Dried Cherries

I have been getting things back to normal at home.  We just got back from our Alaskan Vacation - more to come in later posts.  Any way, my youngest, Tim was outside playing and he told me that the cherries needed picking.  I wasn't too worried about getting to it right away. That Cherry tree hasn't  produced  many cherries in the past.  Tim kept insisting I came out and check out the Cherry tree. When I went out  I was in for a huge surprise.  The tree was loaded with cherries.  We immediately got busy picking the cherries.

Some Cherries From Our Tree

Once the cherries were picked and washed, Tim asked what we were going to do with all the cherries.     One thing I was going to do was dry some cherries.  I love dried cherries.  Wheather it be for snacking, baking, or using as a topping for oatmeal, yogurt, I am always finding uses for them.

I immediately set out to find my dehydrator.  Once the dehydrator was located,  I went to work.  Dehydrating cherries is very simple.  Start  by pitting the cherries and slicing them in half.  Set them on the dehydrator trays cut side up.  Leave some space between the cherries so they are not touching.     Look at the manufacturer's directions for what temperature and how long you should dehydrate your cherries.   I set my temperature to 135 degrees F and left them in the dehydrator for  10-12 hours.     The end the result should be cherries that are leathery and a little sticky.

Do you need a dehydrator to dry cherries - no.  I found  a well written easy to follow procedure for drying cherries on  the kitchn blog.  You can find the recipe here.

My Dehydrator

Delicious Result

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