Next Post
Thai Chile Corn Chowder with Coconut Fried Shrimp.
This post may contain affiliate links, please see our privacy policy for details.
{***Sorry for the mass amount of photos today…just loved the colors! If you care less about the photos, just scroll down for the recipe!}
Time to go back to being a kid today.
Please tell me you guys grew up eating Fruit Roll Ups??? Like please?!? I certainly did. I loved them, even the brothers loved them. We all loved them…and…well, you get the point.
My all time favorites were Fruit by the Foot. A whole foot of fruity flavor! Also, Gushers. Does anyone remember those?!? You guys, I really wasn’t one for candy of any kind, but for some reason, I really liked Fruit Roll Ups, Gushers and Fruit Snacks. I first gave up on Gushers (the filling started to gross me out), then Fruit Roll Ups and then Fruit Snacks.
I was majorly bummed the day I realized these fruity snacks where just completely sugar and…fake fruit 🙁
Like what?!? You mean they are not a healthy snack? They don’t count as fruit? What the, what?!
So freaking lame.
Anyway, to this day my brothers still squeal with excitement (literally) over Gushers and Fruit by the Foot. Mom would only buy the regular square fruit rolls ups when we were kids because they were always cheaper. But on the rare occasion she would splurge and get the Fruit by the Foot or Gushers we’d eat them all within lthe day (I think that’s another reason she never bought them).
Whoever said being a kid was not the best thing ever was totally lying. Four thoughts to confirm: carelessness, sugar, zero taxes, summer vacations!
Just sayin.
A lot of times mom would hide all the fruit snack-like items saying they were only for school lunches. Of course the brothers (3 above me, 2 below) would find them all, eat them and have no remorse. I would not have done this, but I think by this time I had given up on eating those sugary snacks. Again, I pretty much sucked all the fun out of being a kid. <–Sad, but kind of true now that I think about it. Maybe that’s why I want to go back and just be a normal kid?
So heyyy, you think since I wasn’t the typical kid growing up that I could like take a week and be like ten again?? Hmmm. How would that work? Probably…thinking that’s totally not gonna happen.
Great concept, but unfortunately, that’d be weird… don’t think I could do it.
The good news here is that what I can do is make healthy imitations. YES. My dreams have come true!!
No really.
I actually tried to do this last summer and failed miserably and I now know why. I think I knew it then too, but honestly, I was just too defeated to get up and try again. So I waited a good year and then, I NAILED it. Nice.
The first time around I had two problems. One patience – UGH…story of my life.
The second problem – these fruit rolls ups need at least six hours in a super low temperature oven. This is a MUST! The first time I tried to rush it. DO NOT do this! These cannot be rushed. I recommend either starting these in the morning or starting them just before bed.
OK, and I just have to mention that even though these do require a lot of time in the oven, the prep time and the time involved in actually making them is minimal. Like five minutes people. It really does not get easier. Don’t freak over the cooking time, k?
While I tried to not add ANY form of sugar in making these fruit roll-ups…I don’t actually recommend it. However, I used only healthy honey in the recipe (which isn’t actual SUGAR). I think the honey REALLY helped to give these the right amount of stickiness and chewiness. If you want to make these vegan, brown rice syrup can also be used.
For my flavors, I went with mango-peach, strawberry and strawberry-blackberry swirl, BUT, you can really use any fruit you’d like. They all work, some maybe a little better than others, but with the addition of honey in my recipe, most fruits should work out great. That said, mangos pretty much make a KILLER fruit roll up. Like the perfect texture.
I also feel I should mention that these got double thumbs up from everyone. We all agreed that they are just like the real thing, but better, sweeter and so much healthier.
SCORE!
Oh and umm, isn’t my little model the cutest?? Photographing her + late summer berries, just makes my day.
Double oh, Asher cannot wait to pack the snacks in her lunch box. So you see, they even have the kid seal of approval.
Triple Oh, Asher starts school today! AND…she is actually trying to convince my mom to homeschool her…and… my mom is actually thinking about it! I told my mom one very important thing.
YOU ARE OUT OF YOUR MIND!
I know homeschooling is for some people, but it’s not for my mom (she’s crazy busy for one), and it’s definitely not for Asher. The girl acts like a teenager, she is a social bug and would be bored to death all year.
Fruit Roll Ups...for Back to School!
Servings: 10 Servings
Calories Per Serving: 192 kcal
Nutritional information is only an estimate. The accuracy of the nutritional information for any recipe on this site is not guaranteed.
Ingredients
Mango-Peach Fruit Roll Ups
- 1 1/2 cups diced peaches
- 1 1/2 cups diced mango
- 1 tablespoon fresh lemon juice
- 1/4 cup honey may sub brown rice syrup or honey if vegan
Strawberry-Blackberry Swirl Fruit Roll Ups
- 1 1/2 cups diced strawberries
- 1 1/2 cups blackberries
- 2 teaspoons fresh lemon juice divided
- 4 tablespoons honey divided, may sub brown rice syrup or honey if vegan
General Base To Make Your Own Flavor
- 3 cups diced fresh fruit
- 1 tablespoon fresh lemon juice
- 1/4 cup honey may sub brown rice syrup or honey if vegan
Instructions
Mango-Peach
- Preheat the oven to 150 degrees F. Line two baking sheets with parchment paper.
- In a blender, puree all the ingredients until completely smooth and no chunks remain, about 2 minutes. Divide the mixture in 2 and pour onto the prepared baking sheets. Spread the mixture to an 1/8″ thick even layer. It is REALLY important to make sure the mix is all in one even layer. To help with this, I found topping the pan against the count a few times really helpful. Place in oven and bake for 6-8 hours, until center is not tacky anymore. Remove from oven and allow to cool before cutting.
- Cut into strips and roll um up! Store in an airtight container for up to 2 weeks or freeze.
Strawberry-Blackberry Swirl
- Preheat the oven to 150 degrees F. Line two baking sheets with parchment paper.
- In a blender, puree the strawberries, 1 teaspoon lemon juice and 1 tablespoon honey until completely smooth and no chunks remain, about 2 minutes. Pour the mixture into a large measuring cup.
- Add the blackberries, 1 teaspoon lemon juice and 1 tablespoon honey to the blender and puree until smooth, about 2 minutes.
- Pour half of both the strawberry mix and the blackberry mix onto a pan. Create swirls while spreading the mixture out into an 1/8″ thick even layer. It is REALLY important to make sure the mix is all in one even layer. To help with this, I found topping the pan against the count a few times really helpful. Repeat with the other pan and remaining fruit mixtures. Place in oven and bake for 6-8 hours, until center is not tacky anymore. Remove from oven and allow to cool before cutting.
- Cut into strips and roll um up! Store in an airtight container for up to 2 weeks or freeze.
Notes
*All fruits produce different results. I found that mangos produced the best results, but strawberries, blackberries and stone fruits will all work! Cooking time will very depending on the fruit. If you are trying out different fruits, you may want to experiment to see what combos work best together or what fruits are best just on their own. *I found the addition of honey to REALLY help with the texture and make the fruit roll ups chewy just like the store bought ones. The honey can be left out, but I do not recommend it. It is REALLY important to make sure the mix is all in one even layer. To help with this, I found topping the pan against the counter a few times really helpful. *Other combos that I think would be awesome: mango, mango-pineapple, strawberry, strawberry-apple, strawberry-grape, apple-fig, blackberry, blackberry-mango, strawberry-plum
Snack time? I do think so.
Any thoughts on using frozen fruit? I feel like fresh is always yummier, but we have an habit of over filling our freezer with the frozen stuff…
Hey Ebba,
I think frozen fruit would be totally fine for you to use! Let me know if you give the recipe a try, I hope you love it! xTieghan
How long can you store these for?
Hey Mara,
These are good for 2 weeks in an airtight container or you can freeze them. I hope you love the recipe:) xTieghan
Can’t wait to make roll ups. We are stuck in the house right now so we don’t get Covid 19. I have a lot of fruit in the freezer. Can I thaw the fruit out and make these rolls ups?
I have mango too. Thanks!
Love, love, love this!!! I’m going to make these for my daughters today. Forgive my ignorance, but what does “topping against the count” mean?
I got a question, we are also far out of town snd have a long winter…not that much fruit grows here as summers are short and to buy out of season is expensive… Can u make the fruit leather from ftozen fruit? I have mango pieces frozen also strawberry banana chunks..
Hi! yes, frozen fruit works amazing!! Just let it thaw slightly before blending. Hope you love these! Thanks!
6-8 hours, in 150 degree F? Doesn’t too long to bake it?
hope you will kindly to answer the question.
thank you
Hi I am not sure what exactly you are asking, can you clarify?
When you cook it for 6 to 8 hours at 150 degrees f your basically dehydrating it ive seen other people make this but instead of the oven they used their dehydrator
These totally remind me of my childhood! Love this! So great for kids too!
I’m so confused!!! I’ve tried twice now and stil no go!
My oven only goes as low as 170 but I figured reduced cooking time 3-4 hours would still work. It all sticks to the pan and even if I get it off the pan the parchment paper is stuck to the fruit, almost like it melted into the paper???
Any suggestions would be super helpful?
Thank you!
Hi Kelly!! I don’t think you are baking these long enough if you reduced the cooking time 3-4 hours. These need to dry out low and slow. 170 degrees F is not a huge difference from 150 so I really just think you should cook these at the suggested time, maybe only slightly less time, like 15-30 minutes, but even then the suggested time might work best. Let me know if you have any other questions, Hope this help!
Tieghan