School is back in full swing and children’s lunch boxes (and yours) are to be packed and filled with goodies! One of my favorite treats as a little me was fruit leather (a.k.a. fruit roll-ups!).
They were tasty, sweet, sticky, and chewy all rolled into one fun little package. Knowing now what I do about nutrition and whole food sources, I’ll pass on the store bought fruit leathers which are loaded with extra sugar and rarely contain actual fruit. But that’s not to say I don’t still enjoy these treats, so today let’s make our own! That’s right homemade Fruit Leathers, in multiple flavors perfect for the fall season or anytime of year. Introducing Apple Cinnamon, Strawberry, and Pear Fruit Leather!
What are fruit leathers? No these are not made with leather, the word leather is purely used to describe the texture! Natural and deliciously sweet fruit disguised in a fun, rolled-up, chewy portable package. These are perfect because kids feel like their getting a “treat” in actuality it’s simply a piece of fresh fruit! (shhh, I won’t tell if you won’t).
Pictured // Apple Cinnamon + Pear + Strawberry before dehydrating; fruit leather after dehydrating!
Pictured // Apple Cinnamon (Left), Pear + Strawberry (Right)
- 4 large fuji apples, 4 cups (or type of your choice)
- 4 large pears, 4 cups
- 5 cups fresh strawberries, hulled
- 1 Tbs. lemon juice for each fruit mixture (3 Tbs. total)
- 1 Tbs. chia seeds (for apple fruit mixture)
- 1 Tbs. ground cinnamon (for apple mixture, this is optional)
- stevia for additional sweetness (optional)
- Preheat your oven to the lowest setting possible, 140-170 degrees F OR use a dehydrator at 155 degrees if you have one (this is what I used to make these).
- APPLE MIXTURE//
- Blend the raw apples into a Vitamix or high speed blender until pureed.
- Add in cinnamon, lemon juice and chia seeds.
- Stir until combined.
- STRAWBERRY MIXTURE//
- Blend the raw strawberries (hulled) into a Vitamix or high speed blender until pureed.
- Add in lemon juice.
- Stir until combined.
- PEAR MIXTURE//
- Blend the raw pears into a Vitamix or high speed blender until pureed.
- Add in lemon juice.
- Stir until combined.
- After you have each mixture prepared separately, pour each mixture onto a separate dehydrator sheet lined with parchment paper.
- “Bake”//dehydrate for 6-8 hours depending on your oven settings, checking at 6 hours.
- You will know these are finished when they are no longer sticking to your fingers or “gooey”. They should be slightly sticky but will not stick to your finger when testing the texture.
Nutrition Information | will vary if you cut in smaller sections or rolls than mentioned serving size.
- Apple Cinnamon (1/8th mixture) // 65 calories, 16g carbohydrates (11g sugar, 3g fiber), <1g protein
- Strawberry (1/4th mixture) // 95 calories, 22 carbohydrates (15g sugar, 5g fiber), 1g protein
- Pear (1/4th mixture) // 104 calories, 28g carbohydrates (16g sugar, 5g fiber)
I use an Excalibur 9 tray dehydrator for this recipe. No dehydrator? No worries! This recipe can be made using your oven at the lowest settings possible and the end result will still be just as wonderful! We all must exercise patience when waiting for these to dehydrate.
TIPS |
- Shapes // Gently press a cookie cutter in the fruit roll-up mixture after it’s been cooled on wax paper, this will create a fun easy to peel off design for the kids!
- No moisture // Place the finished dehydrated fruit leathers into a plastic bag on the counter, if any moisture is present in the bag- put these back into the oven or dehydrator to make sure all moisture is gone!
- This is the perfect recipe for using fruit that’s getting too ripe on your counter- no waste here.
- Presentation // Wrap in wax paper and tie with a string.
- Chips// don’t over-bake or dehydrate this will cause them to not be chewy and more like fruit “chips”, which are still delicious!
Now you can feel a little better about sending your little one to school with a sweet treat that’s sure to keep them satisfied but also delivering some healthy nutrition to them. Even if you don’t have kids, the kid in you will absolutely love these for a great snack!
What were your favorite chewy and sweet treats as a kid? Share below!
Happy Friday everyone,
xo McKel
