Drying Strawberries

Drying fruit at home is easy and rewarding, and the end product is invariably excellent. Among all the strawberries we put into the freezer at this time of year, we always make sure to dry a load or two as well. We enjoy them in our oatmeal all winter long. (Other good local fruit candidates for drying are peaches and apples and pears. Tomatoes are easy and good too, if you like "sun-dried" tomatoes.)

Wash and hull the strawberries and cut off any bad spots. Try to choose berries of approximately similar size, to the extent possible - this will help them dry more evenly. Cut small and medium berries in half lenthwise; larger specimens can be cut into thirds or even quarters if very big.

Spread the berries on the dehydrator trays. You can crowd them in pretty close so long as they are not actually on top of each other; they will shrink considerably as they dry.

In my dehydrator, I find it takes around 10-14 hours to dry strawberries. I start checking after 10 hours and remove any that are fully dried. I check about every hour or so. You can do this on a weekend, or if you are home in the morning, start them overnight so they are ready for you to begin checking on them in the morning.

Drying Apples and Asian Pears

I love drying fruit at home - it's easy, and the flavor is like nothing you've ever tasted in dried fruit from the store.

Our little Asian pear tree, planted a few years ago, produced its first harvest of any size this year. The pears are delicious fresh, but we had a few more than we could eat before they would start to get soft and lose their flavor, so I wanted to try drying them. To get a full dehydrator load, I added some apples - they can be prepared the same way and take roughly the same amount of drying time (the apples dried slightly faster than the pears).

If you've never had an Asian pear, they look a bit like apples - rounder than the classic European pear we mostly see around here - and they are crisp rather than soft. The skin is edible but usually a bit tough, so it's best to peel them for eating.

For both apples and Asian pears, the way to prepare them for drying is to peel, core and slice to about 1/4-inch thick. The easiest way I have found to do this is using an apple machine - you can find these at many stores with kitchen supplies (around here, Wilson's and also the Farmers Coop, among others) - that peels, slices, and cores all at once.

Spread the fruit out in a single layer on the dryer trays and dry for 6-8 hours (maybe slightly longer for the pears), until the fruit is completely dry but still pliable.

Drying Basil

The basil is tall and bushy in the garden.  Last weekend I made pesto for the freezer; this weekend I dried basil for winter use. In the past I have experimented with hanging basil stems to dry, but it hasn't worked out well.  You really need a warm dry space like an attic to do that, or better yet, an arid climate.  This year I got out the dehydrator, and the results were both fast and great.  Unlike tomatoes, peaches, etc., you can dry herbs in about 2 hours.

Ready to dry

Choose leaves that are still reasonably tender and are not insect-eaten or yellowed. Spread them out in more or less one layer on the dehydrator trays. It's okay if they overlap because they will shrink considerably as they dry.

Dry for about 2 hours, checking periodically after the first hour and a half. When done, they should be brittle and crisp with no trace of moisture remaining.  Store in an airtight container, crushing them as you fill it.

Post drying - the leaves have shrunk

Ready for storage in the pantry

Peach Leather

Having already frozen and dried (in slices) large quantities of peaches this year, I decided to try something different with the box of peaches in our fridge that was threatening to go bad before we could eat them.  I had never made fruit leather before and had been wanting to try it.  Turns out it's easy, and the end product is delicious - not to mention pure fruit, and thus more nutritious than most commercial fruit leathers.

I used my home dehydrator (I have this one, with two additional trays), and it took about 8 hours, which is shorter than it usually takes to dry peach slices.

Puree the peaches, making sure the puree is totally smooth - no chunks.  Cover the dehydrator trays with plastic wrap (unless you have the fruit leather tray inserts).  Cut out holes in the middle where the heating element/fan will go, making sure that the plastic wrap will not be in contact with the heating element.  Also leave a little space around the outer edge for the air to circulate.  Carefully spread the peach puree onto the plastic wrap on the trays, 1/8-inch thick.  Turn on the dehydrator and run it until the leather is totally dry, though it will still be somewhat sticky.  Peel off the plastic wrap and turn the leather rounds over, then let them sit for another several hours before putting them away.

To store fruit leather, you can cut it into strips and put it in a jar or plastic container; however they may stick together, especially over time.  Alternatively, you can keep the leather in large pieces and roll it up with some plastic wrap, then store in a sealed bag or container and cut off pieces as you want them.

This technique works with other fruits as well.  For very juicy berries (raspberries, blueberries, etc), it is best to mix with applesauce.  Apples need to be cooked into applesauce.  You can also add ingredients such as cooked sweet potato if desired.

Strawberries, Strawberries, Strawberries

It's mid-June and that means it's the height of strawberry season. This morning we went over to Upinngil Farm and picked about 19 pounds. My husband and son picked another 9 pounds or so earlier this week. At the moment I've got strawberries in the freezer, strawberries in the dehydrator, and strawberries and rhubarb simmering on the stove to make jam. Mmmm.

To freeze whole strawberries, wash them well, then hull them and cut out any bad spots. If you have time, freeze them on trays for several hours, then package them in freezer bags (I use quart size). Otherwise, just put them straight into bags and freeze. The advantage of tray freezing is that it keeps them separate so you can take out just a few at a time instead of having to thaw the whole package. If you just put them straight into bags they will stick together.

I use a home dehydrator to dry strawberries, as I do for tomatoes, peaches, apples, and pears. Wash and hull the berries, then slice in half and arrange them on the trays. Dry until there is no moisture left in them; they will be somewhere between leathery and crisp. Store in an airtight container. They'll keep even longer if you store them in the freezer. I like to stir them into my oatmeal in the winter.

Strawberry season is short, especially the u-pick season, so if you haven't gotten out there yet, you should do it in the next week or you'll risk missing out.

Peaches - Freezing, Drying, and Canning Jam

Saturday afternoon I picked up two pecks of peaches (that's about 16 quarts) from Clarkdale - where they are selling "orchard run" peaches for $25 for two pecks (or $15 for one). Orchard run fruit has been picked but not separated into first and second quality - generally a good deal for putting up. The quality of the two pecks I bought was great; all the peaches were ripe and most were in very good shape. I spent the rest of the weekend drying, freezing, baking, and making jam.

Freezing Peaches
Cut peaches in half and remove pits. Slice each half into four to six pieces. For best results, tray freeze the slices before packaging: arrange on trays, individual pieces separate from each other, and freeze for 6-8 hours. Then package in freezer bags (I do 1 lb of frozen slices per quart bag). If you don't have the time or patience to tray freeze, it's also ok to just dump all the slices into freezer bags and freeze that way. They will stick together in a giant clump, but if you plan to thaw before using, that's not a huge problem.

Drying Peaches
To dry peaches in a dehydrator, cut them in half and remove the pits. No need to peel unless desired. Then slice about 1/4-inch thick - a mandoline is great for this but a knife works, too. Instead of wedges, cut pieces of even thickness from the inside of a half to the outside. Spread slices on the dehydrator trays and dry for 9-12 hours. Check after 9 hours and remove any pieces that are completely dry; rotate the trays as well. Check every hour after 9 hours and remote dry pieces.

Using a mandoline to slice peaches into the dehydrator

Jam
Here's my recipe for Ginger Peach Jam. You can make this with fresh or frozen peaches. Skip the lemon juice if you like. You can also substitute ground ginger for the fresh.

Drying Tomatoes

It has been a bumper crop of tomatoes so far this year, and it's only early August. It has been so hot, everything is early this year.

One of the things I've been doing with all these tomatoes is drying them. We have a home dehydrator (this inexpensive model, plus two extra trays), which makes it easy.

Cherry tomatoes work especially well for drying. Just cut them in half, scoop out the seeds, and place them skin side down on the trays. I find they usually dry in 9-12 hours (I generally run the dehydrator overnight, and try to pick dry days to improve the efficiency). Paste tomatoes are also good for drying. You can likewise cut them in half and seed them, but they take longer to dry because of their thicker walls. Slicer type tomatoes can work, too, though it's a bit more work. Cut them at least 1/2-inch thick and try to get out what seeds and liquid you can.

We have tomatoes in many different colors in our garden, and I enjoy looking at the pretty mix of dried ones that results - bright red, dark red, yellow, green, orange. Packaged in small jars, they also make nice gifts.

Strawberry Picking

Check out CISA's list of farms selling strawberries, including u-pick, here. My family's personal favorite, Upinngil Farm in Gill, is opening for u-pick tomorrow, June 4. We'll be going away for a week and a half starting the middle of next week, so we need to get our strawberries picked and processed before then, lest we miss most of the season! Picking your own is a great way to get strawberries in bulk for a reasonable price. We'll be freezing loads of them and drying a bunch as well - I tried that last year and we loved having the dried berries in our oatmeal during the winter, for the brief time that they lasted.

Drying Pears

Yesterday I got my dehydrator out for the first time in several months. On our last run to Clarkdale, we heard from the staff there that they expect to close for the season by the middle of this month - rather earlier than last year. They will be selling fruit and cider at Winter Fare on Saturday and anticipate selling out almost all of their remaining stock. So we bought a whole load of apples for drying and making applesauce. It won't be enough to see us through to the summer, but will get us part of the way there, anyway. I don't know whether Apex Orchards will be remaining open longer or not.

Along with the apples, we bought some pears, which Clarkdale still had a few of. I wanted to try drying them, because we are getting low on dried peaches and I think Nate is going to be distraught when they are gone. The pears dried beautifully with no special treatment. I just peeled them, cut them in half and scooped out the core, then sliced 1/4-inch thick and dried for about 7 hours. Their color held and the flavor is great - sweet and concentrated.

Weekends Putting Up Food

It's that time of year. Eating locally all year in New England means putting up food for the winter. And if you work all day during the week, putting up food for the winter means spending a chunk of every weekend in August and September doing so. But mostly I enjoy it, thank goodness. This weekend we froze another 20 pounds of tomatoes along with several pounds of zucchini and red peppers.

We also took our first crack at drying apples--Macs from Clarkdale--with great success. We gave them no pretreatment, so the final product was a bit brown, but that doesn't bother me. The flavor is stupendous, way better than dried apples from the store. And the texture is perfect--soft and chewy. To prepare them, we used our apple peeler/slicer/corer to make rings, then dried them in the dehydrator for about 8 hours. Fortunately, we'll be able to get apples all through the winter, so we can make additional dried ones as desired; no need to go crazy stocking up right now when everything else is begging to be dealt with. I am looking forward to trying different varieties and seeing how the dried flavor varies.

Drying Herbs

The herbs in my garden are getting big and bushy, and lovely big bunches are showing up at the farmers market. It's a good time to think about drying some for use over the winter. You can dry herbs in a dehydrator or your oven, but the easiest method is just to hang them up to air dry. This method works well for basil, oregano, parsley, dill, rosemary, and sage, among others. Just bind several stalks together with string or a rubber band, then hang upside down in an airy location out of direct sunlight. You can do this inside a paper bag if you like, to catch any bits that fall off. If you are drying for seeds (with dill, for example, or coriander), you definitely want to use the paper bag--in that case, once everything is dry, you give it a good shake and the seeds will collect in the bottom of the bag.

The length of time that herbs need to hang to dry will vary with weather conditions and the herb you are using. Usually you'll need a week or two. Once the herb is dry and crumbly, you can transfer the leaves to an airtight container and store out of direct sunlight.

Drying Strawberries

On Saturday we took advantage of the fact that it wasn't raining (for once!) and went back to Upinngil Farm to pick some more strawberries. This time my plan was to dry them. Back home, I washed and hulled them, then sliced them in half. The biggest ones I sliced in quarters. Then I lined them up on the trays of my dehydrator and dried them for 15 hours or so (I usually do this mostly overnight). It has not been ideal drying weather and if strawberry season was not so short I would have waited in hopes of a drier day, and run the dehydrator outside. That's what I'll do later in the summer with the tomatoes and peaches.

The strawberries came out great, and I'm looking forward to enjoying them in my winter oatmeal. Home-dried fruit can be stored in sealed containers on a shelf, but for longer life it is best to keep it in the freezer until you are ready to open a container. For this reason, it is also best to store it in more smaller containers (I use ball jars) rather than fewer larger containers.

Fresh picked berries

The deyhdrator (Nesco Snackmaster - 400 watts - 7 trays)

Berries partially dried - you have to check them periodically to take out any that are done before the rest.

A sample of the finished product.

Oatmeal with Dried Peaches

Back in September, I dried a bunch of peaches from Clarkdale. I did them in thin slices, so the end product is quite crisp. Now I am breaking them up into my morning oatmeal as it simmers on the stove, so that by the time it is ready, the peaches are soft, flavorful little nuggets that bring back a hint of warmer weather. Yum!

Drying Peaches

Well, the dried peaches came out great, so I think I'll do another quart. I didn't pre-treat them or sulfur them or anything, just sliced them and put them in the dehydrator. They held their color beautifully, and the flavor is sweet and concentrated. Texture is pleasantly chewy. I'll keep them in the freezer in small containers to remove and use one at a time. That should help preserve that great color and flavor.

If you're wondering about dehydrators, there are many variations on the market. Mine is a 425-watt Nesco with five trays that runs about $40. They come in variations of up to 1000 or so watts, so do watch the wattage when selecting one. That much more probably doesn't speed drying time enough to make up for the additional energy used per hour.

Freezing Peaches

This morning we went over to Clarkdale Farms and bought two 8-quart boxes of utility peaches. I sliced them up and packaged them in freezer bags. We now have enough peaches packaged up for winter to make several crisps/pies/cobblers. Yum! A few also went into the food dehydrator, where they are currently drying. If they come out well, maybe I'll do some more.

Ben Clark told us that they would have the big boxes of peaches probably for the rest of the week, but maybe not beyond--so if you want to freeze or can some yourself, get on over there. They're $14/box, which is a great deal, considering that the regular price is $6 for a 2-qt box. Some were bruised and a few had worms, but overall they were very usable with little waste.

Freezing and Drying

Tomorrow we're taking delivery of a chest freezer, into which I am planning to put as much as I can from the garden and the farmers market between now and October. I have already got the little freezer that's part of the fridge completely stuffed, mostly with tomatoes so far, but also some of those tasty Romano beans and some of that corn from Schmidt's. The corn and beans have to be blanched first (easy enough), but the tomatoes can go in raw. Just core and remove any bad spots. When you take them out to cook with, run them quickly under warm water and the skins should come right off. I have been loading up quart sized freezer bags with brightly colored tomatoes (whole for the smaller ones, chunks for the really big ones) and the sight of them in there is making me very happy. Once the freezer is in place, we're going to go over to Clarkdale and get a nice big load of peaches to freeze as well. They will be most welcome in midwinter.

I've also started drying tomatoes. I have a dehydrator that will take quite a large batch at once, so I'm experimenting with drying times and results for different varieties. Results are good so far. It should be easy to dry enough of our own to keep me supplied for my typical dried tomato usage until the fresh ones are ready again next summer.