Tag Archives: trader joe’s

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Sunflowers

Can you believe how beautiful these are?

dried pineappleActually, I think the photo is not even doing them justice.  No, they are not sunflowers but dried pineapple!  I had bought some dried pineapple from Trader Joe’s several months ago and just devoured it!  It was so sweet and chewy, but then I really love dried fruit. I was afraid that if I dried the fruit myself in the dehydrator that it would turn brown.  The pineapple from Trader Joe’s was not this yellow, but more of a brown color.  I always assumed that when they put the sulfites in the fruit, it helped to retain the color.  I will have to try some apricots when they come into season and see what happens!  So you can imagine how pleasantly surprised I was when these were finished drying to see the bright yellow color!  They are thin and chewy and oh so sweet!  I really have to remember to get out my dehydrator more often!  If it wasn’t so big, I would find it a home in my kitchen.  For now, it has to live in the basement but it definitely will be visiting the kitchen way more often!

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Love is in the …

Fruit?  It is today!

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Have you ever used a dehydrator?  I had not either until recently.  I cannot say that I am hooked on dehydrating, but I am hooked on apple chips.  This lovely apple chip just came out of the dehydrator last evening.  Why am I hooked?  Well, personally I love dried fruit – practically any dried fruit!  Apples are so easy to make and within 12 hours of cutting them up, you have apple chips.  They are crunchy and sweet and a favorite snack.  My next batch I want to add cinnamon … I think that will be just delicious!

If you don’t have a dehydrator, you can do them in your oven.  Here’s how: Line a baking sheet with parchment and place slices of fruit on the sheet, making sure the pieces of fruit aren’t touching each other. Place trays of fruit into the oven and turn on the oven to 90°F to 150°F. Then just sit back and wait, as it will take many hours for the fruit to dry. Resist all urges to turn up the heat—you don’t want to cook the fruit, just dehydrate it.

Try it with all your fruit!  I bought some dried pineapple at Trader Joe’s and it was chewy and sweet.  I can’t wait to give it a try.  Stay tuned – I will let you know how it turns out!