We are big fans of gelatin at our house and we use it in a lot of different ways. These homemade fruit snacks and homemade marshmallows are the kid-favorites in our house, and I can feel good about giving it to them since it is a source of protein and vitamins.
Erase the idea of gummy bears as a junky treat from your mind… these homemade fruit snacks look just like them (although their texture is a little softer, like jello) but they’re actually health food!
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Healthy Gummy Bears? Yes!
Why make homemade fruit snacks? I can think of three good reasons:
- It’s a really quick and easy recipe (even the kids can do this one themselves)
- They are SO much healthier than store-bought
- They’re really fun to make!
Not only do these fruit snacks have no artificial colors or flavors, they have the gut-soothing benefits and protein of gelatin. The kombucha adds nutrients as well, making these fruit snacks even healthier.
Tip: Add additional nutrition by make these chewable vitamins instead or make them flu-busting gummy bears with a few simple substitutions.
How to Make Homemade Fruit Snacks
Again, this recipe is super simple. All you need is kombucha or fruit juice (100% juice or freshly squeezed), a candy mold, and powdered unflavored gelatin from a good (grass-fed) source.
Heat the juice or kombucha, whisk in the gelatin, pour into molds, and let it set! You’ll have fruit snacks for a crowd in no time.
If you don’t have a mold, an oiled container works in a pinch. Cut gummies into small cubes once set.
Go with the classic bear shaped molds or try fun assorted geometric shapes, dinosaur molds, bugs and flowers, and even this unlikely combo Lego/hearts set so you have something to please everyone!
The recipe fills about 4-5 of these molds, or a medium baking dish (oiled). If you use a baking dish, just cut the fruit snacks once they gel. If you use the molds, stick them in the refrigerator to firm up. Tip: After they are set, put them in the freezer for 5 minutes to make them come out easier.
There really are endless ways this recipe could be adapted, and I’ve included our favorite below. If you experiment with different flavors or combinations, please share them below!
Homemade Fruit Snacks Recipe
Servings
Nutrition
Notes
- It is important to have all ingredients ready before beginning as you'll need to work quickly once you start.
- Make sure you are using gelatin, not collagen hydrolysate or peptides as they will not gel. I've also had some feedback that the Great Lakes brand of gelatin doesn't work well in this recipe.
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What is your favorite healthy homemade snack? Ever made any like these? Share below!
I just made strawberry flavored gummies, blueberry/cherry flavor and peach/mango/pineapple/coconut flavor. The first two set up great and the immersion blender made mixing the gelatin when adding the hot water a breeze! I just read a post mentioning that pineapple juice will prevent gelatin from setting, so that will explain why mine is still runny :/ oh well, they will make tasty Popsicles 🙂
I think the key to getting these smooth is using the immersion blender. I didn’t have any problems getting my gummies to a nice smooth consistency that set up quickly.
Thanks for sharing this recipe. It was fun experimenting with the flavors 🙂
Looks like a lot of people are not having a whole lot of success. You really have to whisk the heck out of the mixture, I found it also helps to not have any of the ingredients cold, I even warmed my juice up a little. Mango, peach and cherry turned out wonderfully!
I also made some treats for my dogs! It was kind of gross making them and they look pretty gnarly…. I used bone broth in place of the juice/kombucha, pureed some chicken and instead of sweetener, I added some sea salt. Both of my girls loved them! I did try them, it was kind of like eating not as salty, squishy bouillon cubes.
Is that photo of your gummies made with this recipe? I’m so upset that I’ve wasted all of these ingredients only to have a huge slimy pink mass! I should’ve followed my instincts or just read the comments first. What a waste!
Katie, can you tell me how much gelatin I could use with this recipe to make a jell-o like consistency? Also, given this recipe above, how many a day could I give to my husband who has intestinal issues? I’ve tried activated charcoal and it helps to some degree. When he is have a severe flair up, it doesn’t do much. Hoping we will have more success with this. Thank you
Gelatin helps the most when used regularly over a period of time, and bone broth would also be helpful to him. Here is the jello recipe: https://wellnessmama.com/3803/healthy-jello/ and he really can’t overdose on the gelatin…his body will tell him when it doesn’t want anymore
These look great, but mine didn’t turn out. I should have trusted my instinct, but read over the steps 3 times and they way they are written implies that you add the gelatin to cold water. Needless to say, all this did was make a gloppy mess and waste ingredients. May I suggest clarifying this part of the recipe?
You temper in cold water (it creates clumps if you add to hot water) but then you add to the warm/hot mixture to get a smooth consistency
Thanks for the reply. The gelatin was such a big clump once added to the cold… I went crazy with the whisk and then went crazy again once added to the hot mixture. Can you think of anything else I may have done wrong? Thx
First, Wellness Mama, I am very excited to make this “unhealthy” snack LOL, but why do you require a moderation before accepting posts if you are just going to let people hijack the comments?
Over half of this thread is the same argument over and over that doesn’t matter, no one is going to change the minds of anyone else here, should have stopped the argument in my opinion.
I get the whole compassion thing, but honestly in the scheme of things, MY health is way more important than any animals’. I just do my part as best I can to be as compassionate as I can in “killing” my food, also known as sustaining my life.
Last, as a past vegetarian and sometimes vegan, I love your site. I find this way of eating way more natural. When I did not eat meat, I ate a lot of processed foods that mimic animal products, in retrospect that is NOT healthy, thank you for helping me out!
Thanks for reading and for the kind words. I try not to delete comments unless they are personally attacking or spam, but I appreciate your words 🙂
The reason you can’t use fresh pineapple juice in gelatin recipes, is that pineapple contains an enzyme called “bromelain”.
Bromelain breaks the amino acid bonds in protein. Gelatin is pure protein. Uh oh …
Fortunately, bromelain is a protein; and like most proteins it “denatures” when heated (to over 160F, or so). Same way eggs turn white when you fry them.
Just boil fresh pineapple juice for a few seconds, and it won’t vandalize your gummy bears. 🙂
Hi. I made gummies with just fruit juice (cranberry grape) and gelatin. They didn’t have much flavor when they were done (not nearly as much as the juice did beforehand. Any ideas?
Thank you
Thank you for this recipe! I’ll probably tweak it a bit, but I appreciate the base recipe as another way to get more healthful gelatin in my diet.
As an aside, I am sorry that you have had to deal with such vitriol from people who can’t seem to have a conversation about nutritional science or agricultural science or ecology without inserting personal ethics.
Hi just had a question. I gave my daughter the gelatin only half a teaspoon and she threw up later that night. Not thinking it was the gelatin gave it to her next morning again and again she threw up. Could she be allergic if that’s even possible maybe a smaller amount she’s 5. Like to know what you think about it. Thanks love your blog.
I’d start with a really small amount and work up.. she could just be having trouble digesting a new kind of protein…
Hi! I tried making these today and as I was making the mixture with the cold water and gelatins powered I started getting big rubbery lumps and adding the hot water didn’t help much. I even stuck it in a blend and mixed it. Any advise for next time or I make these or is that how it’s suppose to happen.
you’ll have to whisk with the cool water or juice first to incorporate the gelatin and then very quickly add the hot mixture
Do you by chance know of a way to get the gelatin a little less expensive? I mean I understand you get what you pay for and we want to avoid the supplement from sick animals, but $33 for 2 packs and you use 1/2c and it only lasts a week…man I’d burn through this quickly 🙂 But I can’t wait to try these for my boys, I think they would love them!
I’m so excited about this recipe!! I can’t wait for my kids to get home and have these(I just made them this morning)! Thanks for a great alternative to store bought fruit snacks. I’m slowly weeding out all the sugary foods, especially anything with high fructose corn syrup. It’s been a bit slow but I want to get my family on more healthy foods, just seems like such a challenge sometimes on a tight budget! So I thought I’d leave a comment about my experience with this recipe…
I had all of my ingredients ready before I started, and used a cookie sheet oiled with coconut oil. I used organic pure grape juice, puréed mixed berries(thawed, and after puréed were at room temp), agave nectar instead of honey, and gelatin and water. When I started whisking the gelatin in cold water it quickly clumped up, and I added the boiling water right away. I thought for sure it was ruined but I just kept whisking for a minute or so and soon it all dissolved and no more clumps! Then added the rest as told in recipe and it was slightly warm-room temp. I think having the purée and juice at room temp instead of cold, helped it from forming to quickly. I didn’t have any molds, but it would’ve been perfect to pour in molds :). I’ve already tried some and the flavor is great! And I have my next batch ready to make with spinach added in with puréed fruit, to add more veggie benefits to it! My kids will never know because the mixed berry hides it well!! Thanks wellness mama!
Oh, and I don’t know how you handle on the crazy ppl comments on here! I would’ve deleted them all! Grace and blessings to you 🙂
I’m so excited about this recipe!! I can’t wait for my kids to get home and have these(I just made them this morning)! Thanks for a great alternative to store bought fruit snacks. I’m slowly weeding out all the sugary foods, especially anything with high fructose corn syrup. It’s been a bit slow but I want to get my family on more healthy foods, just seems like such a challenge sometimes on a tight budget! So I thought I’d leave a comment about my experience with this recipe…
I had all of my ingredients ready before I started, and used a cookie sheet oiled with coconut oil. I used organic pure grape juice, puréed mixed berries(thawed, and after puréed were at room temp), agave nectar instead of honey, and gelatin and water. When I started whisking the gelatin in cold water it quickly clumped up, and I added the boiling water right away. I thought for sure it was ruined but I just kept whisking for a minute or so and soon it all dissolved and no more clumps! Then added the rest as told in recipe and it was slightly warm-room temp. I think having the purée and juice at room temp instead of cold, helped it from forming to quickly. I didn’t have any molds, but it would’ve been perfect to pour in molds :). I’ve already tried some and the flavor is great! And I have my next batch ready to make with spinach added in with puréed fruit, to add more veggie benefits to it! My kids will never know because the mixed berry hides it well!! Thanks wellness mama!
Oh, and I don’t know how you handle on the crazy ppl comments on here! I would’ve deleted them all! Grace and blessings to you 🙂
Wow….those comments escalated quickly. Matthew 7:5 popped up in my mind. Anyhow, on to a more positive note. Thank you Katie! I can’t wait to try this recipe! You are a blessing in my house! I am happy to have come across your blog. I too, homeschool, have 5 babies, had one emergency c section, one son with a severe dairy allergy, use cloth diapers, and try to do what I think is best for my family. I wanted to say thank you for sharing your researched and educated informational blog. Best wishes to you and your family. 🙂
This may be a strange question as I’ve not yet used aloe vera juice for anything, but could that be used for the “juice”?
Ann,
Not only are you a bigot but you are clearly racist as well. KOREANS Do not eat their pets!!!! That is a disgusting, ill informed red neck mid America comment!!!
Many Koreans (Chinese, Vietnamese and other Asian groups) delight in a menu where dishes feature dog (or cat). There are many specialised restaurants that prepare these delicasies. ( you could not, despite popular belief ACCIDENTALY be served either) the meat is farmed, as with other livestock. They DO NOT eat their Pets!!!!!!!
Kylie,
Ann’s comments are almost always awful, I agree. I cannot for the life of me understand why she continues coming to a blog she so vehemently disagrees with.
I would like to gently suggest that your comment about rednecks might be better left unsaid. Take care.
Wow, sounds like Ann’s comment wasn’t the only hateful one. You are basically calling all redneck, mid-Americans “ignorant” and racists, and bigots. There are many people that identify by that title and are anything but ignorant or racists. Talk about double standard! It must only be racist if you are attacking someone that you LIKE!!!-
would these work just in an ice cube tray?
Yep
I just can’t keep scrolling through all this. I made them, worked well, taste pretty good too. Thank you! Do I need to keep these refrigerated?
Yes.
These were a complete disaster. I made them with strawberries and apple juice and they were completely tasteless. The only thing I could taste was gelatin (yuck). And the color was off putting pale pink. They didn’t at all look beautiful red like on the picture. What went wrong?
Were they fresh juices or canned?
The same thing happened to me. Fortunately I salvaged it enough that my kids still think they’re good. I ended up adding a couple cups more juice and blending it in my Vitamix and pouring into a big glass pan. It was a big lumpy glop but we took a cookie cutter and cut out some shapes and they’ll enjoy it. We used bottled juice, had everything ready right away… the only thing I can think of is that our puree was really cold and maybe that affected it?
I’ve made gummys before using a couple other recipes and they worked better for us so we’ll just keep using them.
I have more recipes from your site that I’ll be trying, though. I enjoyed your PaleoCon talk a lot – thanks!
I made these for my “gummy” addicted children as a healthy alternative to the boxes and boxes of “fruit snacks” we used to buy. I used a fruit mix of strawberries, bananas and mango with white grape juice which ends up looking like flesh colored jello with red specks. They taste amazing but look a little less than appealing. I think adding beet juice as a natural food coloring would help. Thanks for the recipe – Oh and you have to be FAST to make these once you start mixing the ingredients. I am definitely getting an immersion blender.