Putting Food By - Janet Greene [179]
Dry test. Hard. No moisture when crushed.
Berries, Soft
There are so many better ways to use these—canned, frozen, in preserves—that there’s not much use in drying them. Strawberries are especially blah and unrecognizable when dried.
Cherries
If not pitting, check their skins with a 15- to 30-second dunk in boiling water; cool.
Indoor dryer. If using a dehydrator, start at 120 F/49 C for one hour, increase gradually to 145 F/63 C and hold there until nearly dry. Reduce to 135 F/57 C the last hour if danger of scorching. In a stove oven or handmade indoor dryer, aim to maintain a temperature of 140 F/60 C throughout. Test dry. Pasteurize. Cool and store. Total drying time: 6 to 12 hours.
Open-air/sun. Pit. Sulfur-soak 10 minutes, or sulfur-fume for 20 minutes. Dry. Test dry. Pasteurize. Cool and store. Solar dryer: about 70 percent of open-air/sun time.
Dry test. Leathery and sticky.
Figs
Small figs or ones that are partly dry on the tree may be dried whole. Large juicy figs are halved.
Indoor dryer. Check whole fruits in boiling water for 30 to 45 seconds. Cool quickly. If cut in half, steam-blanch for 20 minutes. Some people syrup-blanch whole figs before drying. To dry in a dehydrator, start at 120 F/49 C, increase after the first hour to 145 F/63 C. When nearly dry, reduce to 130 F/54 C. In a stove oven or handmade indoor dryer, aim to maintain a temperature of 140 F/60 C throughout. Test dry. Condition. Cool and store. Total average drying time: 5 to 12 hours for halves or whole.
Open-air/sun. Check the skins as above if drying whole. For light-colored varieties (like Kadota) sulfur-soak 10 minutes, or sulfur-fume for 1 hour before drying. If figs are to be halved, do not check the skins—instead, steam-blanch the halves for 20 minutes and then sulfur-soak 10 minutes or sulfur-fume for 30 minutes. Test dry. Pasteurize. Cool and store. Solar dryer: about 70 percent of open-air/sun time.
Dry test. Leathery, with flesh pliable; slightly sticky to the touch, but they don’t cling together after squeezing.
Grapes
Use only Thompson or other seedless varieties for drying. Check by dipping 15 to 30 seconds in boiling water and cooling immediately. Proceed as for whole Cherries.
Indoor dryer. Proceed as for Cherries. Total average drying time: 8 to 20 hours.
Open-air/sun. Handle like Cherries, but don’t sulfur. Solar dryer: about 70 percent of open-air/sun time.
Leathers (Peach, Etc.)
These sheets of pliable dried pulp may be made from virtually all fruits and berries, with peaches, apples, and wild blackberries leading the field (see also Tomatoes). The following is a general rule, so experiment with only small batches until you get the fresh, tart flavor you like. Three to 3½ cups of prepared fresh fruit will make approximately two good-size leathers on cookie sheets—depending on the type of fruit and the size of the pieces. Added sweetening is not necessary, but helps bind the texture.
Use fully ripe fruit. Peel or not, core/stone, cut small; coat with an anti-oxidant, but the brief precooking should prevent some darkening. Measure prepared fruit, and add 1½ tablespoons sugar or honey for each 1 cup of cut fruit; an alternative is 1 tablespoon granulated fructose for each 1 cup of puréed fruit. Bring just to boiling, cook gently until tender. Remove from heat and, when the fruit is cool enough to handle, put it through a fine sieve or food mill.
Lay long sheets of foil or plastic freezer-wrap on wet cookie sheets—wet, so the foil/plastic will cling—allowing extra at ends and sides, and oil it well. Pour enough fruit pulp in the center of each sheet, tilting it to spread ¼-inch deep (it will dry much thinner), and to within 2 inches of the rims.
Indoor dryer. If using a dehydrator, start at 130 F/54 C; raise to 145 F/63 C after the first hour and hold there until the surface is no longer tacky to the touch, or for 45 minutes. When nearly