Valentine's Day Gummies/Marshmallows (with Gelatin health benefits)

 It's that lovey dovey time of year again :) 

Forgive me for recycling this blog post, but these little Valentine's Day treats are super easy to make, and were a huge hit last year. 

And to top it all off, they're actually very healthy. And not in a "just not bad for you" kind of way. They actually have health benefits! Treats with health benefits? what??

The super awesome, multi-talented ingredient is Gelatin!  And not just any gelatin....grass-fed organic beef gelatin...this stuff.

The best part is that these have super-duper anti-ageing power! Yes.....the kind of power that smooths out sagging/thinning skin (which I've been noticing to be an increasing reality for me now that I'm safely "into my 30's" ...33 to be exact). And they don't just have the power to work on facial skin/wrinkles...they can actually help tighten up saggy tummy post-baby skin as well. And let me tell you, after having 3 giant baby boys live in this belly of mine, I need all the skin-shrinking help I can get!

Also, these gelatin-rich beauties are great for your joints/soft tissue/injuries. Yep...they pack a punch in the injury repair department as well. 

sign me up. :) 

(stay tuned for a future post about different ways to add gelatin and its amazing health benefits into your diet)

Raspberry Lemon Gummy Hearts/Lollipops

 I found this super-easy, 5 minute (literally) recipe here and made a couple of changes.

3 tbsp Grass Fed Gelatin Powder (I bought this brand)

3 tbsp Raw Honey

1/4 cup Lemon Juice

2 tbsp Raspberry Juice 

(I used frozen raspberries and heat them up in a saucepan with a little bit of water, then let them boil/reduce for a minute or so and strain to get the juice)

2 drops Young Living Lemon Oil 

(excellent immune-boosting health benefits, as well as anti-bacterial/fungal/viral properties)

I just followed the instructions on the Mommypotamus blog (lots of awesome GAPS/PALEO recipes on her blog!...definitely worth a peek).

I found some heart shaped silicone moulds in our local kitchen store, as well as little Valentine themed "lollipop" moulds at the Daiso. They both turned out really well, and I'm always surprised at how easy it is to pop the gummies out of the silicone moulds (they come out so perfectly and are pretty much indestructible!)

Recipe #2....

Fluffy Peppermint Marshmallow Hearts

Another recipe that I found on Mommypotamus and just did some minor changes...

1 cup Filtered Water (split into two half cups)

3 tbsp Grass Fed Gelatin Powder

1 cup Organic Honey

1 tsp Vanilla extract (I've also used vanilla bean seeds in the past, which worked really well)

1/4 tsp salt

3 drops Young Living Peppermint Oil (excellent digestive/stomach benefits)

1 Packet all-natural (no artificial food colouring) carnival sprinkles for sprinkling on top! (OPTIONAL)

These are a little more time-consuming to make than the gummies, but don't be intimidated!! They are super easy. You do need a candy thermometer, tho. At least, it's easier if you have one. If not, you'd probably be safe with boiling the honey/water/vanilla mixture for about 10 minutes.

Directions are here at the Mommypotamus, for the original "plain" vanilla marshmallows.

Once I followed her directions, and spread my marshmallow cream into the pan, I sprinkled the fun sprinkles on top, and let it set for about an hour. Then..I used a little heart cookie cutter to cut out heart shapes. This part is a little tricky...but I found it was easiest when I lightly greased the inside of the cookie cutter with butter (it didn't stick to the marshmallow so badly!). 

I put the marshmallow hearts into little parchment paper mini muffin liners, as well as a few gummy hearts and lollipops, and boxed them up all cute and Valentine"y" :) 

They look super cute, and I can't wait to see the boys' faces when they get to gobble them up :)

Happy Valentine's Day,  everyone!!

xoxo