If you’ve ever wondered how to make fruit leather, our step-by-step guide is just what you need! We keep this fruit leather recipe simple with no artificial ingredients. Children and adults will love it!
In this recipe
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Fruit leather guidelines
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Alternatives to the oven
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Fruits and other add-ins
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Sweet fruit leather
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How long does fruit leather last?
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Alternatives to plastic wrap
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Fruit leather in a dehydrator
BE PICTURED IN; CHARACTERIZED IN:
When you have your own fruit trees (or have access to someone else’s), you can sometimes feel a bit buried in fruit. They are overwhelmed by what is falling from the trees at this time. Summer becomes one insane shot of canning, stowing, and freezing trying to preserve abundance to enjoy year-round.
Fruit leather guidelines
What follows is a general guideline for making fruit leather, not a set recipe. So much of this depends on the specific fruit you are working with.
Do you have a favorite method of making fruit leather? I’m curious to know.
I can imagine that not all fruits are best processed in the same way. Some mix well with other things, such as cherries with ground almonds.
Some people prefer to only process the raw fruit; I like to cook the fruit first to increase the intensity of the flavor and kill any bacteria that might be lurking on the fruit.
When apple butter season hits, I might make a fruit leather batch with extra ground cloves, cinnamon, and apple cider vinegar.
The leftover fruit pulp from making a clear jelly is great for making fruit leather (think quince jelly now).
Alternatives to the oven
If you have a food dehydrator, this would be a great use for it. My mom suggested putting the tray in the Weber grill and sitting in the sun all day. Sounds like a good trick, but I haven’t tried it yet.
My parents remember the traditional method of making fruit leather was to simply tent the tray with cheesecloth and leave it outside in the sun on a hot day.
If you have a favorite fruit leather take on a favorite fruit, please let us know in the comments.
Fruits and other add-ins
Almost any fruit can be processed into fruit leather. You just need to be able to make a smooth puree out of it to get the best results. Here are some suggestions to get you started:
- Berries – like strawberries, blueberries, raspberries, blackberries
- Stone fruit – eg apricots, plums, peaches
- Tropical fruits – like mangoes and papaya
- Other fruits – such as apples, pears, kiwi, grapes
Sweet fruit leather
The beauty of fruit leather is that you don’t have to add sugar or lemon to preserve the fruit. The process of removing the moisture is what preserves the fruit. You can add sugar if needed to balance out the flavor, but feel free to use other sweeteners (honey, agave, maple syrup, and the like) instead.
We recommend adding lemon not only to brighten the flavor but the citric acid also helps preserve the color of some fruits.
How long does fruit leather last?
You can store fruit leather, rolled up and in a large lidded jar or ziplock bag, at room temperature for up to 1 month. For longer storage (up to 6 months) refrigerate your fruit leather. For even longer storage (up to 1 year) you can freeze your homemade treats.
Alternatives to plastic wrap
- If you don’t want to use plastic wrap, you can line your baking sheet with parchment or a silicone mat.
- The quality of the cling film itself has a lot to do with safe cooking. You can read more about the safe use of plastic here (it talks about the use of plastic in sous vide cooking, but it absolutely applies here too).
- Be careful not to use wax paper as wax melts when heated.
Fruit leather in a dehydrator
do you have a dehydrator Lucky you! Follow the recipe through step 4. Then pour it onto your dehydrator’s fruit leather bowl (if your machine came with one). You can also cut parchment paper to size and line your dehydrator trays with it.
Set your dehydrator to 60°C and let it work for a minimum of 6 hours or up to 12 hours. The actual time depends on the type of fruit used and the thickness of your leather. But we have found that 8 to 10 hours is the sweet range for making fruit leather in our dehydrator.
Check your fruit occasionally. The fruit leather is done when it has dried and no longer feels sticky.
CONTINUE READING:
More fruit snack recipes to try!
- Mexican fruit cocktail
- Berry Banana Fruit Salad
- Strawberry Nectarine Fruit Salad
- Strawberry yogurt popsicles
- Parfait with maple yogurt, citrus fruits and pomegranate
From the editors of Simply Recipes
How to craft fruit leather
ingredients
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Fresh fruit (apricots, peaches, plums, berries, apples, pears or grapes)
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water
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lemon juice
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sugar, optional
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spices such as Cinammon and nutmeg, optional
method
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Wash and prepare fruit:
rinse fruit. If you are working with stone fruit, remove the stone. Chop the fruit.
If you’re working with apples or pears, peel and core them, then chop them. If you’re working with grapes, stem them.
Taste the fruit before proceeding. Notice how sweet the fruit is. If it’s very sweet (like ripe Concord grapes), then you don’t need to add sugar. If it’s still a little tart, you may need to add some sugar in the next step.
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Boil the fruit with water, then puree:
Place the fruit in a large saucepan. Add 1/2 cup water for every 4 cups of chopped fruit.
Bring to a boil, cover and cook over low heat for 10 to 15 minutes or until fruit is tender. Uncover and stir.
Use a potato masher to mash the fruit in the pan.
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Season to taste with sugar and spices:
Taste the fruit and determine how much sugar, lemon juice, or spices to add.
If needed, add the sugar in small amounts (1 tablespoon at a time) to desired sweetness.
Add lemon juice, 1 teaspoon at a time, to lighten the flavor of the fruit. Add a pinch or two of cinnamon, nutmeg, or other spices to enhance the flavor if you like.
Continue to simmer and stir for another 5 or 10 (or more) minutes, until the added sugar has completely dissolved and the fruit puree has thickened.
Simple tip!
When working with grapes, strain the juice from the mashed grapes to make grape juice. Press what’s left through a food grinder to make the puree for the next step.
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Puree the cooked fruit:
Pass the pureed fruit through a food grinder or chinoise. Alternatively, puree the fruit thoroughly in a blender or food processor. The puree should be very smooth.
Taste again and adjust sugar/lemon/spices if necessary.
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Pour the puree onto a baking sheet lined with parchment paper:
Line a rimmed baking sheet with sturdy, heatproof plastic wrap (the kind that’s microwave-safe). Pour the puree about 1/8 to 1/4 inch thick onto the parchment-lined baking sheet.
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Dry slowly in the oven:
Preheat oven to 140°F.
Place the baking sheet in the oven. Try to keep plastic wrap from touching the sides of the oven or oven racks. Also make sure that the plastic wrap is not folded back onto the puree. In this case, the puree will not dry out.
If you have a convection setting, use that. It speeds up the drying process. Allow to dry in the oven until the puree forms a fruit leather. We usually leave it in the oven overnight, about 8 to 12 hours.
The fruit leather is done when it no longer feels sticky.
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Roll up to store in the plastic wrap:
When the fruit leather is ready, you can easily peel it off the cling film.
To store it, roll it up in its plastic wrap, place in an airtight container and store in the fridge or freezer.
| nutritional information (per serving) | |
|---|---|
| 77 | calories |
| 0g | Fat |
| 20g | carbohydrates |
| 1g | protein |
