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There’s no need to get store-bought gummy bears when you can use this recipe to make endless flavors of your own Homemade Gummy Bears. There are no additives and no refined sugar. Best of all your kids will love them.
Why This Recipe Works
This easy-to-make homemade gummy bear recipe is a healthy snack or treat you can feel good about. There’s no refined sugar and you can use fresh juice to guarantee a great taste. With only 4 ingredients you can whip up a batch in no time.
The flavor combinations are endless. You can keep them simple such as grape or orange, but you can also get creative and make tropical versions and combine flavors.
These treats also last for a long time and are a healthier option than the store-bought kinds. There are no dyes in these gummies either, but you can add some if you’d like to color them for parties or seasonal events.
Ingredients Needed
- Fruit Juice: I prefer to purchase unsweetened fruit juice since the recipe calls for additional sweetener. You can choose your favorite juices such as grape, orange, cranberry, etc.
- Honey or Maple Syrup: You can use either honey or maple syrup for this recipe. The flavors of both are not overpowering and they each bring a subtle sweetness to the bears.
- Stevia: Adding the stevia sweetens the homemade gummy bears a little more and you can also use sugar in its place, but you’ll need to add an additional tablespoon if you make the swap. It is also optional.
- Unflavored Beef Gelatin: This type of gelatin is key for achieving crystal clear gummies that hold their shape well and don’t get stuck in the molds.
Flavor Combinations
To get the brilliant gummy bear colors you see in the images you can use some of the following juices. You can also use cold-pressed juice or set up a combination of some of the below.
Red
- Grape Juice
- Pomegranate Juice
- Cherry Juice
Orange
- Orange Juice
- Apple Juice
- Tangerines
Yellow
- Lemonade
- Mango
- Tropical: pineapple, mango, and lemon juices together for a delicious tropical gummy bear.
Green
- Green Cold-Pressed Juice: juices such as the Green Lemonade from Whole Foods will work well with these bears and taste delicious too.
Want to make sour gummy bears? You’ll need some citric acid, which can be found in the canning section of the grocery store. Add 1 teaspoon to your juice mixture for the ultimate sour gummy bears.
How to Make Gummy Bears
- Heat the juice and sweetener. In a small pot over medium heat combine the fruit juice, honey or maple syrup, and stevia (or sugar) together until just mixed.
- Dissolve the gelatin. In a small bowl dissolve the unflavored beef gelatin into the water. It will become thick and sticky. Drop this mixture into the small pot.
- Heat the juice mixture. Stir or whisk the fruit juice mixture until it comes to a soft boil and the gelatin has dissolved.
- Fill the molds. Working quickly use the rubber stopper to drop the juice mixture into the gummy bear molds. Make sure to go slow and fill it up past the brim otherwise the backs of the gummy bears will turn out concave once settled.
- Chill. Place the mold on a flat surface or a baking sheet and sit it in the fridge to set for about 20 minutes.
- Pop them out. Once set you can easily pop the gummy bears out of the molds.
Jello Method
You can also use Jello to prepare a flavored version, though not as healthy, but delicious nonetheless. To use this method, which will allow for much more color variations, follow the directions below.
Jello Method Ingredients
- 1 package of Jello (3 oz size)
- 1 tablespoon Gelatin
- 1/2 cup of Water
Pour the water into a small saucepan and set it over medium-low heat. Add the Jello and gelatin and whisk together until dissolved.
Remove the mixture from the heat and using your stopper drop the mixture into the molds. Allow it to cool in the fridge for about 20 minutes.
Equipment Needed
- Gummy Bear Molds and Stoppers
- Whisk
- Small Bowl
- Small Saucepan
Storage
Place all the gummy bears in a sealed container and store them in the fridge for up to 1 month. They do not freeze well so I don’t recommend freezing them.
Recipe Notes and Expert Tips
- Before I drop the liquid into the molds I like to set the molds on a baking sheet so it’s easy to transfer them to the fridge.
- The gummy bear molds come in sets of 3 and this recipe will make a little over 1 mold. I recommend doubling the recipe below.
- Try different shapes or sizes using this large gummy bear mold or this heart, cloud, and raindrop-shaped mold. If you make the gummy bears larger I recommend doubling or tripling the recipe.
- To give these homemade gummy bears more color you can use food dye, but they will be pretty bright and colorful depending on the juice you choose.
- Gently stir the juice mixture as it’s heating so you don’t form any air bubbles. If you get any bubbles in the stopper and the molds it will solidify that way.
FAQs
Yes, you can. I prefer to use beef gelatin, but you can also you brands such as Knox gelatin too.
Gummy bears are chewy because they have gelatin in them that solidifies all the ingredients into a chewy texture.
Related Recipes
Homemade Gummy Bears
Equipment
- Gummy Bear Molds with Stoppers
- Small Whisk
- Small Bowl
- Small Pot
Ingredients
- 1/3 cup Fruit Juice
- 2 tablespoons Honey or maple syrup
- 2 teaspoons Stevia
- 1 tablespoon Unflavored Beef Gelatin
- 1 tablespoon Water
Instructions
- In a small pot over medium heat combine the fruit juice, honey or maple syrup, and stevia (or sugar) together until just mixed.
- In a small bowl dissolve the unflavored beef gelatin into the water. It will become thick and sticky. Drop this mixture into the small pot.
- Stir or whisk the fruit juice mixture until it comes to a soft boil and the gelatin has dissolved.
- Working quickly use the rubber stopper to drop the juice mixture into the gummy bear molds. Make sure to go slow and fill it up past the brim otherwise the backs of the gummy bears will turn out concave once settled.
- Place the mold on a flat surface or a baking sheet and sit it in the fridge to set for about 20 minutes.
- Once set you can easily pop the gummy bears out of the molds.
Notes
- Before I drop the liquid into the molds I like to set the molds on a baking sheet so it’s easy to transfer them to the fridge.
- The gummy bear molds come in sets of 3 and this recipe will make a little over 1 mold. I recommend doubling the recipe below.
- Try different shapes or sizes using this large gummy bear mold or this heart, cloud, and raindrop-shaped mold. If you make the gummy bears larger I recommend doubling or tripling the recipe.
- To give these gummy bears more color you can use food dye, but they will be pretty bright and colorful depending on the juice you choose.
- Gently stir the juice mixture as it’s heating so you don’t form any air bubbles. If you get any bubbles in the stopper and the molds it will solidify that way.
Storage
Place all the gummy bears in a sealed container and store them in the fridge for up to 1 month. They do not freeze well so I don’t recommend freezing them.Jello Method Ingredients
- 1 package of Jello (3 oz size)
- 1 tablespoon Gelatin
- 1/2 cup of Water
