Home-Made Trail Snacks

Fruit Leather is a chewy fruit roll or bar made by blending and drying fresh fruit into a leathery consistency. If it is kept cool it will last for the duration of any trek or sleep-over.

To make your own, use a Teflon coated cookie sheet covered with a plastic wrap held around the edges with masking tape.

Puree the fresh fruit in a blender until it is a smooth, even consistency. If the fruit needs a hint of sweetness add a little honey or white corn syrup. Neither of these will crystallize like white sugar, which would make the leather more brittle. The puree will concentrate in sweetness as it dries. Add a small amount of lemon juice to enhance that natural fruit flavour.

Spread the puree over the cookie sheet about a quarter inch thick and about 1 inch in from the sides of the tray. Dry it until it is pliable but not sticky to the touch.

Cut the product into 4 inch bars, rolling them if you wish, and wrap each piece individually in plastic wrap or put them in a zip-lock bags with plastic wrap between each bar. Label different flavours.

The puree can be dried on Saran wrap in a dehydrator or in an oven. Oven-drying is done at the lowest possible temperature setting with the door propped open. If necessary, rotate the position of trays to get it all done thoroughly and evenly. On your first try, keep checking the oven to establish the duration of drying, as well as how often the trays need to be rotated. Two hours will likely be the minimum.

Gorp

Gorp stands for “good old reliable protein” and is a great standby for snacking between meals. It’s also a life-saver if everything screws up and meal-making is not an option. It can be made the cheapest from scratch, with products available at the bulk foods bins at the grocery store. Pretty good stuff is also available pre-made. When you buy the prepared stuff read the contents list to ensure quality, because some of it is too salty or too sweet.

Add some of your favourite treats to the pre-packed product. The choice is yours but includes sliced almonds, raisins, dried apricots, various unsalted nuts, dried bananas, dried mangoes, unsalted sunflower seeds, pumpkin seeds, Smarties, chocolate chips and extra granola. If you don’t include chocolate you can have it for a nice breakfast with milk or herbal tea poured over it.

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