With fresh fruit and just 3 other ingredients, you can make homemade fruit snacks that are chewy, delicious, and packed with real fruit flavor.
Fruit snacks were (and still are!) a lunch box staple, so why not make them at home with fresh fruit instead of buying store bought gummies that are full of artificial flavors, sweeteners, and corn syrup?
This recipe is part of our Better Than Store-Bought series, where we cook up homemade versions of your favorite store bought snacks. These gummies look and taste amazing, and they’re really not that hard to make. The end result is so rewarding, and the process is super easy, so it’s a great activity to do with your kids.
Homemade Fruit Snacks Ingredients
For any flavor:
- 170–180g fresh fruit (~1 cup blended)
- 2 envelopes (14g) gelatin
- 3 tablespoons lemon juice
- 3 tablespoons honey or agave
Strawberry:
- 170–180g strawberry (~1 cup blended)
- 2 envelopes (14g) gelatin
- 3 tablespoons lemon juice
- 3 tablespoons honey or agave
Pineapple:
- 170–180g pineapple (~1 cup blended)
- 2 envelopes (14g) gelatin
- 3 tablespoons lemon juice
- 3 tablespoons honey or agave
Watermelon:
- 170–180g watermelon (~1 cup blended)
- 2 envelopes (14g) gelatin
- 3 tablespoons lemon juice
- 3 tablespoons honey or agave
Grape
- 170–180g black seedless grapes (~1 cup blended)
- 2 envelopes (14g) gelatin
- 3 tablespoons lemon juice
- 3 tablespoons honey or agave
Add fruit to blender and blend until smooth.
Sprinkle gelatin over lemon juice in a bowl, then stir well and let sit for 5 mins.
Add fruit purée & honey to a small saucepan over low heat and stir. Heat the purée enough to melt the gelatin (~120˚F), but don’t boil (this will denature the gelatin). NOTE: Pineapple (and some other fruits, like mango and kiwi) contains enzymes that will essentially “eat” the gelatin and prevent the gummies from setting. To deactivate the enzyme, you must heat the pineapple purée to at least 176˚F for about 8 minutes.
Add gelatin mixture to the fruit puree, and stir until it’s dissolved. Let cool slightly.
Lightly spray the silicone molds with avocado oil/cooking spray. Use a spoon or a dropper to fill the molds. Refrigerate for 90 mins.
Remove from the molds and place on a wire rack, and let sit for 8 hours or overnight at room temp. The gummies will dry out and shrink, which concentrates the flavor and gives them the perfect chewy, gummy texture.
- Add fruit to blender and blend until completely smooth.
- In a small container, sprinkle gelatin evenly over lemon juice, then stir thoroughly until there are no dry grains visible. Let sit for 5 minutes.
- While the gelatin blooms, combine fruit purée with honey or agave in a small saucepan over low heat, and stir until combined. You want to heat the purée enough to melt the gelatin (>~120˚F), but you don’t want to bring it to a boil, which will denature the gelatin. NOTE: There’s one major exception here. Pineapple (and some other fruits, including mango and kiwi) contains enzymes, including bromelain, that will essentially “eat” the gelatin and prevent the gummies from setting. To deactivate the enzyme, you must heat the pineapple purée to at least 176˚F for about 8 minutes.
- Add gelatin and lemon juice mixture to the fruit puree, and stir until it’s completely dissolved. Remove pan from heat and let cool for about 5 minutes.
- Give your silicon molds a light spray with avocado oil or cooking spray. Use a spoon or a dropper to fill up the fruit molds, then move to your refrigerator. Refrigerate for an hour and a half to let them set up.
- Remove from the molds and place on a wire rack, and let sit for 8 hours or overnight. The gummies will shrink significantly and achieve a more intense flavor and a chewy, gummy texture.
