If you pegged me for one of those moms that would make her kid homemade fruit snacks, then you hit the nail on the head. If you knew that I would not only make fruit snacks, but I would also find a way to incorporate vegetables, well, then, you probably know me a little too well. The beautiful truth is that Camille has never had a fruit snack…until someone gave her a pouch at her school Valentine’s Day party. She liked them (of course), but I waited a significant amount of time before making these at home. I wanted her little brain to forget the store-bought sweetness. These healthy homemade fruit snacks have the same texture as the store-bought version, but are made with pureed fruit, vegetables, honey, and grass-fed gelatin. I’m pretty sure none of those ingredients are in the store-bought version!
I use Vital Proteins grass-fed beef gelatin to make these healthy homemade fruit snacks. I’m a big fan of all of their products (I don’t go a day without adding their collagen peptides to hot tea), and incorporating their grass-fed beef gelatin into my kitchen was easy. As you know, both Camille and I struggle getting enough protein in our diets. Neither of us love meat, and so I’m always looking for easy ways to boost our protein intake. Grass-fed gelatin fruit snacks are a perfect protein-rich dessert for her lunch box.
My recipe makes a 9" bread loaf pan worth of puree with 5 tablespoons of gelatin in it. In the photos, you see two flavors: carrot-mango fruit snacks and strawberry-beet fruit snacks. Here’s the real deal on this recipe: you need to taste the puree after blending. Does it taste sweet enough that your kid would eat it? If not, add more honey. I can actually get away with 2 tablespoons of honey for Camille. If your kiddos have had store-bought fruit snacks, the level of sweetness won’t be enough for them. Add extra honey, one tablespoon at a time, until they taste right to you. One time, I tried making these with just 1 tablespoon of honey, and they tasted a bit…vegetal. I ended up rolling them in granulated sugar before serving them to Camille. You really need a high-speed blender to get the fruit the perfect consistency. Puree the mixture for at least 5 minutes, no chunks here! If you’re having trouble getting the mixture smooth, add another tablespoon of water. Adding the gelatin can be a strange process if you’re unfamiliar with working with gelatin. It took me at least one dozen batches of homemade marshmallows before I became comfortable working with gelatin. After the fruit mixture is smooth, pour it into a wide-bottomed pan. Sprinkle the gelatin over the surface (it’s hard to cram 5 tablespoons over the surface area, but do your best!). Let the gelatin sit for 5 minutes. The mixture will start to look wrinkled, like this:
Once it’s wrinkled, it’s time to whisk the mixture while turning the heat to medium. Continue to whisk the mixture, and the heat will melt the gelatin. At first, there will be clumps, but they will dissolve as the mixture heats. Don’t let the mixture boil, but do cook it while whisking until it is smooth.
After pouring the mixture into a parchment paper lined loaf pan, let it set for a few hours. I usually leave mine overnight. The next day, I use little pie crust cutters to cut out cute shapes.
What do I do with the scraps? Cut them into smaller pieces with scissors and mix them in! Don’t waste the scraps; I just didn’t photograph them this way because we live in a Pinterest world.
I hope you and your little loves these healthy homemade fruit snacks with veggies!
SaveSave *Please add more honey to taste! If your kids like store-bought fruit snacks, these won’t be sweet enough for them. Add honey until it tastes right to you. SaveSave SaveSave SaveSave SaveSave SaveSave SaveSave SaveSave
