Fruit Leather

[brandon]

Hey guys new to the board here and have a question in regards to making fruit leather. I have pureed my strawberries and every time so far (4 separate occasions) that I have had them in my dehydrator the sheet of leather has separated and caused "holes" in the fruit leather sheet. Is this from not making my spread thick enough on the front end? Does it need more consistency as the strawberries seem to be more runny then the apple & pear mixture. Any advice on perfecting these is greatly appreciated!

[Mountain Mike]

I haven't made it yet but my friends that do add some applesauce to most fruits to get the right consistence.

[Mountain Mike]

Have you checked out Sarbar's site http://www.trailcooking.com/trail-cooking-101?

[Rasty]

Strawberries are watery. Thicken by adding applesauce or with a arrowroot slurry. Arrowroot is used just like cornstarch but remains consistent when cold.

[rocketsocks]

Well did ya remove all the little seeds from the skins?......to White Blaze

[brandon]

MM- thanks for the site link, I will def browse around there and see what I can learn, had never been to that one before

Rasty- what applesauce/strawberry ratio do you use? I had seen several recipes online that used applesuace w.the strawberries and several that failed to mention

Stinkysocks- I removed every last seed from all 30 srawberries but I did keep the little green toppers on, wonder if that matters?

[WingedMonkey]

I've found the best way to keep the strawberry flavor is to just slice them and dry them. Save the applesauce for it's own leather.

Great in oatmeal or cereal.

[Rocket Jones]

Yep. Dried and sliced. Hard to keep 'em around long enough to take with on a hike.

[Rasty]

MM- thanks for the site link, I will def browse around there and see what I can learn, had never been to that one before

Rasty- what applesauce/strawberry ratio do you use? I had seen several recipes online that used applesuace w.the strawberries and several that failed to mention

Stinkysocks- I removed every last seed from all 30 srawberries but I did keep the little green toppers on, wonder if that matters?

If I was going to make a strawberry fruit roll up (Never will) I would start with homemade seedless strawberry preserves and go from there. Make sure there is no corn syrup at all as it will not dehydrate.

[brandon]

Thanks all for the insight. What about rasberries or blackberries? Same problem due to all the seeds as strawberries?

[Rasty]

Thanks all for the insight. What about rasberries or blackberries? Same problem due to all the seeds as strawberries?

Push it through a fine mesh sieve first.

[rocketsocks]

Thanks all for the insight. What about rasberries or blackberries? Same problem due to all the seeds as strawberries?

Topers, naw, there good eatin...seeds too!

[tiptoe]

Stewed rhubarb roll-up makes a tasty trail treat.

[rhyolite]

Alternatively, since apples have lots of water too, first slice strawberries thinly, dehydrate on your screen rack for a few hours, then purée. I've dehydrated strawberries quite well this way

[GreenTurtle]

I made a page about how I make strawberry leather a few years ago. It's online at http://www.ryansatotalgoober.com/pro...wberryleather/ and works great for me. =) But I'm perfectly happy to eat the seeds and stems and all. Give it a little texture! =)

I'm not entirely sure what you meant by having "holes" in your strawberry leather, though. If you don't put Pam or something to prevent the leather from sticking, it can be extraordinarily difficult to pull it up in one piece. It doesn't hurt the taste any, but the leather will stick like glue to the trays. If it's too thick, it takes forever and a day to dry. I've never had any trouble with pouring out the strawberry leather coming out "too thin."

-- Green Tortuga

[brandon]

GT- Thanks for your reply, I sent you a PM.

[Kumquat]

Hey! I realize this is old, but I've just started poking around the forums again in pre-PCT excitement and I didn't see a clear answer to your question!

What's happening to your fruit leather is that you are spreading it too thin. This happens a lot when you're using strawberries (or any other more-watery fruit) because, when pureed, it naturally spreads itself out more than thicker fruits (like apples) do when pureed. Ideally, pre-dehydration, your spread mixture should be about 1/3 inch thick on the edges and about 1/4 inch thick in the middle. (The difference in thickness evens out the drying process.)

So what to do? After some trial and error, I realized that if I froze the strawberries about halfway (so that they weren't completely hard) and then pureed them, I ended up with something more like a smoothie than a gazpacho (you may actually have to add a bit of water to get it to blend properly). This consistency allows you greater control in spreading the puree out to the right thickness. When you put it in the dehydrator, the edges of the mix get gummy before the inside totally reaches room temperature, creating a boundary that keeps the mixture at the size and thickness you spread it to. This keeps you from having holes, and also lets you make fruit leather out of just strawberries!

Hope this helps, for future dehydration projects if nothing else!

[Hairbear]

I've found the best way to keep the strawberry flavor is to just slice them and dry them. Save the applesauce for it's own leather.

Great in oatmeal or cereal.

Plus 1 ,gives some uses to the garden produce too.

[Hairbear]

If your counter isnt level the juice will run away from the solids a little before dry . No worries though eat up.