Soft, chewy, and full of natural fruit juice these homemade fruit gummies are absolutely delicious and are ready to eat in about 30 minutes!
My kids and husband love fruit gummies. The sugar-coated sour ones are probably their absolute favorite candy. However, I don’t love the ingredients found in them. Have you looked at the ingredients list on store-bought fruit gummies lately? If you look up a popular non-organic brand of gummy bears, you’ll find there are at least thirteen ingredients listed. Wowzers!
Sure, there are some organic options available but even those have over ten ingredients. Homemade gummies are super easy to make, and you only need 3 simple, natural ingredients. I recently discovered that I could make our own fruit gummies and we won’t be going back to the store bought version!
As an avid home canner, we have a strong supply of home canned fruits and vegetables pretty much year-round. When I’m making a batch of Buttermilk Mixed Berry Waffles, I like to save the juice leftover in the jar. This is the perfect amount for making a small batch of homemade gummies for the kids.
Sometimes I find a juice flavor that I don’t have or a new flavor combination that sounds good and will pick up a bottle of 100% juice at the grocery store. So, if you’re not a home canner, no worries, you can still make some delicious homemade gummies! Even if you use a storebought juice you will still be eliminating those unnecessary ingredients found in prepackage gummies.
Ready to get started?
Here’s what you’ll need to make homemade gummies:
1 Cup pure fruit or vegetable juice
4 Tablespoons unflavored gelatin
½ cup cold water
That’s it! Who knew making delicious, nutritious gummies at home could be so easy?
Making these homemade gummies is super easy!
First, in a medium bowl, combine ½ cup cold water and 4 Tablespoons of unflavored gelatin. Gently stir to combine then set aside for about 3-5 minutes.
Next, heat one cup of fruit juice in a medium saucepan over low-medium heat for approximately 2-3 minutes. The juice should be warm but not boiling.
Slowly add the water and gelatin mixture to the warm juice in the saucepan. Stir gently to combine and continue to simmer on low heat for 1-2 minutes. Remove from heat and allow mixture to cool for just a minute.
Prepare silicone candy molds by placing them on a flat baking sheet.
Using a food-safe dropper, carefully fill the cavities of a silicone candy mold. If you don’t have a silicone mold, you can simply just pour the mixture into an 8x8 baking dish and cut into bite-sized pieces once it has completely set.
Once all of the cavities are filled in your molds, place them in the refrigerator for at least 15 minutes. The baking sheet will help to catch any spills.
Store any leftovers in the refrigerator in an airtight container for up to two weeks.
Helpful tips:
You’ll want to avoid highly acidic juices like orange, grapefruit, lemons, limes, peaches, and pineapple. Fruits like this will break down the gelatin because they have a high concentration of the enzyme bromelain.
Our favorite flavors are cherry, strawberry mango, blueberry, and raspberry.
My kids and husband really love the tart/sourness of unsweetened gummies. However, if you want sweeter gummies, you can add 1 or 2 Tablespoons of honey, pure maple syrup, or other organic natural sweetener.
If you enjoyed this Homemade Fruit Gummies recipe, let us know in the comments!
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