With an abundant harvest of plums this season, we’ve found ourselves finding all sorts of creative ways to enjoy them, and in this case preserve them.

For this recipe we used a variety of plums from around the yard, a handful apples from our apple tree, and couple of pears given to us from a neighboring tree.

But really, you could use this process to create any combination of fruit leather you fancy. It’s almost too simple!

Supplies:

Medium or Large pot (depending how big of a batch you are making)
Blender
Dehydrator
Parchment paper

Ingredients:

Apples
Pears
Plums (we used a combination of wild, Italian, golden)
- We did a few different batches using different fruit combinations.
- Apple + Pear
- Apple + Plum
- Apple + Pear + Plum

Directions:

Wash your fruit
Slice and remove pits and cores.
Add all fruit to a large or medium pot with about a half a cup of water.
Bring pot to a boil (stirring occasionally)
Once boiling, reduce heat to a simmer and stir occasionally until fruit is soft (about 10-15 minutes)
Allow fruit to cool for 10 minutes or so.
Add fruit to the blender (I usually make a large batch, so I have to do this two or three times).
Blend until smooth
Line your dehydrator tray (or two or six) with parchment.
Pour the blended fruit onto the tray, using a rubber spatula to spread evenly. You can add a little bit at a time until you have a nice even tray, leaving about an inch of space from the edges of your parchment.
Repeat this on multiple trays until you’ve used all of your fruit.
Place trays in the dehydrator for 12-18 hours (depending on thickness)
- I usually check mine around 8 hours or so and if its dry enough to peel off, I flip it over so it can finish drying on the back for a few hours.
- If its not ready I check back a few hours later.
Once it’s all dry to the touch (but not crispy), remove the trays.
Cut the fruit leather in strips (either on the parchment or alone).
Roll in parchment strips, and tie with a piece of string.
Store in an airtight container.

**Notes: When my girls eat their “fruit snacks” or “fruit treats” as they interchangeably call them, I save the parchment strips in a little bag to be used for our next round—less waste and less work!

Or maybe you prefer something a little more simple and low key…

Try these dried plums.

wash
slice in half and remove the pits
Place skin side down on the dehydrator try
Let dry for 8 -12 hours or until leathery and dry to the touch.
- you can flip them over when the top begins to dry out for more even drying.
Store in an airtight container and enjoy!
- You can also freeze them for extra long keeping.

Farm to Table: Fruit Leather