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Healthy Gummies

It’s no secret that I am a gummy candy fanatic. We usually have at least a couple types of gummies in our pantry. Being the baking enthusiast I am, I got the bright idea to try to make my own gummy candies. However, I decided to put a bit of a healthy spin on the recipe and make healthy gummies!

image of healthy gummies piled together to show the different flavors

These gummies are made with just four ingredients, and the recipe can be made with different types of fruit juice to make different flavors!

The fruit juice in these healthy gummies also naturally give them a beautiful color. This recipe doesn’t include any food coloring or artificial ingredients.

Substitutions and Swaps

While I love this healthy gummy bears recipe just the way it is, I know some of you might not have all these ingredients on hand!

Below are some swaps and substitutions that can be made in this recipe.

image of ingredients laid out to make homemade gummy bears
  • Fruit Juice – I like using a bunch of different types of juice to create colorful gummies, including apple juice, orange juice, grapefruit juice, pomegranate juice, and black cherry juice. Other juices that would work great are limeade, lemonade, or grape juice!
  • Honey – If you don’t have honey on hand, you can use an additional Tbsp of granulated sugar or stevia sweetener in its place. You can also use maple syrup!
  • Stevia / granulated sugar – Adding additional sweetener or sugar is optional, but I find these gummies taste better with more than just the honey. You can add another Tbsp of honey in place of the stevia / granulated sugar if you don’t want to add sugar. You can also use other types of natural sugar like coconut sugar.
  • Unflavored Gelatin – I used packets made by Knox (each packet has about 1 Tbsp of gelatin), but you can also use gelatin from a larger container like this. Most large grocery stores carry unflavored gelatin, or you can order it online! To make vegetarian/vegan gummies, use 1 tsp of 100% agar agar powder like this. However, they won’t set quite the same as they do with gelatin.
image of homemade healthy gummy bears sitting on the counter

Using The Right Mold To Make These Healthy Gummies

Most small silicone molds will work with this recipe, so you can get creative with the shape of these healthy gummies too!

There are some awesome sea shell and dinosaur molds that would be so fun to use. I am a fan of the classic gummy bear mold, but don’t feel limited to that! But do keep in mind that different sized molds can change the total number of gummies a batch makes.

Most silicone molds come with an eye dropper that makes them easy to fill. If you don’t get one, I highly recommend ordering an eye dropper. Filling these molds would be a nightmare without them!

image of a silicone mold being filled to make DIY gummy bears

Filling These Molds Properly

It’s important to fill your molds up to the very brim to give your gummy bears a proper shape.

If you don’t, the back of each gummy bear will be quite flat, and it will be noticeably thinner than a traditional gummy bear.

Fill each cavity to the very brim, so that you can see the surface tension holding the juice in place. I like to do this slowly, so that the molds don’t overflow.

image of gummy bear molds being filled with healthy gummy bear mixture made with juice and honey

As you fill the molds, take care not to squeeze air bubbles into the juice!

They will set inside or on top of the gelatin and make your gummies look a bit odd when you pop them out.

Since we are filling these molds so full, I suggest placing the silicone molds on a baking sheet to make them easier to move into the fridge.

Making Different Flavors of Gummies

Feel free to use different juices to create different flavors of gummies!

I used apple juice, orange juice, grapefruit juice, pomegranate juice, and black cherry juice to make these gummies.

I love these juices because they create a beautiful spectrum of colors.

image of healthy gummies piled together to show the different flavors

Other juices that taste great are lemonade, limeade, watermelon juice and grape juice.

Just be sure to avoid pineapple, kiwi, mango, ginger root, papaya, figs, or guava juice. They contain an enzyme (protease) which can prevent gelatin from setting firmly.

Tips for Making the Best Healthy Gummies:

  • Get creative with the type of fruit juice you use to make a fun variety of flavors!
  • Place your silicone molds on a baking pan to make them easy to move around without spilling.
  • Clear out an area in your fridge to allow you to set the trays flat as they chill.
  • After bringing your fruit juice mixture to a boil, let the juice mixture cool for about 3 minutes. This will help the gelatin set more firmly.
  • Immediately add the bloomed gelatin (gelatin powder mixed with water) to your juice mixture, or else it will set firmly and be harder to mix in.
  • Be sure to stir the fruit mixture and gelatin with a spoon or small spatula and not a whisk! A whisk will incorporate air bubbles into the mixture and make them harder to pipe into the silicone mold.
  • Adjust the amount of sweeteners in these gummies to match your preference! You can add up to 1 additional Tbsp of granulated sugar or honey, or by omitting the honey and sugar or stevia all together.

Storing These Healthy Gummies

Leftover gummies can be stored in an airtight container in the fridge for up to a week. I recommend keeping them in the fridge to prevent molding!

image of homemade healthy gummies stored in an airtight glass container

Let Me Know What You Think!

If you try this recipe for healthy gummies, I’d love to hear what you think of it! Please leave a rating and comment below.

And don’t forget to tag me @chelsweets and use the #chelsweets so that I can see your amazing creations on social media!

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Yield: 7 servings of 10 gummies

Healthy Gummies

image of healthy gummies piled together to show the different flavors

These healthy gummies are made with just 4 ingredients and taste so good you'll wonder why you ever bought gummy candy from the store.

Prep Time 5 minutes
Cook Time 20 minutes
Additional Time 30 minutes
Total Time 55 minutes

Ingredients

Healthy Gummies Recipe

  • 1/3 cup fruit juice (80g)
  • 2 Tbsp honey (42g)
  • 2 tsp or 2 packets of stevia (4g) or granulated sugar (8g) - optional
  • 1 Tbsp (or 1 envelope) unflavored gelatin (9g)

Tools / Equipment Needed

Instructions

Healthy Gummies Recipe

  1. Begin by placing the silicone molds on a baking tray. This makes it easier to transport them into the fridge. Also make sure you have a flat area in your fridge to place the gummy bears once they're poured in the molds.
  2. Make each flavor separately.
  3. Bring 1/3 cup fruit juice, 2 Tbsp of honey and 2 tsp of either stevia sweetener or granulated sugar to a boil over a medium high heat in a small saucepan or pot.
  4. Set aside to cool for 3 minutes. It should still be warm enough to melt the gelatin, but not hot enough to weaken the setting power of the gelatin.
  5. In a small container or bowl, bloom the unflavored gelatin by mixing together 1 Tbsp of gelatin with 1 Tbsp of water until the gelatin is fully dissolved. The mixture should become quite thick as you stir it.
  6. As soon as the gelatin and water are mixed together, add it into the slightly cooled juice mixture.
  7. As the gelatin sits it can firm up and become difficult to mix in. If this happens, don't worry. It should still be able to dissolve into the juice mixture, but it will take longer to melt / dissolve fully. Make sure the gelatin is fully dissolved before filling the molds, or else tiny bits of gelatin can clog up the eye dropper.
  8. Use an eye-dropper (they come with most small silicone molds, or you can order them here) to carefully fill the silicone molds. Be sure to do this as soon as the gelatin is fully mixed into the juice mixture. If you let it sit and continue to cool, the mixture will start to set.
  9. Carefully place the molds in the fridge for 30 minutes, then pop them out of the molds and enjoy!
  10. Make as many batches as you want with different flavors of juice. You can also combine two different juices! I made five using apple juice, orange juice, grapefruit juice, pomegranate juice, and black cherry juice.
  11. Leftover gummies can be stored in an airtight container in the fridge for up to a week.

Notes

Yield

One batch of gummies makes about 75 small gummies using this mold. You can make as many or as few flavors as you'd like to get the number of servings you want. I made five batches to make the gummies in these photos.

Substitutions and Swaps

Please see the section titled substitutions and swaps above for all the possible substitutions you can make.

Making Different Flavors

Feel free to use different juices to create other flavors! I love using lemon juice, lime juice, watermelon juice and grape juice too!

Just be sure to avoid pineapple, kiwi, mango, ginger root, papaya, figs, or guava juice. They contain an enzyme (protease) which can prevent gelatin from setting firmly.

You can also adjust the amount of honey if you want your gummies to be sweeter or less sweet.

Using The Right Mold

Most small silicone molds will work with this recipe, so you can also get creative with the shape of these healthy gummies!

There are some awesome gem and dinosaur molds that would be so fun to use. I am a fan of the classic gummy bear mold, but don't feel limited to that!

Nutrition Information

Yield

7

Serving Size

1

Amount Per Serving Calories 31Total Fat 0gSaturated Fat 0gTrans Fat 0gUnsaturated Fat 0gCholesterol 0mgSodium 9mgCarbohydrates 7gFiber 0gSugar 7gProtein 1g

For a walk down memory lane, check out the photos below from the first time I tried to make my own healthy gummy bears back in 2013!!

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Cat

Saturday 22nd of April 2023

I used a gelatin alternative (agar powder). They tasted great and they set well, but they were SO WET. Not even slimy, just WET. They dissolve in your mouth rather than be chewy. How do you know how much gelatin (or gelatin substitute) to use, so that it becomes like a gummy bear?

Chelsweets

Sunday 23rd of April 2023

Hi Cat,

I've found that these gummies do always have a wetter texture with agar too! It just isn't quite the same as using gelatin. I tested these with 1 tsp of 100% agar agar powder in place of the gelatin. How much did you use?

Kate

Friday 14th of April 2023

Can you freeze the gummies so that they last longer than a week?

Chelsweets

Sunday 16th of April 2023

Hi Kate,

Great question! You totally can freeze them, just be sure to thaw them on a sheet pan or something that allows them to be nice and flat so that they don't stick to each other as they thaw. Hope that helps, happy baking!

Margaret

Thursday 23rd of February 2023

I'd love to use mango juice for my gummy bears. How do I remove the enzyme protease from the mango juice?

Chelsweets

Tuesday 28th of February 2023

Hi Margaret,

Sadly I don't think you can remove that enzyme from mango juice at home! I'm so sorry :/ but other types of juice should work!!

Amanda

Sunday 5th of February 2023

I don't have small molds. Just wondering if I can use square silicon ice cube trays and cut the gummies into squares after?

Chelsweets

Sunday 5th of February 2023

Hi Amanda,

That should totally work! They will take a bit longer to set but other than that they should turn out great!

Darren

Thursday 15th of December 2022

Found the honey flavour overpower the fruit flavour. What can be used instead of honey? Agave?

Chelsweets

Sunday 18th of December 2022

Hi Darren,

Totally get that! Different types of honey do taste different / can have a stronger flavor, and agave would work great as a sweetener too!

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