Fruit Leather

Yesterday I made some Fruit Leather. It was the first time I had made anything like that and I am really pleased with the way it turned out.

I started with most of a bag of cherries. They went into the pot with a bit of sugar and then I popped it over low heat. That mix simmered away for a while, reducing and smelling great. Once the cherries had cooked down quite a bit I got out the handy-dandy immersion blender and pureed those suckers. The blitzed cherries made a really nice thick deep red sauce.

I spread the sauce thinly on a parchment covered baking sheet and popped it into my oven with the light on. I left it overnight and tested a bit this morning. Not quite dry yet, but it will be by the time I get home. I plan to cut it in strips and use it in our lunches.

I love fruit leather. I used to be a sucker for fruit roll-ups but I have grown out of that over-processed-fruit flavored sugar junk. I know exactly what went into this stuff - Fruit and sugar. I probably could have done with out the sugar, and next time I think I will try it that way.

Experiments like this one and the time I made dried tomatoes make me want to get a dehydrator. But not enough to actually go out and buy one. If I see one at a garage sale I might consider picking one up. It would be nice to have one for next years tomato crop. Plus I could make even more yummy treats like this one.