HOLIDAY FRUIT CANDIES

from the October 1985 "Drying Times "

by Barb Moody

Satisfy that holiday sweet tooth with honeyed fruit candies. These make great snacks, or use in your holiday baking.

Honey Cranberry Chews

Dried whole cranberries
Cranberry juice
Honey

Add enough honey to cranberry juice to make a thin syrup. Soak dried cranberries in juice mixture until reconstituted. This may take a day or so. You can speed up the process by simmering the cranberries in the juice mixture before soaking. Strain off liquid (save it) and dry cranberries on Teflon Sheets. Repeat the process a second time. Dried cranberries will remain sticky until they have been removed from the dehydrator and allowed to cool.

These chewy cranberries are delightfully sweet yet tantalizingly tart.

Honeyed Citrus Rinds

Organic oranges, lemons or grapefruit or sliced whole kumquats
Honey
Juice from fruit

Method 1: Soak strips of dried citrus peel in equal parts of honey and water until the peel is soft and saturated with the syrup. Dry soaked peel on Teflon Sheets. Remove from dryer. Store in tightly sealed container in a cool area.

Method 2: Boil strips of fresh citrus peel in water until the peel is tender. Drain, reserving a small amount of the liquid. Add 3/4 cup of honey to 2 Tablespoons of cooking liquid and 2 Tablespoons of the juice from the peeled fruit.

Simmer peels in honey mixture for about one hour or until the peels appear translucent.

Remove peels from liquid. Dry on Teflon Sheets at medium heat for about 24-36 hours. Store dried peel in tightly sealed containers. Will keep indefinitely.