Jello Shots.... Made from... Gummi Bears?!?!?!?!

So, my birthday was last weekend, and even though I didn't really do anything major, I did have fun trying out some fun party recipes! I thought it would be fun to share this with New Year's Eve around the corner because it would definitely be a hit for your party, and it is SO simple!!! Someone mentioned jello shots in passing recently, and I thought to myself- wonder how hard they are to make??? I hadn't really intended on making them, but when I stumbled onto this idea, I had to do it! It's very simply... all you need is vodka and gummi bears.

Directions:

1. Simply put however many gummi bears you want to make into shots and place them in a 9x13 baking pan (you don't have to worry if they touch or are stacked on one another-- they will not stick to each other and it won't affect the process)
2. Pour vodka over gummi bears making sure you cover them so they are completely submerged
3. Place cover or plastic wrap over the 9x13 pan and place in fridge
4. Let set for three days (I actually only manage to let them set for 2 and they turned out fine, but the longer the better according to what I have read on various forums and pinterest pins) gummi bears will swell up to two and a half times their normal size!
5. Once you've let gummi bears set, strain all gummi bears with a slotted spoon and lay out on paper towels to dry
6. After about 30 minutes move gummi bears onto more paper towels to dry again
7. Serve gummi bears in a fun/quirky way. I decided to use leftover cupcake wrappers with a fun print on them I'd bought to make cupcakes. I put about 10-15 gummi bears per wrapper, and people loved the idea!

**Gummi Bears after soaking in fridge for 2 days**

**This is how much the gummi bears size increased in 2 days**

**gummi bears drying out**

**my last minute idea on how to make individual servings for guests :)**

Ok, overall I thought this was a really fun idea, and it worked better than I expected! However, a word of warning from someone who tried this, the more you chew them THE STRONGER THE TASTE. I found if I kept chewing them the vodka flavor over-powered the fruit flavor from the gummi bears, but some people may like that... it's like a fruit flavor then WHAM alcohol. If you just chew a couple time then swallow you get to enjoy more of the fruit flavor with a less potent vodka taste. Also, it was weird but the leftover ones that didn't get eaten for my birthday, we tried the next day after sitting out and the vodka flavor was almost gone. Even if we chewed and chewed you could barely taste the vodka so perhaps after so long the vodka evaporates out of them so probably best to serve them fresh, and make sure you don't take them out til a few hours before your party! Hope you try and enjoy them at your next adult get together :)

FUTURE BLOG TEASER: up next-- freeze ahead marathon weekend: 6 different make ahead meals/recipes for the freezer, plus step by step instructions on how to best execute a freezer meal marathon. plus, a special surprise food idea that's great for fall/winter :)

Lizzy <3