Preserving fruit by making fruit leather

Fruit leather — the name refers to the appearance of sheets of dried fruit pulp — has an advantage over most preservation methods in that overripe and blemished fruit can be used, because it is all pulped before drying. Here are some simple tips to keep in mind when preserving your fruit by making fruit leather.

Fruits suitable for drying for fruit leather include apples, apricots, peaches, nectarines, plums and pears. They can be combined for a variety of flavours. A little sugar is added to improve texture of the dried material without diluting flavour.

• For a delicious confectionery, add extra sugar, at the rate of 300 grams (10 1/2 ounces) of sugar to each three kilograms (6 1/2 pounds) of fresh fruit; sweetened fruit leather takes three to seven days longer to dry.
• Plain fruit leather can be used in baking and cooking in the same way as dried halves of fruit.
• It can also be reconstituted to form a tasty drink by soaking overnight in water.
• Confectionery fruit leather is softer than plain fruit leather and can be eaten as a snack without further preparation.

1. Wash the fruit thoroughly and peel it. Pit stone fruit or de-stem and core pears. Weigh the fruit, then put it through a coarse mincer.
2. Immediately add 3.5 grams (one level teaspoon) of sodium or potassium metabisulphite and 100 grams (3 1/2 ounces) of sugar for each three kilograms (6 1/2 pounds) of fresh fruit used.
3. Mix the fruit and other ingredients well, then spread the pulp in sheets 15 centimetres (six inches) long and one to 1.5 centimetres (1/2 to 3/4 inch) thick on trays lined with freezer wrap.
4. Place the trays of pulp in the sun for drying, taking care to protect them from ants and other insects; alternatively use an indoor dehydrator.
5. When the sheets are firm enough, turn them over. Drying is complete when they are still pliable and chewy but not soft. This takes about a week.
6. Roll sheets in castor (superfine) sugar for easier handling; roll up or cut into squares. Store them between sheets of freezer wrap in an airtight container.

--------------------

Discover the smarter way to save time and money

Ready to start saving more on your groceries and pharmacy purchases? Download the FREE YP Grocery app today! It lets you create shareable shopping lists, automatically finds all the best deals and coupons, then delivers them right to you. No more manually scrolling through hundreds of flyers to find what you’re looking for!

Download the YP Grocery app now!