This apple dragon fruit gummy recipe makes for an awesome AIP friendly sweet treat with the added gut-healing benefits of gelatin. They're gluten-free, dairy-free, and very easy to make. My kids helped me to recipe test 4 different gummy recipes- this is one of the two that we considered "blog-worthy." The kids love these and they had a fun time making them. I think they're pretty tasty too.
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What is Gelatin?
Gelatin is a clear, colorless and flavorless food ingredient that is rigid when dry (and sometimes is sold in sheets) and is a squishy texture when wet.
What is Gelatin Made Of?
Gelatin is a mixture of peptides and proteins derived from the collagen in skin, bones, and connective tissues of cows, chickens, pigs, and fish.
Gelatin Benefits
Gelatin boasts a long list of health benefits including healthier hair, skin, and nails, better joint health, and improved gut health to name a few.
If you have an autoimmune disease, gut health is especially important which is why you hear about gelatin (and collagen) being so frequently included in AIP/Paleo diets.
Four Simple Ingredients:
- Dragon Fruit- I only had dragon fruit smoothie packets when I did this so that's the amount in the recipe. One packet equals 100 grams which I would guess this is equivalent to about ½ cup of dragon fruit. You can use the frozen cubes, the smoothie packet or even fresh dragon fruit if you have it.
- Apple Juice- Use 100% juice; freshly juiced is even better if you have a juicer. I used about 4 apples to make 1.75 cups.
- Maple Syrup- The darker the better. Honey is fine too.
- Gelatin- Choose Grass-fed if possible. I've been using this brand.
A Couple Notes About the Recipe:
- When you add the apple dragon fruit mixture to the saucepan and add the gelatin, you won't turn on the heat right away. This will allow the gelatin a few minutes to dissolve first and hopefully prevent clumping.
- When you heat the juice mixture, be sure to keep it on low heat.
- You'll heat it for 5-10 minutes- it'll get thinner as you heat it. Sometimes you'll get these occasional annoying little gelatin clumps that form- you can use a strainer to get any extra gelatin clumps out of the mixture after you've heated it. In the case of dragon fruit, straining also happens to remove most of the little black seeds.
What if I don't have a strainer?
You can probably get away with not straining the mixture especially if you're diligent about allowing the gelatin to dissolve and whisking it consistently to avoid clumps. The end product just may not be quite as smooth because you'll have the seeds in it.
If you want to strain it but don't have a strainer, you can try a cheesecloth or just spoon out any obvious gummy clumps that you see. If you use a cheesecloth, just be sure to clean/rinse to gummy residue off of it before it sets, so it's not difficult to clean.
Do You Have to use Gelatin Molds for Gummies?
Nope! While it's really fun to use silicone molds, it's not a requirement. You can just pour the mixture into a glass dish (8x8 inches is about the right size but use what you have). Another option would be to pour the mixture into a cupcake pan or muffin tin- just don't fill the cups up very full or you'll have some really thick gummies! Also, ice cube trays work great!
Note About Yield Quantity
I mention in the recipe that it makes about 400 gummy bears. This is just an estimate as I didn't have enough gummy bear molds to make all 400. I made about 150 gummy bears and then used the flower molds for the rest. One flower mold is about the size of 4-5 gummy bears so I just estimated the best I could.
Storage
These will stay fresh in the fridge for about a week in an airtight container. I have tried keeping these in the freezer- they came out covered in frost and were very wet once they thawed...So, that's not ideal. That being said, once I dried them off with paper towels, the taste and texture really hadn't been affected by freezing them.
Conclusion: I hope you enjoyed this recipe. If you made it, leave a comment below and let me know what you thought. I'd love to hear from you!
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Apple Dragon Fruit Gummies (Paleo, AIP)
Equipment
- Gummy molds (optional)
- Strainer
Ingredients
- 1 3/4 cup 100% apple juice (about 4 apples if juicing fresh)
- 1 dragon fruit packet (about 1/2 cup or 100 g)
- 1/4 cup maple syrup
- 1/3 cup gelatin
Instructions
- Blend apple juice, dragon fruit, and maple syrup in a blender until smooth.
- Add mixure to a medium-size saucepan and add gelatin. Stir a little but and allow to rest for about 5 minutes before turning on the heat. This will allow the gelatin to disolve. Turn the heat on low and whisk mixture continuously as it heats. Continue over low heat for 5-10 minutes.
- Pour the mixture through a strainer into a bowl. This helps to take out any extra gelatin clumps as well as most of the dragon fruit seeds. *If you don't have a strainer, skip this step or get any gelatin clumps out of the mixture with a spoon.
- If using gummy molds, use a dropper to put the liquid into the molds. If not using molds, pour the mixture into an 8x8 inch glass dish.
- Refrigerate for about an hour and allow to set. If using molds, pop the gummies out of the molds. If using a glass dish, cut the gummies into cubes or use cookie cutters to make fun shapes. Enjoy!
Notes
- If using gummy bear molds, this makes up to around 400 gummy bears.
- These will stay good in the fridge for at least a week in an airtight container. T
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Apple Dragon Fruit Gummies (Paleo, AIP)
Equipment
- Gummy molds (optional)
- Strainer
Ingredients
- 1 3/4 cup 100% apple juice (about 4 apples if juicing fresh)
- 1 dragon fruit packet (about 1/2 cup or 100 g)
- 1/4 cup maple syrup
- 1/3 cup gelatin
Instructions
- Blend apple juice, dragon fruit, and maple syrup in a blender until smooth.
- Add mixure to a medium-size saucepan and add gelatin. Stir a little but and allow to rest for about 5 minutes before turning on the heat. This will allow the gelatin to disolve. Turn the heat on low and whisk mixture continuously as it heats. Continue over low heat for 5-10 minutes.
- Pour the mixture through a strainer into a bowl. This helps to take out any extra gelatin clumps as well as most of the dragon fruit seeds. *If you don't have a strainer, skip this step or get any gelatin clumps out of the mixture with a spoon.
- If using gummy molds, use a dropper to put the liquid into the molds. If not using molds, pour the mixture into an 8x8 inch glass dish.
- Refrigerate for about an hour and allow to set. If using molds, pop the gummies out of the molds. If using a glass dish, cut the gummies into cubes or use cookie cutters to make fun shapes. Enjoy!
Notes
- If using gummy bear molds, this makes up to around 400 gummy bears.
- These will stay good in the fridge for at least a week in an airtight container. T
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