I have only made fruit leather with a Silpat baking sheet, since it seems to be the easiest to remove from the pan and offers good results. Parchment paper is also supposed to work. You do not need to spread the pureed fruit too thin in the pan, or it will get crispy instead of chewy. Before undertaking this project, you should note that it does take a long time to bake, around 6-7 hours. Therefore I usually make fruit roll-ups as a weekend project, when I can prepare the fruit, throw it in the oven and go about doing other things the rest of the day until it’s time to take it out. Though it takes awhile, I believe it is well worth the results.
When the time is getting close to six hours, check the fruit leather more regularly because if it overcooks it will end up as fruit chips instead of shapeable leather. Baking times can vary because of oven differences, and how low your oven temperature can be set. You want to set it as low as possible, which might slightly extend the baking time.
You can use many different types of fruit; just make sure it is ripe to get the best flavor. Obviously using fruit that is in season will produce the tastiest results. Once you get comfortable with making your own fruit roll-ups, start experimenting with additional spices and garnishes. Cinnamon, mint, or citrus can be added in different levels to make interesting varieties.
Since the homemade option of fruit roll-ups is much lower in sugar, this is a great snack option for kids. Strawberries lend a natural sweetness to this version. It is also handy to have around for a snack on the go.
Ingredients
- 4 cups strawberries, hulled and chopped
- 2 tbsp honey
Directions
- Preheat the oven to 170 degrees F or the lowest oven temperature setting. Line a baking sheet with a Silpat mat. Place strawberries in a medium saucepan and cook on low heat until soft. Add in the honey and stir to combine.
- Use an immersion blender to puree the strawberries in the saucepan, or transfer to a blender and puree until smooth. Pour the mixture onto the Silpat-lined baking sheet and spread evenly with a spatula. Bake for 6-7 hours, until it peels away from the parchment.
- Once cooled, peel the fruit leather off the mat and use a scissors to cut the fruit leather into strips. Roll up to serve, and store in an airtight container.
Can you use something else for the liner? Like parchment or wax paper?? Thanks!
Parchment paper should work just as well.
Yummy. How long will they store in the pantry?
I only know that they will last up to a week for sure, but I always eat mine before it gets that far.
Any idea how these will stand up to a summer bike ride?
I think they would be great for a bike ride! Let us know how it goes!
Have you tried this with other fruits?
Hi Rebecca, it says to cook for 6-7 hrs…should that mean minutes.
It’s 6-7 hours. You’re basically using your oven as a super low temp dehydrator and it takes 5 forevers. Heh.
Has anybody made these with mango or raspberries?
I read another recipe for mango roll ups and it only used pureed mango and then right to the oven; no honey. and no pre-cooking in a sauce pan. I guess mango is sweet and soft enough on its own, and strawberries can be a bit more tart so they need the honey.
It also mentioned that it could be used on most fleshy fruits,
I tried this yesterday and left it on all night, still runny this morning. Did I do something wrong? Although it does smell delicious
Hi, Can you use other sweeteners with this, honey has too much fructose.
Thanks so much
Could you use frozen fruit for this as well?
I don’t see way not. I am going to give it a try. I suppose you bake at the lowest temp your oven has. The recipe does not say.
hi.
Love the fruit leathers. I am vegan is the honey for sweetness? Can I use golden syrup or an alternative??
Thank you.
Could this be done with peaches?
Thanks!
Can I omit the honey. I’m on a special cancer diet that does not allow sugar/glucose
Instead of using the oven can I just use my dehydrater? Thanks;)
I have done this with frozen peaches, frozen strawberries, even unsweetened applesauce. You just need to watch the moisture content and thickness needs to be pretty uniform. I do mine in a dehydrator. Spray the sheet with a non-stick cooking spray or just be sure to coat the sheet with something non-stick.
Hi!! This fruit leather looks delicious! I just tried making some and it became really thin in the oven (I tried not to spread it out too thin beforehand like you said, but it was very runny and thinned out on its own), became crusty around the edges and burnt in the center after just 5 hours. Any suggestions on how I could try to prevent these problems next attempt?? I did use parchment paper instead of a silpat mat as I do not have one – do you think maybe this was the problem? Thanks so much!! 🙂