Fourth of July Sweets ~ Red, White, and Blue Parfaits

For the grand finale of our Fourth of July dinner, I made red, white, and blue parfaits layered with tart cherry and vanilla yogurt gelatin topped with a layer of blueberries. 🙂 Yum!

The little desserts did take a bit of time to make since I needed to wait for each layer to set before I could pour the next, but most of that time was not spent actively in the kitchen. I could kick back and read a Fourth of July mystery out on the deck while I waited. 🙂 But I think they were well worth the effort. Plus, they can be made a day or two ahead, which is an added bonus.

If you didn’t have time to cook all of the red, white, and blue dishes you wanted to make this weekend, this one would also be perfect for Bastille Day on the 14th!

Red, White, and Blue Parfaits

For the red layer:

3 teaspoons plain powdered gelatin

3 cups tart cherry juice (or really any natural red 100% fruit juice you like!)

For the white layer:

1 1/2 teaspoons plain powdered gelatin

2 teaspoons cold water

2 cups 2% Greek-style yogurt

1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract or vanilla bean paste

1 cup whole milk

1/3 cup granulated sugar

Set aside 4 serving glasses. I used two tall parfait glasses and two martini glasses. I think wine glasses would also be pretty.

For the red layer:

In a medium bowl, sprinkle the gelatin over 1 cup of cherry juice. Let the gelatin bloom. In a medium saucepan, bring the remaining 2 cups of cherry juice to a boil. Once it is boiling, remove from the heat. Add the bowl with the gelatin to the hot juice and whisk well. Transfer the mixture to a container with a spout.

Fill the serving glasses about 1/4 full with the cherry gelatin. Refrigerate the glasses until the red layer is set. (Mine took a couple of hours.) Set aside the remaining cherry gelatin and hold at room temperature.

For the white layer:

In a small bowl, add the gelatin to the water and let it bloom. In a medium bowl, add the yogurt and vanilla. In a medium saucepan, bring the milk and sugar to a simmer, whisking to dissolve the sugar. Once the milk is simmering, remove from the heat, add the bloomed gelatin, and whisk to combine. Let the milk cool to room temperature. Pour the milk mixture into the bowl with the yogurt mixture and whisk until well combined. Transfer the mixture to a container with a spout.

Pour the white gelatin onto the set layer of red gelatin so the height of the white layer is approximately the same as the red. (Make sure the gelatin layer below is truly set before pouring the next layer on top.) Refrigerate the glasses until the white layer is set. Set aside the remaining white gelatin and hold at room temperature.

Repeat the layers until you have two layers of red and two of white. Chill until well set, preferably overnight. Top with blueberries and a cherry in the middle right before serving.