My group of friends is famous for vodka gummy bears and I’ve even seen champagne gummy bears (#adult) popping up recently. But I’ve never been so obsessed with jello shots. Especially at parties. I’m sure you’ve seen jello (shots) in almost every mold imaginable.
Summer cookouts are my favorite type of party. And being that every minute detail of a party needs to be theme-related in my house, I decided to take on the task of making Watermelon Jello Shots for our Fourth of July Cookout coming up this weekend, but really these are perfect for any summertime party. This recipe is similar to that of a DIY-project – concentration and dedication are necessary!
I made a test batch to see if this would actually work. And it did! The most-time consuming part of these is de-pulping the limes, and that can be done a day ahead of time. Actually, you could even do up through step 5 a day ahead of time, and then the jello has longer to harden in the refrigerator. Not to mention, they’re totally adorable and worth it.
Watermelon Jello Shots
Ingredients:
10 limes
1 box watermelon jello (or any red flavor you like)
1 cup water
1.5 cup cold vodka (use watermelon if you have it)
Directions:
1. Boil 1 cup of water.
2. Halve the limes, using a paring knife cut around the edges to loosen the pulp. Juice your limes, so that you can at least have fresh lime juice instead of wasting all of the pulp. Using your fingers try to pry out as much of the pulp as possible. I found a small spoon under warm running water helped with this. Be gentle – you don’t want to puncture the lime. Re-shape them if they lost shape during the de-pulping. Set the lime halves aside. If you have the time, pop them in the freezer so that when you pour the jello in, they hold their shape.
3. Add 1 cup of boiling water to the jello powder, and stir for 2 minutes until fully dissolved. Stir in 1.5 cups cold vodka.
4. Pour the mixture into the lime halves, filling all the way to the top.
5. Chill the jello limes for at least 2 hours, making sure they stay upright.
(Note: De-pulping the limes is the most time-consuming and you can do that part, as well as fill the lime halves with jello to chill, a day prior if you want.)
6. Once firm, use a very sharp knife to cut the lime halves in half (2 wedges per half)
*Some limes will puncture and some will not cut as planned, but I ended up making a small batch of these for aesthetics and having another batch of regular jello shots on hand. Your call.
neverbeenso 