Fruit Leathers!!

In preparation of my CDT hike, I am making fruit leathers. Tonight, I found raspberries for $1.00 for a 6 oz. container and strawberries for $1.89/pound at the Haight Street Market.  I also had cranberries in my freezer, and an apple and a lime in my fruit basket.  Making fruit leathers is easy, so I am providing instructions for the raspberry fruit leather:

(2) 6 oz. containers of raspberries

1/3 cup of sugar

1/2 lime juice

1/3 cup of water

Combine ingredients in 1-quart saucepan.  Bring to a boil and simmer for about 10-minutes - stir occasionally.  Pour mixture in a blender and blend.  Pour mixture on parchment paper or plastic insert that came with your food dehydrator, and dehydrate for 7-8 hours or until it has a "leathery" texture.  Place leather on pizza pan and cut with pizza wheel.  Roll pieces in saran wrap and store in freezer until ready to use.

You can cook up any number of berries in the same manner.  I also added a half of an apple to my strawberries when I cooked them up, and in the past, I have added bananas, oranges, and pomegranates in other mixtures.

Try out fruit leathers for your next hike.  They really go a long way in making your hike a more enjoyable experience.