Postpartum Jello
Wait?! Jello? Really?
Surprisingly, yes! Gelatin has many benefits. If you been following me on Instagram or taken a class from me, you have probably have heard me talk extensively about the benefits of bone broth. And one of those benefits is gelatin.
When looking at jello on the grocery shelves, they’re not filled with the most healthful ingredients: refined sugar and food dyes. So, let’s make a more healthful jello with real gelatin to get all the nutrient benefits your body craves in labor and postpartum.
Gelatin Benefits include:
Digestive - Gelatin can help heal the gut lining and aid in absorbing proteins in your diet. It can also help settle stomach acid secretion, which is why we see all the abuelas making bone broth and dishing it out anytime any family member is sick. That bone broth is healing with love and gelatin!
Joints - Gelatin comes from the collagen found in the bones, joints, skin, and connective tissue of animals. This is why, in growing up around my Mexican family, we saw so many meals use the whole animal, extracting gelatin from big bones all the way to chicken feet. These big joints and little joints produced so much gelatin, so it makes sense that there are studies showing how gelatin and collagen supplements improve joint comfort and reduce joint pain. Your pelvis went through so much in carrying your baby, and to open and yield to deliver your baby, it needs a little more gelatin support to help it heal.
Inflammation - Gelatin acts directly on the inflammatory cells (it gets very complicated with balancing out amino acids and methionine), but overall many studies show glycine suppresses inflammation.
Bone broth is one way to get more gelatin in your postpartum diet, as well as using a collagen powder like this one. But won’t your favorite fruit juice, grass-fed beef gelatin and a fun shaped jello mold be so much more fun!
Postpartum Jello Recipe
1.5 cups organic fruit juice (avoid pineapple juice as the enzymes in it will not allow the gelatin to jell the juice)
4 tablespoon grass-fed beef gelatin
1/2-1 tablespoon honey, as needed for extra sweetener if you want
Equipment: Square Jello Mold or fun Dinosaurs Mold
Method
Mix ingredients in a small saucepan and allow the gelatin sit for a few minutes to help the gelatin dissolve.
Place the saucepan over medium-low heat, and stir with a metal utensil as the mixture heats up to dissolve the gelatin completely.
Once the gelatin is fully dissolved, remove from heat and pour into your jello molds or into a glass dish.
Place the mold or dish into the refrigerator to chill for at least 30minutes, or until gelatin sets.
Pop the jello out of the molds or if placed into a glass dish, cut into bite-size pieces with a knife, and store in an airtight container in the refrigerator.
Bring this treat with you to your labor to munch on every so often, to give you a boost of energy as you deliver your baby. This is a great option to eat if you choose an epidural (as many healthcare providers recognize jello as a clear fluid, but please double check with your healthcare providers about your food/liquid options while using an epidural). Or, enjoy them in your immediate postpartum time at your birthplace to support your healing body.
Happy postpartum amigas!
