Preserving demo recipes- Autumn apple, ederberry and plum fruit leathers

500g of cooking apples (windfall are fine) cored, peeled and cut into approx. 1cm cubes

250g of stoned plums cut into rough chunks

250g of clean elderberries, sorted and removed from the stalk

(both the plums and the elderberries can be replaced with the same weight of most other fruit and berries you might have at hand)

Juice of 1 lemon

150g of honey


These leathers can by dehydrated in the warmind oven of a Rayburn or Aga-style cooker, nearby to a wood burning stove, in a conventional oven or a purpose built dehydrator. ensure that whichever you are using is on before you begin. If you are using a conventional oven set it to approx. 70 degrees Celsius. Line 2 large baking sheets with baking parchment.

Place the fruits and lemon juice in a large pan and cook until all the fruit is soft enough to easily mash into a pulp agains the side of the pan with the back of a wooden spoon. This should take between 20 and 30 minutes. rub the miture through a mouli or a sieve into a bowl. Allow it to cool slightly first to avoid any scalds or burns, though it shouldn't be boiling.

Add the honey to the fruit mixture, mix well and divide between the baking sheets. Spread gently with the back of a wooden spoon to form thin even sheets.

Dry by your chosen method for between 12 and 18 hours until it is entirely dry and comes away from the baking paper easily. roll up in fresh grease-proof paper and store in an airtight container for up to 5 months.