Making Homemade Gummy Bears is a super fun project to make at home! Kids will go nuts for these!
Just like making your own kettle corn or homemade soft pretzels, gummy bears are an impressive treat to make at home. When you tuck a scoop of these into someone’s hand, they will be amazed that you made them homemade. I mean… who does that??
Well, you do! Homemade gummy bears are not exactly like you will have if you buy a package of them at the store. Instead, they are not quite as chewy. And they melt in your mouth much more than the firmer type from the store.
Bakerita by Rachel Conners
This recipe comes from the cookbook Bakerita by Rachel Conners. This is a pretty cool cookbook because it’s full of healthier sweets (mostly baking). There are about 100 recipes in the book, and they are all gluten-free, dairy-free and refined sugar-free.
Here are some of the more kid friendly recipes in the book that sounded great to me: Chocolate Hazelnut Banana Bread, One-Hour Cinnamon Rolls, Vanilla Bean Cupcakes with Banana Frosting, Neapolitan Cheesecake, Chocolate Mousse Pie, Nut Free Chocolate Chip Cookies, Iced Oatmeal Cookies, Chocolate Peppermint Bars, Homemade Chocolate Bars, Birthday Cake Truffles, Hot Fudge Sauce and White Chocolate Pretzel Peanut Butter.
How to make Homemade Gummy Bears:
You need just four ingredients to make your own gummy bears (orange juice, cranberry juice, maple syrup or honey and gelatin). And you will need gummy bear molds too.
In a small saucepan, combine the orange juice, cranberry juice and either maple syrup or honey. Heat until steaming hot. Reduce the heat to low and taste the mixture for sweetness. Add more maple syrup or honey, if you’d like them to be sweeter. Whisk in the gelatin a tablespoon at a time, until completely dissolved and incorporated into the juice mixture.
The cool thing about ordering the gummy bear molds is that they come with a little dropper that makes it super easy to put the liquid in the molds. Use the dropper to put the liquid into the molds.
Refrigerate about 15 minutes, or until the gummy bears are firm.
Once firm, it’s easy to pop the gummy bears out of the molds.
Store the gummies in a sealed container in the refrigerator for up to 1 month.
What other flavor combinations can you use for Gummy Bears?
- Use 1 cup pomegranate juice to make pomegranate gummy bears.
- Use 3/4 cup orange juice + 3 tablespoons fresh lemon juice to make citrus gummy bears.
These Homemade Gummy Bears are paleo, grain-free, no-bake, gluten-free and dairy-free. Thanks to Rachel for figuring out how to make them and including them in her book. What a fun project! Make them, and enjoy sharing them with friends!
Homemade Gummy Bears
Ingredients
- 1 cup orange juice
- 2 tablespoons cranberry juice
- 2 to 3 tablespoons pure maple syrup or honey
- 4 tablespoons grass-fed gelatin
Instructions
- In a small saucepan, combine the orange juice, cranberry juice and 2 tablespoons of your desired sweetener. Heat over medium heat until steaming hot but not yet boiling.
- Reduce the heat to the lowest setting. Carefully taste the mixture, and add another tablespoon of sweetener, if you feel like it needs it. Whisk in the gelatin 1 tablespoon at a time, making sure each addition is dissolved before adding the next.
- Once fully dissolved, remove the pan from heat and use a dropper to fill the gummy bear molds. Refrigerate until firm (10 to 15 minutes). Once firm, pop the gummy bears from the molds.
- Store the gummies in a sealed container in the refrigerator for up to 1 month.
Notes
- JUICE FLAVOR OPTIONS: Use 1 cup pomegranate juice or use 3/4 cup orange juice + 3 tablespoons fresh lemon juice.