Sadly, cold and flu season is upon us. While I don’t think we can avoid sickness completely, (especially with young children in the house) I do believe in trying to boost our immune systems and general health. We do this all year long, but amp it up a bit this time of year!
I recently started making these homemade gummies that are so delicious, my kids gobble them up! And they’re so good for them that, to their surprise, every time they ask for more, I say “Sure, have as much as you want!” (To be honest, I eat my fair share too!) If you’re a bit turned off by the “homemade” part, let me assure you, these are SO EASY to make!! The kids love helping me make them too.
Ingredients:
- 1 cup juice
- 1-2 tbsp honey
- 3 tbsps elderberry syrup (optional)
- Grass-fed beef gelatin
- Whisk
- Homemade gummy molds
Directions:
- Place juice, honey, and elderberry syrup in a sauce pan and gently warm it up. You do not want it to boil as that will begin to cook out the great benefits of the ingredients.
- Once it just begins to simmer, remove it from the heat.
- Stir in the gelatin using a whisk.
- While still warm, immediately squeeze liquid into the gummy molds using a dropper.
- Place in the fridge for 2 hours.
- Pop them out of the molds and enjoy!
- Keep them in the fridge in an air tight container for up to a week, if they last that long!
Notes:
You can use any flavor of juice. I use real, not from concentrate, juice, which is important if you’re wanting the health benefits. So far, we’ve tried orange juice, flavored coconut water, and grape juice. They were all equally yummy! Some of the immunity benefits come from the juice, so keep that in mind. Orange juice has vitamin C and other great vitamins, coconut water has great electrolytes and minerals, and grape juice helps ward off tummy troubles.
Grass-fed beef gelatin is the star of this show, so I wouldn’t recommend using a plant-based gelatin. Grass-fed beef gelatin provides protein, helps digestion and overall gut health, and also helps hair, skin, nails, and bones! There are so many benefits! I actually found the gelatin pictured above at Walmart very affordable, but there are many other options as well, like this one on Amazon.
Elderberry syrup is optional, but again has awesome immune-boosting benefits. I buy elderberry kits from Purely Parsons and make my own syrup. It lives in our fridge through the winter, but our kids won’t take it straight. So, I sneak it into these gummies!
If you don’t have honey, you can use maple syrup instead, in a 1:1 ratio. I use raw, local honey as that helps with sinus health. (In short, bees pollinate the plants in your area, so using local honey is like a natural allergy shot to the allergens in your area!) However, in this recipe, it is mostly a sweetener, so swap if you need to!
I set our molds on a cookie sheet, so I can easily pop them into the fridge to chill. If you have excess liquid, I pour the remainder into a silicone loaf pan and then just cut it into squares. If you don’t have one, you can just discard any extra before it gels. These are the gummy molds I bought on Amazon for less than $10 and it comes with two droppers!
I’ve been making these gummies weekly lately. It’s so easy and beneficial, you’ve got to try it! If you do, comment and let me know how your kids liked them!
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