Christmas Lush is a beautiful no-bake layered dessert that brings festive red, white, and green colours to your holiday table. With a buttery nutty crust, creamy cheesecake-style layers, fruity Jello, and fresh strawberries, this dessert is as pretty as it is delicious.
Reasons Why You Will Love This Christmas Lush
There are plenty of reasons this Christmas Lush deserves a place on your holiday dessert table.
It’s festive: The red and green layers create a beautiful Christmas-inspired dessert that looks impressive without requiring complicated decorating.
Easy to make: Each layer is simple to prepare, and you don’t need advanced baking skills.
Perfect for a crowd: A 9×13-inch dish makes plenty of servings, making this dessert ideal for Christmas parties and family gatherings.
Make-ahead friendly: You can prepare it the day before and keep it refrigerated until you’re ready to serve.
No complicated frosting: The colourful layers provide all the decoration you need. Add a few Christmas sprinkles or candies for an extra festive touch.
Wonderful texture: The crunchy crust, creamy cheesecake layer, fluffy topping, and fruity Jello create a delicious combination in every bite.
Ingredients Needed
For the Crust
All-purpose flour: Creates the base of the buttery crust.
Granulated sugar: Adds sweetness to balance the other layers.
Chopped pecans or walnuts: Nuts give the crust a delicious buttery crunch.
Unsalted butter: Helps bind the crust together and gives it a rich flavour.
For the Green Layer
Lime Jello: Provides the bright green colour and refreshing citrus flavour.
Boiling water: Dissolves the gelatin completely.
Cream cheese: Creates a rich, creamy layer and balances the sweetness of the Jello.
Whipped topping: Makes the layer light and fluffy.
Green food colouring: Optional, but useful if you want a brighter Christmas green.
For the Cream Cheese Layer
Cream cheese: The base of the creamy white layer.
Granulated sugar: Adds sweetness.
Whipped topping: Creates a light, smooth, and fluffy consistency.
For the Strawberry Layer
Strawberry Jello: Creates the vibrant red top layer.
Boiling water: Dissolves the gelatin.
Fresh strawberries: Add real fruit flavour, colour, and texture.
For Decoration
Add whipped topping, Christmas sprinkles, red and green candies, chopped nuts, or other festive decorations.
Variations to Recipe
There are several easy ways to customize Christmas Lush.
Change the green Jello: Lime isn’t your only option. Green apple or watermelon Jello can also give you a festive green layer.
Try pistachio: Pistachio pudding can be used for a different green layer and gives the dessert a nutty flavour.
Change the red layer: Strawberry Jello can be replaced with raspberry or cherry for a slightly different flavour.
Use different fruit: Instead of strawberries, try raspberries, cherries, or another fruit that pairs well with the gelatin.
Change the crust: A graham cracker crust, crushed vanilla wafers, or Oreo cookie crust can replace the nutty shortbread-style crust.
Add marshmallows: Mini marshmallows can be added to one of the creamy layers for extra texture.
Make it extra festive: Top the finished dessert with red and green candies, Christmas sprinkles, crushed peppermint, or white chocolate pieces.
Tips For Making
Refrigerate Between Layers
Don’t rush the layering process. Allowing each layer to chill and set before adding the next one helps keep the colours separated.
This is especially important for the gelatin layers. If a layer is too soft, the next layer may sink into it or cause the colours to blend.
Press Crust Into Pan Firmly
Press the crust firmly into the bottom of the baking dish.
The back of a measuring cup or spoon works well for compacting the crust evenly.
A firmly packed crust will hold together much better when you cut and serve the finished dessert.
Softened Cream Cheese
Make sure your cream cheese is properly softened before mixing.
Room-temperature cream cheese blends much more smoothly with the other ingredients and helps prevent lumps in the creamy layers.
If the cream cheese is too cold, the finished mixture can become uneven and difficult to spread.
Grease Pan
Lightly grease the 9×13-inch baking dish before adding the layers.
This helps prevent the dessert from sticking to the sides and makes serving much easier.
You can also line the dish with parchment paper if you want to lift the entire dessert out before slicing.
Give Each Layer Enough Time
Don’t try to speed up the chilling process too much.
The dessert needs enough time in the refrigerator for each layer to become firm enough to support the next one. This is what gives Christmas Lush its beautiful defined layers.
Storing
Christmas Lush should always be stored in the refrigerator.
Cover the baking dish tightly with plastic wrap or transfer individual portions to airtight containers.
The dessert is best enjoyed within several days.
Because the fresh strawberries can release liquid as they sit, the layers may become slightly softer or wetter over time.
For the best appearance and texture, keep the dessert chilled and avoid leaving it at room temperature for extended periods.
Freezing is generally not recommended because gelatin-based desserts can change texture after freezing and thawing.
Can I use different flavors of Jello?
Yes. You can customize the Jello flavours to suit your taste or the occasion.
For a traditional Christmas colour combination, choose one green Jello and one red Jello. Lime, green apple, or watermelon can work for the green layer, while strawberry, raspberry, or cherry can create the red layer.
If you’re making the dessert for another holiday, simply choose Jello flavours that match your desired colours.
How long does the dessert need to chill?
The completed dessert needs several hours in the refrigerator so all the layers can fully set.
For the best results, allow it to chill overnight when possible. This gives the gelatin layers plenty of time to firm up and makes the dessert much easier to slice cleanly.
During preparation, allow each individual layer to chill and set before adding the next one.
Can I make the dessert ahead of time?
Absolutely. Christmas Lush is an excellent make-ahead dessert.
You can prepare and assemble it the day before serving, then cover the baking dish and keep it refrigerated overnight.
Making it ahead also gives the layers plenty of time to firm up, making it easier to cut into attractive portions.
For the best presentation, add whipped topping, sprinkles, candies, or other decorative toppings shortly before serving.
PrintChristmas Lush
Christmas Lush Dessert is a perfectly festive dessert recipe for the holidays. Easy Christmas dessert made with a layer of red velvet cake, a sweet cream cheese layer, a creamy pudding layer and a final layer of whipped cream and sprinkles.
- Prep Time: 20 minute
- Cook Time: 15 minute
- Total Time: 35 minutes
- Yield: 12 1x
- Category: Dessert
- Cuisine: American
Ingredients
- 1 box red velvet cake mix
- 1 egg
- ½ cup unsalted butter melted and cooled
- 8 oz cream cheese room temperature
- ½ confectioners sugar
- 2 3.4 oz boxes of instant vanilla pudding mix
- 3 cups cold milk
- 16 oz whipped topping Cool Whip
- Green gel food coloring Green gel food coloring is recommended, you can use regular food coloring but it will require more product
- Red heart sprinkles or red heart candies
Instructions
- Preheat your oven to 350° and grease a 9×13 baking dish.
- MAKE THE CAKE LAYER: In a large mixing bowl, combine the dry red velvet cake mix with one egg and melted butter until combined. Evenly press the mixture into the greased baking dish.
- Bake the cake mixture for 15 minutes. Allow the cake to cool completely.
- MAKE THE CREAM CHEESE LAYER: Beat the softened cream cheese and powdered sugar in a large mixing bowl with an electric mixer until smooth.
- Fold in 8 ounces of the whipped topping into the cream cheese mixture until combined.
- Spread the cream cheese mixture evenly across the top of the cooled cake layer. Refrigerate the cake while you prepare the next layer.
- MAKE THE PUDDING LAYER: In a separate bowl, whisk together the dry pudding packets and cold milk until smooth. Stir in ¼ cup of whipped topping and green gel food coloring until desired color is achieved.
- Remove the cake from the refrigerator and spread the vanilla pudding layer across the top of the cream cheese layer.
- ADD WHIPPED CREAM AND SPRINKLES: Spread the remaining whipped topping over the top of the vanilla pudding layer. Garnish with red heart sprinkles if desired.
- Chill in the refrigerator for at least 1-2 hours or overnight before serving.
