Gummy bears or Gummies as they are popularly called by the kids, is quite a popular fruit snack among kids as well as adults. Interestingly, gummy bears originated in Germany, popularized by the good old brand ‘Haribo’ in early 1920s.
Though these days we have gummies available in various flavours, colours and shapes, it was initially in the shape of a tiny bear thus getting its name – Gummibär (meaning Gummy bear in German). In short, it is referred to as Gummy, the base ingredient originally being the Arabic gum.
These days we have a variety of gummies available in the market to cater to the needs of the consumers – gummies with gelatin, gummies without gelatin for vegetarians, vegan gummies and so on.
It is often said that gummies hardly have any health benefits and the sticky ones even lead to tooth decay. Having said that, kids don’t really understand it and they blindly get attracted to the colourful packets in the supermarket shelves. The best that we can do is, prepare a healthier version at home !!!
Yes, you can prepare it and it is quite simple too.
This version of gummy bears is free from preservatives, chemical food colours, gelatin and sugar!!! Yes, this is a sugar free vegetarian version of gummies. It can be a perfect fruit snack for kids and adults alike!!!
Most importantly, it is very easy to prepare.
Total time: 33 minutes
Cooking time: 8 minutes
Preparation time: 5 minutes
Freezing time: 20 minutes
Ingredients:
Pineapple Gummies: Makes 10
Pineapple extract: 0.5 cup
Agar agar powder: 1 tbsp.
Honey: 1 tbsp.
Essence: Few drops
Orange gummies: Makes 10
Orange juice: 0.5 cup
Agar agar powder: 1 tbsp.
Honey: 2 tbsp.
Essence: Few drops
Tomato gummies: Makes 10
Tomato juice: 0.5 cup
Agar agar powder: 1 tbsp.
Honey: 3 tbsp.
Essence: few drops
Spinach gummies: Makes 10
Spinach juice: 0.5 cup
Agar agar powder: 1 tbsp.
Honey: 3 tbsp.
Essence: Few drops
Preparation method remains the same for all the varieties of gummies. These are just samples. You may even use other fruits and vegetable extracts like strawberries, carrot , etc;
Quick Video :
Method:
- In a sauce pan add the extract and the agar agar powder. Mix well and bring in to boil over medium heat
- Stir well and add honey. Mix well and continue heating till the mixture turns sticky or like a liquid gum. This might take about another 3 to 4 minutes. Now add few drops of essence and mix well and take it off heat
- In a silicon mould with different shapes, carefully spoon the fruit mixture . Repeat until the mixture is used up
- Now carefully tap the edges and transfer the moulds to the freezer. Freeze for about 20 minutes to half an hour
- Unmould the gummies. You may serve it as fruit snacks immediately or store it in the fridge and consume at a later time
Note:
- You may use the gummy moulds if you have. Otherwise, you may use the silicon chocolate moulds if you have (I have used the chocolate moulds here as I had them readily). Even otherwise, no worries. You may use normal plates with edges and use it as a mould. Pour the entire cooked fruit mixture to the plate and refrigerate. Later, cut into small cubes or any shapes as you desire
- The refrigerated gummies last for a week or two
- To bring in the colours I avoided using food colours. Instead used fruit and vegetable extract so that it can be healthier for the kids
- Instead of sugar, honey is used here to bring in the sweetness to the gummies, which makes these gummies even more healthier. You may add more honey if required in each variant. You may also replace honey with sugar if you so prefer.
Gummy stories:
Aaah!!! Gummies and my daughter !!! well, I can’t say how much she loves them!!!
It all started about 1.5 years back. When my husband came back from one of his business trips from Germany, like always, my daughter started digging into his bags to find what is in store for her!!! While she was doing so, my husband called her and said, I have a “Surprise” for you. I still remember how her eyes sparkled when she saw a packet of colourful tiny bears in an equally colourful packet. She quickly grabbed it from his hands!!! My husband flashed another packet and signed that it is vegetarian (He knew it was one of my concerns !!!) She didn’t know what it was. As her dad addressed it as a surprise, she coined a name for it – “Surprise” … Whenever she wanted to have it she would come to me and ask – “Amma, I want to have a surprise” … Yes, the first time she asked for it, I couldn’t stop laughing hearing the way she asked for it. Gradually she learnt that surprise means something else and the fruit snack is just gummies.
All said and done, we ensured that she didn’t eat it regularly but whenever we went out, once in a while. I always wanted to prepare homemade healthy version of this snack for a long time and yes, finally, I could prepare it. It came out really well, less sticky and healthier too. Most importantly, my daughter is happy.
Wow superb.. Natural gummies
thank you 🙂