Making Strawberry Fruit Leather in the Dehydrator couldn’t be any easier, and it’s the perfect use for summer strawberries!
Table of Contents
Why I Love This Recipe
- Simple and Versatile: You can turn almost any fruit into delicious fruit leather. While we love experimenting with different flavors, Strawberry Fruit Leather is a classic favorite in our kitchen.
- Naturally Sweet: Made with fresh summer strawberries and a touch of honey or agave, this recipe creates a naturally sweet snack that’s far healthier than store-bought fruit roll ups that are loaded with sugar.
- Great for Using Seasonal Fruit: This recipe is a perfect way to use up extra seasonal fruit and reduce food waste while making something your kids will love.
- Kid-Approved: My kids love the fun, strip-form presentation of homemade fruit leather, and I feel good knowing it’s made from simple, wholesome ingredients.
- Endless Flavor Options: If strawberries aren’t available, you can easily switch it up with other fruits and make Peach Fruit Leather, Persimmon Fruit Leather, or Pineapple Fruit Leather. The possibilities are endless, and each variation makes for a delicious, on-the-go snack!
The Ingredients
- Fresh Strawberries: The more ripe the berries, the more naturally sweet they’ll be. I often use strawberries that are about to go bad so that we minimize food waste!
- Honey: Having additional sweetener is optional. If you feel your strawberries are sweet enough, leave it out. You could also use agave instead of honey if that’s what you prefer!
How to Make Strawberry Fruit Leather in Dehydrator
This strawberry fruit leather recipe is made in a countertop dehydrator. If you’re going to be making fruit leather often, a dehydrator is worth the investment. It prevents the need to turn on your oven, and you can set it and forget it for several hours. If you don’t have a dehydrator, here’s a recipe post on how to make strawberry fruit leather in the oven!
Step 1: Prep the strawberries by washing and remove the stems. I used this strawberry huller!
Step 2: Place the strawberries in a blender or food processor. Drizzle a bit of honey or agave if you want to sweeten them up a bit. This is optional, and if your berries are very sweet, you can skip the additional sweetener. Blend until smooth.
Step 3: Pour the strawberry puree onto a dehydrator sheet. Use a spoon or offset spatula to spread the mixture in a completely even layer. You don’t want the mixture to be too thin or too thick – this is where the experimenting comes in to play!
Step 4: Place the sheets in the dehydrator, set to 135°F for 3-4 hours, until the fruit leather is dry to the touch, and no longer sticky. Cut the fruit leather into strips and roll them up in parchment paper.
Tips for Making Homemade Strawberry Fruit Leather
- Storage: Fruit leather can be stored in an airtight container at room temperature for a few months, although ours are usually gone much faster than that!
- Use Ripe Strawberries: For the best flavor and natural sweetness, choose ripe strawberries. The riper the berries, the more vibrant and delicious your fruit leather will be.
- Spread Evenly: When spreading the strawberry puree onto the dehydrator trays, aim for an even thickness. This ensures consistent drying and prevents some areas from becoming too brittle while others stay too moist.
- Check for Doneness: Your fruit leather is ready when it’s no longer sticky to the touch and peels easily from the tray.
FAQs
Cracking can happen if the fruit leather is too dry. Next time, check for doneness earlier or spread the puree slightly thicker on the tray. Homemade fruit leather can be a bit of trial and error!
Absolutely! You can blend strawberries with other fruits like raspberries, blueberries, pineapple or peaches to create unique flavor combinations.
The drying time can vary depending on the thickness of the puree, the dehydrator you use and the settings you have it on. Typically, it takes anywhere from 3 to 5, sometime up to 8 hours at 135°F to achieve the perfect texture.
More Recipes Using Strawberries
Whip up this easy, healthy Strawberry Fruit Leather in your dehydrator for a snack that both kids and adults will love. Feel free to experiment with different fruits, and enjoy a treat that’s as fun to make as it is to eat! If you have any questions, leave a comment below!
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Strawberry Fruit Leather – Dehydrator Method
Equipment
Ingredients
- 3 cups strawberries
- 1 tablespoon honey or agave, optional
Instructions
- Wash the strawberries and remove the stems.
- Place strawberries in a blender. Drizzle with honey or agave if you want to sweeten them up a bit. This is optional, and if your berries are very sweet, you can skip additional sweetener. Blend strawberries until smooth.
- Pour the strawberry puree onto a dehydrator sheet. Use a spoon or offset spatula to spread the mixture in a completely even layer. You don't want the mixture to be too thin or too thick – this is where the experimenting comes in to play!
- Place the sheets in the dehydrator set to 135°F for 3-4 hours, until the fruit leather is dry to the touch, and no longer sticky.
- Cut the fruit leather into strips and roll up in parchment paper. Fruit leather can be stored in at airtight container at room temperature for a few months, although ours never last that long!
Video
Notes
- Storage: Fruit leather can be stored in an airtight container at room temperature for a few months, although ours are usually gone much faster than that!
- Use Ripe Strawberries: For the best flavor and natural sweetness, choose ripe strawberries. The riper the berries, the more vibrant and delicious your fruit leather will be.
- Spread Evenly: When spreading the strawberry puree onto the dehydrator trays, aim for an even thickness. This ensures consistent drying and prevents some areas from becoming too brittle while others stay too moist.
- Check for Doneness: Your fruit leather is ready when it’s no longer sticky to the touch and peels easily from the tray.
Not if it costs you money every single time you have to go and buy more ingredients.
Catherine- what a horrible recipe. We only had the fruit leather in the oven for 2 out of the 2-3 hours recommended, and it was fried to a crisp. My kids were so disappointed and I wasted all of my money on the ingredients and parchment paper. Change your recipe before you waste more people’s time and money.
The recipe says to use a dehydrator, not an oven. If you put it in the oven that is why it didn’t turn out.
I was just going to make up some tonight because my son and I went strawberry picking on Sunday. When we’ve done it before, it’s really thin. Do you just add more to make it thicker? And, does the honey change the consistency?
No, the foil curls up and sticks to the fruit leather. Use parchment paper, or the silicone inserts that come with a food dehydrator!
hi,
I wanted to know that can you use foil instead of parchment paper while making strawberry fruit leather
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Is the solution to the fruit leather browning a lot around the edges to turn the oven down? Does the entire leather have to be not sticky when ready (even the centre)?
Just trying to perfect it.
Thanks 🙂
I have the EZ drayer which I dry fruit, vegetable, meat and… fruit Leather.
no need to worry about burning anything… If you like to make healthy food for your children…. this is worth the money!
my kids take it as snacks everywhere
By the way… I don’t add any sugar/hunny to the fruits. it perfectly sweet!
You can also mix fruits and make fruit Leather.
this is an example of a machine, nit the one I have but you can see the idea:
http://www.amazon.com/Nesco-FD-60-Snackmaster-Express-Dehydrator/dp/B000LNVUJQ/ref=lp_1090752_1_2?s=kitchen&ie=UTF8&qid=1409032673&sr=1-2
how do you keep your parchment paper looking so pretty on your fruit leather? mine turns so brown.
I just made my first batch. I took it out of the oven as soon as it stopped being sticky. Its edges are a little brown and it is crisp. I hope it softens overnight like you say. I really want it to work. Do I just leave it out or do I need to store it somehow? Thanks 🙂
I love this recipe. Thank you so much for sharing
When you dehydrate fruits the flavor becomes extremely concentrated. So if you have super sweet strawberries you definitely don’t need sweetener, but if they’re on the tart side the resulting fruit leather will be very tart so in that case I would add some sweetener. 🙂
Do you have to use honey/other sweeteners or would it work if I just used strawberries? 🙂
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