Dehydrated Cranberries - Tasty and Tart!
 
 
Author:
Serves: 1 cup fresh=1/2 cup dried
Ingredients
Instructions
  1. Wash your berries, and place in a large bowl or pot. In an separate pot, boil enough water to cover the berries, then pour the water over them. Let them sit for 10 minutes, covered. You'll hear them popping as the skins burst open.
  2. Drain the berries in a colander, and remove excess moisture by gently wrapping them between layers of kitchen towels. You'll notice that not all the berries popped - don't worry, we'll deal with that in a moment.
  3. Optional: sweetening the berries. In a small saucepan, heat 1 cup water and ½ cup sweetener to a boil. (Simple sugar sweetener options for AIP: coconut sugar, maple syrup, date sugar, or honey). When the sugar is completely dissolved, remove from heat and cool to room temperature.
  4. Gently stir ¼ cup of simple syrup into the berries, coating them evenly.
  5. Line the bottom of your dehydrator with a layer of parchment paper or aluminum foil, to catch drips from the berries.
  6. Lay out the berries on the dehydrator trays, leaving about ½ inch space between each berry. It's worth taking the time to do this.
  7. Now that the berries are laid out on the trays, it's easy to see which ones did not break open during crazing. With a paring knife, poke any berries that are not split yet - this will speed up overall drying time, since the berries will all dry at a more uniform pace.
  8. Set the dehydrator to 150°F for the first hour, then reduce temperature to 135° for the remaining time.
  9. Drying will take 8 - 20 hours, depending on the size of the berries, how much space you left between them, and whether they are broken open enough. After about 8 hours, some berries will be ready to come off the trays. Take the trays out, sort through and remove done berries, and return the trays to the dehydrator. Repeat that process periodically till all berries are dried. Part-way through the process, you may need to poke some of the berries again with the paring knife.
  10. Berries are done when they have a leathery, pliable texture. Crunchy berries dried for longer than needed. It can be hard to tell if berries are done, since they will be softer coming out of the dehydrator than once they cool. To figure it out, let the berries sit for 30 minutes, then take one and break it open - there should be no moisture along the break.
  11. Conditioning and storing the berries to assure even moisture distribution: Place the dried fruit in glass or BPA-free plastic containers, filling to about ⅔ full. Cover tightly and keep in a cool, dark place, but not the fridge. Twice a day, for a week, shake the jars to mix the fruit around. This allows the moisture content in the fruit to redistribute so it's more even. During this time, if you notice condensation on the walls or lid of the jar, it means the fruit did not dry enough and needs to be put back in the dryer for a few more hours. If that happens, repeat the conditioning process afterward.
  12. Once the fruit is conditioned, it's fine to store the jars completely full. Store tightly sealed in a cool, dark place. At this point, if you want to store the berries in the fridge or freezer, that is fine.
Recipe by Backcountry Paleo at https://www.backcountrypaleo.com/dehydrated-cranberries-a-tart-or-sweet-treat/