It’s a no-cook dessert. All the ingredients can be prepped well ahead of time and stored in the fridge. Minutes before serving, ladle the cubed almond jelly, peaches, cherries and blueberries into individual bowls, drizzle in peach syrup and voila!

Because who doesn’t adore no-cook desserts, right? I do love them. They are a life saver when you’ve spent hours cooking the main course and side dishes, and baking seems more of a punishment than a source of enjoyment.

About almond jelly

Chinese almond jelly can be bought in almost any Chinese grocery. Just open the pack, cut the jelly and serve. Note, however, that Chinese almond jelly is not gelatin. It is tofu. Because it is cooked with no dairy ingredients, it is preferred by vegetarians and vegans. I am neither but I love Chinese almond jelly.

If you prefer to substitute gelatin, whether in sheet or powdered form, the prep time will be longer because you will need to cook the gelatin then leave it to cool and firm up.

Why not just use canned fruit cocktail?

This is a recipe from 2011. Although so many versions of almond jelly with diced fruits later sprouted, most of them use canned fruit cocktail. I really do not like canned fruit cocktail. It’s just impossible to discern the individual flavors of the fruits after they have all soaked in sugar syrup.

The only fruits I can tolerate in canned form are peaches, lychees and pineapple (the latter only when I’m desperate). So, you can understand why I chose peaches. But why not lychees? Color. I wanted a festive looking dessert when I made this and pale-colored lychees just didn’t fit my requirements.

Almond jelly with peaches, cherries and blueberries

Although inspired by the ubiquitous almond jelly dessert served in Chinese restaurants, it is possible to make this sweet dish using almond-flavored gelatin. Just prepare according to package directions, leave to set, cut into cubes and chill well before combining with the peaches, cherries and blueberries.

Almond jelly, peaches, cherries and blueberries in blue bowls

Prep: 15

Cook: 0

Total: 15

Servings: 8 people

Course: Dessert

Cuisine: Asian Fusion

Label: Fruits

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Ingredients

4 halves canned peaches well chilled (you’ll need some of the syrup)
1 cup maraschino cherries well chilled and drained
2 cups fresh blueberries well chilled
4 cups cubed almond jelly well chilled

Instructions

Cut the peaches into half-inch cubes.
Pull off the stems of the maraschino cherries and discard. Cut each cherry into halves.
Divide the jelly, peaches, blueberries and cherries among individual bowls. Pour in some of the peach syrup.
Serve the almond jelly with peaches, cherries and blueberries cold.

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