With Valentines Day just one day away, the kids and I wanted to experiment making healthy treats we could hand out at our annual homeschool co-op V-Day party. We wanted to give away something yummy, not to complicated to make, and something with a bit of nourishment too.
We landed on gummy bears!
The kids really enjoy making their own Jell-O using grass-fed gelatin, so we dug into the internet and learned that by adding more of the gelatin into a smaller quantity of liquid, you can make gummy bears that are stable at room temperature. Fun!
I always keep a bottle of Vital Proteins grass-fed gelatin in my supplement cabinet as I like to add it to my smoothies. Gelatin is super soothing to the gut and is great for your joints, skin, and hair. Of course, there are many other nutritional benefits but one of our favorite culinary benefits is its ability to gel. The kids love it!
So, with gelatin in our supplement cabinet, off to Amazon we clicked and found these fun gummy bear molds perfect for making homemade gummy bears! Waiting for the molds to arrive was probably the most difficult part of making these.
Homemade Gummy Bear Treats
Homemade gummy bears are really simple to make. The kids squeezed 8oz of fresh orange juice, strained the pulp, and gently warmed it up on the stovetop. Once warmed, not hot, they added one tablespoon of honey and then added the gelatin while I whisked it in for them.
After that, the kids each filled a mold with the prepared juice mixture.
Once filled, they placed their molds in the freezer to set for 20 minutes. That’s it. Once set, they popped them out.
Simple, and the kids had a blast making them! Of course, they didn’t last long so for our party we’ve decided to buy some different flavored juices from Trader Joes to make a few more batches 😉
These gummy bear treats are simple to make and nourishing as they're gently sweetened with honey and made using grass-fed beef gelatin. Great for the gut and a treat your kids will enjoy too!
Ingredients:
- 8 oz fruit juice
- 1 tbsp honey
- 3 tbsp grass-fed beef gelatin
Method:
- In a small heavy-bottomed sauce pan, gently warm the fruit juice. Make sure you don't bring it to a boil as you want to preserve some of the living enzymes in the honey.
- Once warmed, add the honey and little by little, whisk in the grass-fed gelatin until it's dissolved and mixed through.
- Once the juice and gelatin mixture is properly mixed, add the juice to these molds and allow to firm up and set in the freezer for 20 minutes.
- Once set, pop them out and enjoy!
Have you ever made homemade gummy bear treats? Do you have any other healthy treat suggestions for holiday parties? Please share them in the comments below.
Thanks for sharing Diana! I love the idea of using droppers to fill the gummy molds. Could you supply a link to which ones you purchased? They would greatly decrease the mess that I deal with! Thank you!
Hey, Dana! You can find them here –> http://amzn.to/2BpZi9I
I love gummy candy. One of my biggest vices 🙂
How is the texture compared to traditional store bought gummy bears? Or are they more like fruit snacks?
No, definitely not like fruit snacks. More on the gummy end but not exactly like store bought gummies. They come close though!
Yes… I follow THM so I made some with a sweetener. We really like them. My husband’s favorite is a lemon flavor. I do like your mold though – actually little bears…:) 🙂 I didn’t get myself yet to buy one. I just put them in a baking pan and cube it afterward.
Oh, lemon would be good! I’ll have to give that a try 😀
We finally made these today! We used white grape juice. My five year old loved it! She could even pop them out of the molds after we set them outdoors to freeze. Thank you for sharing this!
I’m glad to hear that, Casey! Thanks for sharing.
Hi Diana, I’m curious about the grass fed beef gelatin you’re using. Most of what I find comes from Brazil. Wonder what you know about the quality of the gelatin you use. When the cows are raised in a healthy environment there are many benefits all around.
I use Vital Proteins which is a reputable brand.