Natural Fruit Juice Fruit Snacks
A few weeks ago I shared a recipe for ridiculously easy homemade fruit snacks. As promised, I’ve been busy working on variations, including getting rid of the Jello package for a more natural taste.
I went through a couple of runs. I tried using fruit juice, using a fruit juice and tea, and finally my favorite version: using frozen fruit juice concentrate.
Of course, once I found a version I liked, I had to be playful and use my silicone Hello Kitty molds. I only wish they were as shiny as the heart molds. Instead, these have a more matte finish.
During my trial runs I found that using just regular fruit juice doesn’t have a strong enough flavor, leaving the fruit snacks quite bland and not very sweet. I also tried upping the gelatin packs and that just made them way too sticky and chewy.
For those who are looking for a vegetarian option, unfortunately I have not yet successfully made one without the use of gelatin.
I love how well the fruit concentrates work though. And with so many different juices out there, you can have quite a few different flavors of fruit snacks. These were a cranberry apple. I love how the color came out.
Natural Fruit Juice Fruit Snacks
Ingredients
- 1/3 cup frozen fruit juice concentrate
- 2 packs unflavored gelatin
Instructions
- Pour juice and sprinkle gelatin in a small saucepan on low to medium heat. Stir with a large spoon until no more gelatin chunks remain.
- Pour liquid into silicone molds. Place molds into fridge to set for about 10-15 minutes. Eat immediately or store in an airtight container.
This is a big improvement over using a cup of regular juice with some honey and lemon juice. There’s a lot more flavor!
We’re so glad you loved this recipe!
Do you know how to make the recipe with gelatin sheets?
Sorry I do not
Hello! How hot does the mixture have to be before you pour it into the molds?
the mixture should be completely dissolved and liquid when you pour it into the molds
I just made these today with my daughter. I used grape juice concentrate. They were good, but a little tough. I’m not sure if I cooked it too long or maybe should add a little more juice.
I’ll work with it a bit. Thanks for the inspiration.
(I was also able to find the hello kitty mold too. But mine is just faces and no bows. My daughter was so excited)
I’m glad you got them to work! I’m not sure as to why it would be tough, but I think you can definitely play around, maybe use a little less gelatin.
I just have a tub of gelatin, how much should I use?
i’ve only worked with gelatin powder. are you talking about the same thing?
i tried making these, i don’t know what i did wrong they turned out to be mushy
Did you make sure you used a juice concentrate and not just regular juice?
Any suggestions for how to get them out of the molds?
If you use the silicone molds they should be very flexible so that you can turn them inside out and pop them out
Do these need to be stored in the refrigerator?
No, unless you plan on keeping them for a really long time. I stored mine for about 1 week at room temp and it was fine.
what measurement are the gelatin packs
knox sells them as little individual envelopes. I don’t know how much one envelope is in terms of tbsp because I haven’t measured it out.
Can you make it with jello instead of gelatin powder?
Check out this recipe which uses jello mix powder https://kirbiecravings.com/2013/04/homemade-fruit-snacks.html
My son (2 years old) and I just finished making two batches of these. One with limeade and one with white grape/peach juice. The limeade is good, kind of like a sour gummy. The white grape and peach juice one doesn’t have as much flavor but it isn’t bad. I think stronger juice flavors are definately the way to go. I put the concentrate and gelatin mixture into squeeze bottles and my son was able to fill our molds all by himself.
How neat that you could share this with your son. I agree, the strong the juice the better these turn out. I tend to stick to dark red colored juices and try to stay away from the lighter ones like grape or apple
Hi,
I just tried this recipe with Welch’s White Grape Peach frozen concentrate. I wanted to make a large batch so I multiplied based on your recipe (1 1/3 cup juice, 8 packs gelatin). I think 8 packs is definitely too much, they came out a little hard to chew and the taste of the juice faded quite a bit. I will keep trying though, until I find something that works.
Thank you for the inspiration!
Sorry you found them hard to chew. I would recommend doing a small batch to test out before doing a large one because each juice works a little differently.
I used a regular POM juice. That’s what I’m thinking- the juice wasn’t strong enough. Thanks!
Oh, yes, you should definitely do a frozen juice concentrate. It makes a huge difference! I tried regular juices and they just weren’t strong enough.
Can you taste the gelatin in yours? I just made my first batch with Pom juice and all I can taste is the gelatin. Maybe just not a good choice of juice?
I don’t taste the gelatin in mine. You def need a strong juice so Pomegranate juice may be too watery/light. Also I wasn’t aware that there was a frozen concentrate of pom juice. Did you use just regular POM juice or did you use a frozen concentrate?
Thanks!!
These are so cute and they sound so good. Can’t wait to try them. Just a quick question: Do you add any water to the fruit juice concentrate–or do you use it straight from the can? Thanks!
I didn’t add any water; just straight from the can. enjoy!
Dole makes some delicious 100% fruit blends. They are like pine-orange-banana, mango-strawberry-orange and similar combos.
I stock up when they’re on sale. I think these would make great fruit snacks!
I love Dole fruit blends too!
I saw the jello one first and was disappointed because it wasn’t all natural, so I”m glad I found this version! I’ll definitely be trying it out.
The Jello one is good for a quick fix but I like the fruit juice ones better. I just need to stock up on fruit concentrate because I don’t usually have any in the house
love this.. i’m going to have try it someday. i love how clear the hello kitty face comes out with the gelatin.. it doesn’t come out as clear w/ cakes and cornbread
Yeah I was really surprised at how well the Hello Kitty faces came out too! I just wish the mold had more faces. It’s half faces, half bows. So I have to make several batches to get a lot of the faces.
where can I find those hello kitty molds?! My girls would love these fruit snacks!
I found them at the JapanLA store. They also take orders via email I believe. They are also available on the Sanrio website.
the gelatin used is in powder form? how many grams is 2 packets?
yes it’s powder. I’m not sure how many grams two packets are. I don’t have any on me right now to check.
Oh my god, the Hello Kitty molds are so adorable! I need this!
haha, yeah i was so excited when i saw them at the store. i want to make chocolates or other stuff with them later
cute and great idea!
Thanks!
Wow, I can’t wait to try this out! I don’t have any molds. Do you think it’ll be ok if I pour the liquid out on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper and cut the snacks once they’re firm?
I’m not sure how well the liquid batter would hold on the baking sheet. It’s basically all liquid, so you need something to give it shape. They are also really hard to cut because it’s very sticky.
They are so adorable, those little fat kitty faces and they look like they taste awesome! I just want to reach into my computer screen and pop one in my mouth!
I’ve never heard Hello Kitty described as little fat kitty faces. hmm.
These are so cute. After being inspired by your recipe, I found this recipe for a vegetarian version. Can’t wait to give it a try!
https://www.gerberadesigns.com/triedandtrue/?p=3398
I actually came across this one and tried it out. Unfortunately, my texture wasn’t like a fruit snack when I tried with agar agar. It didn’t have any chew to it. It was more like a firmer jello.
looove this super easy recipe! where can you buy the mold? i love the hello kitty too. 🙂 thanks for the tips!
ps – i love that you love nutella 🙂 so glad i found your blog!
I got the Hello Kitty from JapanLA store when I was in LA. It’s a silicone ice cube mold. Looks like this: https://www.sanrio.com/product/hello_kitty_die_cut_ice_cube_tray/_/searchString/ice%20cube
i was originally going to buy it from the Sanrio website but when I found it at the store in LA, I did that rather than pay shipping. You can try looking on ebay too or other stores that carry Sanrio products.
Thanks for the update. I’m surprised that you didn’t need to add more gelatin since you’re swapping out the flavored Jello for the fruit concentrate. Looove the Hello Kitty mold!
I was surprised too. The first time I did it, I added 3 packs, but they just came out really sticky and super chewy. They tasted like marshmallows, which makes sense since gelatin can be used to make marshmallows. But they were really hard to handle because they were so sticky. I went back down to 2 packs and preferred the texture and feel of those.