This 3 Ingredient Fruit Roll-Ups recipe is a simple and delicious way to make your own fruit leather (without any fancy equipment or ingredients!)
If you were anything like me as a kid, you probably used to think, “When I’m a grown up I can have ______ for dinner every night!” (insert: icecream, cookies, poptarts, cotton candy etc.). But now that I finally am a (sort of) grown up, I know I have to suppress my inner-child demands in favor of not weighing 500 lbs. But I recently discovered a way to have my cake and eat it too. Well, fruit roll-ups anywho.
When I first came across a recipe for a similar fruit leather type thing, I was suspicious. You mean to tell me I can use my oven as a dehydrator? I don’t need one of those fancy shmancy things? I figured I would have to give it a couple tries, some old fashion trial-and-error, but alas, the first try was a major success! I’m talking major, these things are really good.
Homemade Fruit Roll-Ups Video
What do you need for natural fruit rolls ups?
You just need 3 ingredients: fruit, lemon juice, and something to sweeten it. You’ll blend it all up, spread thin on a lined baking sheet, then bake at a very low temperature for a few hours, until dried.
I used a mixture of raspberries and strawberries (about 3 cups) for my base. The sweetness is really to your taste. You can use honey or Stevia / Truvia / Sugar (2-3 tablespoons). And finally lemon juice (2 tablespoons) keeps the bright color of the fruit. Blend all the ingredients in a food processor or blender until it’s as smooth as can be.
Next, line a baking pan or sheet with a good quality plastic wrap or parchment paper. Pour the blended fruit mixture onto the lined pan, then spread it out with a spoon or spatula. It should be as thin as possible without forming holes, about ⅛ – ¼ inch thick.
The secret to homemade fruit roll-ups
Your oven! That’s right, just let your homemade fruit roll-ups dehydrate in the oven, using as low of temperature as your oven will go. The temperature you dry it at determines the time needed, and can range from 4 to 6 hours. It’s finished when the middle is no longer tacky. The edges may get too dry, in which case you can rehydrate them a bit by rubbing them with water.
Once dried, let the fruit leather cool, then remove from plastic wrap (alternatively, leave the fruit leather on the parchment paper and just cut into strips). Cutting with a clean pair of scissors makes this go quickly! Remove the edges then cut into 1 inch wide strips. For the true fruit roll-up experience, cut strips or parchment or tissue paper and roll the fruit into the paper. Use a touch of tape or string to hold it all together.
How do you store homemade fruit leather?
Store in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 2 weeks. It will last even longer if you add a paper towel in the container, which will help absorb moisture.
Ingredients
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- 2-3 cups fruit
- 2-3 Tbsp honey can sub sugar or sugar-substitute
- 2 Tbsp lemon juice
Instructions
- Blend: Blend fruit in food processor or blender until smooth. Mix in sweetener and lemon juice.
- Spread: Pour into a pan lined with plastic wrap or parchment paper then spread out ⅛ to ¼ inch thick.
- Dehydrate: Dehydrate in oven at 140 to 170 degrees F (or as low as oven will go) for 4 to 6 hours, or until the middle is not longer tacky.
- Cool: Allow to cool, then remove from sheet. With clean scissors, trim off edges then cut into 1 inch wide strips. Wrap with strips of parchment or tissue paper, then use tape or string to seal.
Eleanor Oliveira says
I eat to communicate Yes
Lorna Martin says
Hi, could I make these and then use them as dragon wings on a cake with some wooden squires? I would need to cut them into shape and then wrap or glue them with a sugar paste maybe around the stick?
Sarah says
I think this could work! 😀 Sounds like a fun idea!