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Dandelion gummies are a sweet little spring project the kids can help with, from the first flower to the last gummy bear. The yellow petals taste a lot like honey, so these dandelion and honey gummy bears come out golden, chewy, and lightly sweet, with no corn syrup or food dye.
Table of Contents
- Notes from My Kitchen
- Picking Dandelions for Gummies
- Ingredients for Dandelion Gummy Bears
- Yield Notes
- How to Make Dandelion Gummy Bears
- Tips for the Best Dandelion Gummies
- Variations
- Storing Dandelion Gummies
- More Ways to Use Your Dandelions
- Dandelion & Honey Gummy Bears FAQs
- More Dandelion Recipes
- Dandelion & Honey Gummy Bears Recipe
- More Foraged Treats
Dandelions are one of the first flowers of spring, and they’re the one flower nobody minds the kids picking by the fistful. Those bright yellow petals have a mild, honey-like flavor, which makes them a natural fit for sweets.
Every spring, we try a few new dandelion recipes. The sweet ones nearly all start with the flowers. There are more than 50 of them in my list of dandelion flower recipes, plus more than 20 dandelion desserts.
These gummies don’t take much work. The petals steep into a quick tea, and honey and gelatin turn that tea into soft, chewy gummy bears.
They’re a lot like store-bought gummy bears, just a little softer and not nearly as sweet. Honey is the only sweetener, and all the flavor comes from the flowers.
If your family loves these, the same idea works with elderberry syrup in my homemade elderberry gummies. The petals also flavor dandelion and honey marshmallows, made without corn syrup.
Notes from My Kitchen
When my son was two, decapitating dandelions was his favorite hobby. If he was going to collect them anyway, I figured we might as well use his harvest to make something just for him. He’d been obsessed with gummy bears ever since I got him a bottle of gummy bear vitamins, and like any two-year-old, he wanted a lot more than one.
So we made our own, and his four-year-old sister loved filling the molds with the little dropper. We were short on fridge space, so I left that first batch on the counter, and about 20 minutes later she snuck over and popped one out. They were ready, and the whole batch was gone soon after.
Picking Dandelions for Gummies
Pick dandelions on a sunny day, once the flowers have opened all the way. Mid to late morning is a good time. Choose a lawn or field free of sprays and weed killers, away from busy roads.
If you’re new to foraging, start with my guide to identifying dandelions and their look-alikes. Lawn dandelions are a great first wild plant for kids to learn, and I have more ideas for foraging with kids too.
Use only the yellow petals. The green base and the little leaves under the flower are bitter, and they’ll make the gummies bitter too. I break each flower in half from top to bottom, then pinch the petals out with my fingers.
A few stray bits of green won’t ruin the batch, so don’t stress over every one. The petals do need to be fresh, though. I’ve found they lose their flavor when they dry.
Ingredients for Dandelion Gummy Bears
The ingredient list is short: dandelion petals, water, honey, and gelatin. Another edible flower or a fruit juice can stand in for the dandelion tea, and you can add more honey if you like them sweeter.
- Dandelion petals: Only the yellow parts, fresh and loosely packed. They steep into a strong dandelion tea made from the flowers, which gives the gummies their gentle honey flavor.
- Water: Boiling water for the tea. The petals soak some of it up, so you start with a little more water than the tea you need.
- Honey: I use honey from a local farm, and any honey works. Honey isn’t safe for babies under a year old, so these are for older kids and grown-ups. If you’d rather skip real honey, my dandelion honey made from the flowers works the same way.
- Unflavored gelatin: I use Vital Proteins beef gelatin, and any plain powdered gelatin works, Knox included. Gelatin is what makes these chewy instead of runny.
Make sure the label says gelatin, not collagen peptides. Both come from the same place, but the makers break collagen peptides down further, so they dissolve in cold water and never set.
Yield Notes
It takes about 2 cups of whole dandelion flowers to get 1/2 cup of petals. The petals steep in a little more than a cup of boiling water (about 1 1/4 cups), which strains down to the 1 cup of tea the recipe needs.
One batch makes about 1 1/3 cups of gummy mixture, enough for about 160 small gummy bears. A mini mold makes more, and bigger shapes make fewer.
I use 1/4 cup of honey, and they’re just sweet enough. For sweeter gummies, use up to 1/2 cup.
The recipe takes 1/4 cup of gelatin, which is about 5 Knox envelopes. For chewier gummies, use up to 5 tablespoons.
Loved it! Also have used rose petals and lilac flowers.
How to Make Dandelion Gummy Bears
Dandelion gummies take about 20 minutes of hands-on work, and most of that is pulling petals. The rest is waiting while the tea steeps and the gummies set.
Kids can help with nearly every step, from picking the flowers to filling the molds. The stove step, melting the gelatin, is a job for a grown-up.
Steep the Petals
Put the petals in a heatproof jar or bowl and pour the boiling water over them. Let them steep for 15 to 20 minutes.
You can also make the tea a day ahead and keep it in the fridge. Either way, let it cool to room temperature before the gelatin goes in. Setting the jar in a bowl of cold water speeds that up.
Strain the Tea
Pour the tea through a fine mesh strainer into a liquid measuring cup, and press on the petals to get every bit out. The spent petals can go in the compost.
Check the measurement. If the tea comes up a little short, top it off with plain water.
Bloom the Gelatin
Pour about half of the cooled tea into a small saucepan. Sprinkle the gelatin over the top a little at a time, so it lands in an even layer instead of one big lump.
Leave it alone for about 5 minutes. The gelatin soaks up the tea and turns thick and spongy. Cooks call this blooming, and it keeps the gummies from turning out lumpy.
Melt the Gelatin and Honey
Add the rest of the tea and the honey. Warm it over low heat, stirring with a whisk, until the gelatin melts completely and the liquid turns clear, 2 to 4 minutes.
Don’t let it boil, since boiling weakens gelatin. Take the pan off the heat as soon as you can’t see any grains left.
Fill the Molds
Set the silicone gummy bear molds on a rimmed baking sheet first, so you can move them without spilling. Then fill each little bear with the dropper that comes with most molds.
Work fairly quickly, since the mixture thickens as it cools. If it gets too thick to pull into the dropper, warm it on low for a few seconds and keep going.
Let Them Set
Slide the tray into the fridge for 20 to 30 minutes, until the gummies feel firm and pull away cleanly. They’ll set on a cool counter too, just a little more slowly.
Pop them out by pushing on the back of each bear. Silicone molds don’t need greasing, but a tiny bit of neutral oil helps if a mold ever sticks.
No molds? Any small container works. I’ve poured a batch into a plastic container, flipped it over, popped out the whole slab, and cut it into squares.
Tips for the Best Dandelion Gummies
Skim the foam for clear gummies. Warming gelatin makes a layer of tiny bubbles on top, and they end up set into the bears. Let the pan sit for a few minutes so the bubbles rise, then skim them off with a spoon, rewarming it briefly if it starts to thicken.
Add more gelatin for a firmer chew. This recipe makes a soft, chewy gummy that holds its shape. A little more gelatin gets you closer to the firm bite of a store-bought gummy bear.
Dry them a little if they’re sticky. If the gummies feel tacky, spread them out on a plate and leave them uncovered in the fridge for a few hours. The outside dries a bit, and they stick together a lot less in the container.
Variations
Other edible flowers: Any edible flower tea works in place of the dandelion tea, as long as the flowers come from an unsprayed spot. One reader uses rose petals and lilacs, and wild violets work too. My lists of edible flowers and lilac recipes have more ideas.
Fruit juice: Swap the tea for juice, cup for cup, and cut back on the honey, since juice is already sweet. We’ve made these with pear juice and tart cherry juice, and both were a huge hit.
Juices to skip: Fresh or frozen pineapple, kiwi, mango, papaya, figs, and guava, and fresh ginger, have enzymes that break down gelatin, so the gummies never set. Canned or shelf-stable pasteurized juice is fine, since heat stops those enzymes, but cold-pressed juice skips the heat, so pass on it.
Elderberry: Elderberry syrup makes a deep purple gummy, and I have a separate recipe for elderberry gummies.
Sour gummies: Toss the gummies in a little sugar mixed with citric acid right before you eat them. Citric acid pulls in moisture, so the coating turns wet and sticky if they sit.
Other shapes: Our mold kit came with a gummy worm mold too, and those were my daughter’s favorite. An old ice cube tray makes simple squares.
Storing Dandelion Gummies
Keep the gummies in an airtight container in the fridge, and eat them within about a week. Store-bought gummies are mostly sugar, and candy makers dry them until they’re shelf stable. These are mostly tea, so they need the fridge.
They soften a little at room temperature, so they’re best straight from the fridge. Layer them with parchment paper if they’re sticking, or dust them lightly with cornstarch.
More Ways to Use Your Dandelions
Once your kids get a taste for dandelion treats, there’s plenty more to make with the flowers. Dandelion shortbread cookies, dandelion cream pie, and dandelion and honey ice cream all start with the same yellow petals.
For the grown-ups, the petals go into dandelion liqueur and dandelion infused gin, or a batch of dandelion wine or dandelion mead. They also make a lovely dandelion jelly for canning, and the unopened buds turn into dandelion capers.
The rest of the plant is good food too. The leaves make dandelion greens pesto and sauteed dandelion greens, and the roots go into dandelion root cake or a cup of dandelion root coffee.
There are dozens more ideas in my lists of dandelion greens recipes, dandelion root recipes, and even dandelion seed recipes. For the whole plant, from flower to root, start with my guide to foraging dandelions.
On the herbal side, I make dandelion oil, dandelion salve, and dandelion tincture, and I’ve written about dandelion medicinal uses too.
If you’re worried about taking flowers the bees need, I looked into whether dandelions are really the first food for the bees. In a yard full of dandelions, there’s plenty to share.
Dandelion & Honey Gummy Bears FAQs
Readers ask about dried petals, sticky gummies, soft gummies, and a vegan version, so those are all here.
You really need fresh petals here, since I’ve found they lose their flavor when they dry. If you don’t have enough at once, clean the petals and freeze them until you do. Pull off all the green first, because it’s hard to separate once they’ve frozen.
Store them in the fridge in an airtight container, with parchment paper between the layers. If they still feel tacky, leave them uncovered in the fridge for a few hours to dry a little, or dust them lightly with cornstarch.
It’s usually the gelatin. Collagen peptides won’t set at all, and gelatin that didn’t fully melt sets soft, so make sure there are no grains left before you fill the molds. Fresh pineapple, kiwi, mango, or papaya juice, or any cold-pressed juice, will also keep them from setting. For a firmer chew, add a little more gelatin next time.
I haven’t made these vegan. Agar works differently than gelatin. It has to boil to set, and it makes a firmer, less chewy gummy, so the amounts don’t swap one for one. Follow a gummy recipe written for agar, and use dandelion tea for the liquid.
About a week in an airtight container in the fridge. They soften at room temperature, so keep them chilled until you eat them.
More Dandelion Recipes
More treats from a yard full of dandelions.
If you tried this Dandelion & Honey Gummy Bears recipe, or any other recipe on Adamant Kitchen, leave a ⭐ star rating and let me know what you think in the 📝 comments below!
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Dandelion & Honey Gummy Bears
Equipment
- Whisk
- Rimmed Baking Sheet
Ingredients
- 1/2 cup dandelion petals, yellow parts only, loosely packed
- 1 1/4 cups boiling water, see notes
- 1/4 cup honey, see notes
- 1/4 cup unflavored gelatin, not collagen peptides
Instructions
- Pour the boiling water over the dandelion petals in a heatproof jar or bowl, and let them steep for 15 to 20 minutes.
- Strain the tea, pressing on the petals, and top it off with water if it comes up short (see notes). Let it cool to room temperature, setting the jar in a bowl of cold water to speed it up.
- Pour about half of the tea into a small saucepan. Sprinkle the gelatin evenly over the top and let it sit for 5 minutes, until it’s thick and spongy.
- Add the rest of the tea and the honey. Warm over low heat, whisking, until the gelatin melts completely and the liquid turns clear, 2 to 4 minutes. Don’t let it boil.
- Let it sit for a few minutes and skim off the foam. Set the silicone molds on a baking sheet and fill them with a dropper, warming the mixture on low for a few seconds if it gets too thick.
- Refrigerate for 20 to 30 minutes, until the gummies are firm and pull away cleanly, then pop them out of the molds.
- Store the gummies in an airtight container in the fridge, and eat them within about a week.
Notes
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
More Foraged Treats
More sweets made with foraged flowers and berries.
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LOVED IT!!! Also have used Rose Petals and Lilac Flowers
You can dust with cornstarch