Fruit Leather Recipe for Simple Preserving
By Annie B. Bond, Executive Producer of Care2's Healthy Living Content
Not only is making fruit leather incredibly simple and it can process large quantities of fruit, but once done the fruit leather can be stored at room temperature for 30 days, months in the refrigerator, or years in the freezer, according to the Department of Agriculture. In fact, this excellent recipe is provided by the Department of Agriculure.
Use any type of ripe fruit. Apples or Concord grapes should be cooked until tender and made into sauce first. Add 1 tablespoon of lime or lemon juice per quart of fruit for fruit that might darken.
Remove all pits stones, and seeds, and peel if desired.
Puree fruit in a blender until smooth.
Oil a cookie sheet, or cover a cookie sheet with aluminum foil. (I’ve found that the puree sticks to wax paper and is hard to salvage.) Pour puree 1/4-inch deep onto a cookie sheet with sides.
Distribute evenly.
Turn oven onto the lowest setting, place cookie sheet on a rack, and crack the oven door. Cook for 4-6 hours until dry and the fruit leather is not sticky.
