Nutrition
| Per 100 g | Per 1 oz (28 g) | |
|---|---|---|
| Energy | 287 kcal | 81 kcal |
| Protein | 4 g | 1.1 g |
| Fat | 1.2 g | 0.3 g |
| saturated | 0.1 g | 0 g |
| Carbohydrate | 63.8 g | 18.1 g |
| sugars | 61.3 g | 17.4 g |
| Fibre | 9.2 g | 2.6 g |
| Sodium | 4 mg | 1 mg |
Estimated from the ingredients, for the finished dried product. Actual values vary with the produce you use and how far you dry it.
Ingredients
- 1.3 kg peeled apricots, sliced into chunks
- 9 3/4 cups granny smith apples, peeled, cored and cut into small chunks
- 5 cups cherries, stems discarded and pitted
- 5/8 to 1 1/4 cups honey
Instructions
- Pit the cherries over the processor bowl so the juice that runs out goes in with them. That juice is the colour of the whole sheet, and most of it ends up on the board otherwise.
- Process the apricots, apples and cherries until no fibre can be felt between two fingers. A stringy puree dries into a sheet that tears along the strings.
- Pulse the honey in at the end rather than blending it through. It is here for the chew as much as the sweetness, and over-working it whips air into the puree.
- Hold a spoonful up and taste: granny smith is tart enough that it should make you blink slightly. If it does not, the leather will read flat once the water is gone, because drying concentrates sugar faster than it concentrates acid.
- Pour it onto the leather sheets and push it out with the back of a spoon, keeping the rim a shade heavier than the middle. The edges see the most air and are the first to go brittle.
- Dry at 57 °C for 9 hours. Check by pressing the centre with a dry finger — it should feel tacky and leave nothing behind on your skin.
- Lift the sheet while it is still warm and lay it on baking paper. Apple pectin sets hard as it cools, and a cold sheet will not come away in one piece.
- Cut and roll it in the paper, then keep the rolls in a jar. They hold about a month at room temperature and three in the fridge; a roll gone sticky rather than pliable has picked up moisture and should be eaten first.
