Blueberry and Apple Fruit Strips

I’ve always wondered how to make fruit leather, partly due to my kids loving it and also because buying it is expensive. I saw a recipe in the River Cottage Handbook No.2, Preserves by Pam Corbin, had a play around and came up with this. It’s delicious, great to make with the children – and not bad for you either.

MAKES about 20x30cm/8x12in sheet to cut into strips

PREPARATION TIME 10 minutes

COOKING TIME 30 minutes on the hob, then 6–8 hours on a very low heat in the oven

250g/9oz/12/3 cups blueberries

250g/9oz Bramley cooking apples, peeled, cored and chopped

100g/3½oz clear honey

juice of ½ lemon

¼ tsp vanilla extract

 

1 Put all the ingredients in a saucepan and bring to the boil over a medium heat. Reduce the heat and leave to simmer for about 25–30 minutes until you have a thick purée, stirring occasionally.

2 When it is almost ready, preheat the oven to 70°C/150°F/gas ¼ and line a large baking sheet with baking paper (not greaseproof/waxed paper) or even a silicone sheet.

3 Press the purée through a sieve/fine-mesh strainer, pushing as much of the purée through as possible. Thinly spread the purée over the baking sheet to a rectangle about 20x30cm/8x12in as evenly as you can. Pop in the oven and leave for about 6–8 hours until the purée has firmed up and dried out.

4 Carefully peel the fruit strip away from the baking paper and hold it up to the light. It looks amazing! Cut it into strips and roll into coils. (The fruit strips can be kept for a couple of months in an airtight container.)