Eating Healthier in Today's World

USING A DEHYDRATOR TO MAKE SUGAR-FREE JAM

A few posts ago I wrote about making Sugar Free jams using sugar substitutes to sweeten it and Ultra Gel to thicken the jams to a spreading consistency.  I forgot to tell you about a little known method of producing jam without sugar or any other additiive.  If you own a dehydrator or home food dryer, you can use the fruit leather sheets (solid sheets that usually come with the dryers) to make a wonderful all-fruit spread that will keep in the fridge for up to a month or in the freezer for several months. 

This is a very simple process.  The first thing you do is prepare your fruit by cleaning and removing stems, pits etc.  Puree the fruit in a blender or food processor or mash it with a potato masher until you have a puree.  Spray your fruit leather sheets with a non-stick lecithin spray (we useVegelene) like Pam or lightly grease them with butter or margarine.  Pour the puree or mashed fruit on the fruit leather sheets and place in the dehydrator on high.  Put a timer on for 1 hour.  When the timer goes off, come back and using a table knife, stir the outsides to the middle and re-spread the fruit on the sheets.  Repeat for 4 hours, stirring it once an hour. 

After the 4 hours you should have a much thicker spread.  You can put the spread in a jar and freeze it, as is, or in the fridge for immediate use.  This has no sugar in it and it is not cooked so it's keeping properties are no where near as good as a regular freezer jam loaded with sugar and/or a cooked jam. 

Personally I like to add 1 Tbsp. of Xagave Natural Sweetener per cup of fruit puree.  This gives the jam spread a little more sweetness and makes it more jam-like in texture so it is easier to spread on the toast or bread.  My family loves these spreads so give them a try and let me know what you think!

The dehydrator can also be used to thicken an existing jam that you have made and that turned out to thin.  The dryer removes some of the moisture so your jam will become a more spreadable texture.