layers would fit so I flipped back to white and then a top layer of blue. If you have leftover jello, you can use it to make your 4th of July poke cake!

When the cups are fully layered and chilled, it’s time to serve! Give them a squirt of whipped cream and some festive sprinkles and you’re ready to party!

The jello cups can be kept in the refrigerator for up to 3 days.

Jello Cup Variations

• Instead of making multiple layers of each color, you could alternately just make one thicker layer of each color and skip the dividing.
• I used strawberry and blue raspberry, but you could easily swap these out for flavors in the same colors.
• Adjust the colors and layers for holidays, graduation celebrations, or even to represent your favorite sports teams!
• Layer the jello in plastic cups instead of footed cups.
• Pour each layer of jello into one 9×13 baking dish instead of dividing it between cups. Cut the finished layered jello into squares and serve.
• Instead of pouring the jello into cups, try pouring it onto a white cake to make a 4th of July poke cake!