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Get It NowForget about artificial colors, added sugar, and corn syrup… this fruit leather recipe creates a naturally sweet snack with mostly hands-off effort! With just 5 minutes to prep and no specialty tools needed, I’ll show you my best flavor ideas and tips for creating your own homemade fruit rollups. My kids love this stuff, and with no added sugar, I feel good about giving it to them.
Why You’ll Love My Fruit Leather Recipe
- Sweet, fruity flavor – You can choose the fruit! Strawberry is my favorite, as it reminds me of the (processed) ones I enjoyed as a kid.
- Soft and chewy texture – I was equal parts shocked and pleased to discover that this works with fresh fruit, but it really does!
- No special equipment – You don’t need a dehydrator or anything unusual.
- Quick prep – It only takes a few minutes of your time, and your oven does the rest.
- Perfect way to use up extra fruit – Drying it out into fruit leather preserves it for longer, so I often make these when I know the fruit won’t last.
- Healthy choice over store-bought versions – No processed ingredients or added sugar, just real fruit! It’s also naturally gluten-free, and can be low carb with the right fruit if you need the option.
Ingredients You’ll Need
This section explains how to choose the best ingredients for homemade fruit roll ups, what each one does in the recipe, and substitution options. For measurements, see the recipe card below.
Many recipes for fruit leather contain added sugar or honey (and many store-bought versions contain added corn syrup, juice, pectin, or artificial colors), but you can easily make it without all these ingredients. All you need is:
- Fruit – I use strawberries most often, but you can also use mango (and use any extra for a mango salad), other berries (blackberries, raspberries), stone fruits such as peaches, plums, or apricots, or others, like apples, kiwi, or bananas. If the fruit has an edible peel, you can include it in the recipe for extra fiber and texture. No matter what kind you use, you’ll need one pound for this recipe, which is about 2 to 3 cups of fruit.
- Lemon Juice – Just a teaspoon of either fresh or bottled lemon juice to brightens up the flavor and helps the fruit retain its color. Lime juice works fine, too. You could use orange juice for extra sweetness, but it doesn’t work quite as well for color retention.
Variations:
- More Flavor – Add spices like cloves, nutmeg, cinnamon, ginger, almond extract, or vanilla to the puree.
- More Sweetness – This fruit leather recipe is sweetened with 100% fruit, but if you want more sweetness, you can add a few tablespoons of honey, or my personal favorite Besti sugar substitute (0 calories and no aftertaste!).
- Frozen Fruit – Simply defrost it fully in the fridge and drain off any extra liquid before pureeing.
How To Make Fruit Leather
This section shows step-by-step photos together with the instructions, to help you visualize the recipe. For full instructions, including amounts and temperatures, see the recipe card below.
- Puree. Add all ingredients except lemon juice to a high-powered blender. Puree until very smooth. Add lemon juice and blend again until incorporated.
- Spread. Transfer the fruit puree to a baking sheet lined with parchment paper or a silicone mat. (Do not use foil — it will stick!) Spread into a thin layer.
- Dehydrate. Bake in the oven (or see dehydrator instructions in the tips below), until the center is no longer sticky to the touch. Remove from the oven and cool completely to firm up.
- Peel. Once cooled, gently peel the fruit leather recipe off the baking sheet (leaving parchment attached, if using).
- Cut. Using a pizza cutter or knife, cut into five strips lengthwise and once crosswise to create 10 pieces total.
- Roll. Roll into strips with parchment facing out, or carefully roll up without parchment. (They stick together without the paper, though.)
Recipe Tips And Tricks
Fruit leather is easy to make (I mean, how complicated can 2 ingredients be?), but I picked up a few tips and tricks from my experience making it:
- If the fruit gets “stuck” in the blender, dislodge with a spatula. It can also help to pulse the blender, starting and stopping, especially at first.
- Parchment paper or silicone mats work best for lining the pan. Avoid using wax paper or plastic wrap, which are not suitable for the oven, or foil, which will stick.
- For a smooth texture, strain the seeds. If using berries or other fruits with edible seeds, you can strain them through a fine mesh sieve before transferring to the baking sheet. I usually skip the step, as I like the texture of the seeds, but you do you!
- Shake the baking sheet to evenly distribute the puree. If the thickness of the puree is uneven, the fruit roll up recipe will have a lumpy texture, and the thinner parts may burn before the thicker parts are done. Try to create as thin a layer as possible without making any holes.
- Watch for doneness. Over-dried fruit leather will be brittle and crack easily, so keep testing for doneness after 3 hours.
- Fruit too sour? Add sweetener. If you use out-of-season or particularly sour fruits, add sweetener to taste. Honey, maple syrup, or powdered sugar-free sweeteners are all great options.
- Boil the puree if you need to save time. If you want to reduce the oven time, you can cook the fruit on the stovetop first. After pureeing, boil for 5-10 minutes to allow some liquid to evaporate. This step can cut your baking time roughly in half.
- Feel free to use a dehydrator if you have one. After pureeing, transfer to your dehydrator’s fruit leather tray (or simply line with parchment paper). Dehydrate for 6-12 hours at 140 degrees F or 60 degrees C. Start testing for doneness after 6 hours.
Storage Instructions
- Store: Keep the fruit leather in a sealed container in the fridge for up to 1 week. However, it’s fine to take these snacks on-the-go for the day without refrigerating. I do it all the time!
- Freeze: If you want to keep these for longer storage, place them in an airtight container in the freezer. They’ll last for up to 6-8 months this way, though the color can fade a bit over time. Thaw overnight in the fridge before enjoying.
More Healthy Snack Recipes
It’s easy to make better-for-you snacks right at home. Try my index of healthy snack recipes, or try some of my favorites below:
My Tools For This Recipe
- Blender – This thing is a workhorse. It’s super powerful, so it doesn’t get stuck easily and gets the fruit super smooth.
- Baking Sheet – Perfect size for this recipe, and easy to clean.
- Silicone Mats – Easy to reuse, and the fruit leather releases nicely from these.
Fruit Leather Recipe (Easy!)
This healthy fruit leather recipe is the homemade version of fruit rollups. It's so easy to make with real, fresh fruit – and no added sugar!
Instructions
Tap on the times in the instructions below to start a kitchen timer while you cook.
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Preheat the oven to the lowest temperature possible (mine was 170 degrees F). Line a baking sheet with parchment paper.
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Puree the fruit in a high-speed blender until super smooth.
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Add the lemon juice and puree again.
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Spread the smooth fruit puree onto the lined baking sheet.
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Dehydrate fruit leather in the oven for 3-4 hours, until the center is not sticky to the touch.
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Remove from the oven and let the fruit leather cool completely on the baking sheet.
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Slide the parchment paper off the baking sheet (this is a good size for this recipe) onto a cutting board. Using a pizza cutter or knife, cut into five strips lengthwise, then cut across all of them crosswise, to make 10 pieces total.
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To make fruit roll ups, roll the individual strips, preferably together with the parchment paper to prevent sticking, but without is fine as well.
Did You Like It?
Leave a rating to help other readers, or get the recipe sent to your inbox.
Recipe Notes
Serving size: 1 fruit roll up (7 inches by 2 inches)
- Nutrition info is based on using strawberries, and will vary depending on the type of fruit used.
- If you’re watching sugar intake, simply use low carb fruits, such as strawberries, blueberries, raspberries, or blackberries.
- Time to dehydrate in the oven can vary depending on the type of fruit you use and how much water content it has.
Nutrition facts are provided as a courtesy. Have questions about calculations or why you got a different result? Please see our nutrition policy.
© Copyright Maya Krampf for Wholesome Yum. Please DO NOT SCREENSHOT OR COPY/PASTE recipes to social media or websites. We’d LOVE for you to share a link with photo instead. 🙂
41 Comments
Joey
0I recently had a homemade Orange fruit leather from a farmers market which was amazing (ingredients said they also used apple) but also made me think, could I use/make other citrus only fruit leathers? Would grapefruits work? Or lemon by itself? Or would I need to add some other type of fruit?
Wholesome Yum D
0Hi Joey, I have never used citrus fruit in this recipe but if you do please let me know.
Meghan
0I made this with just strawberries and I am pretty sure my son would eat all of this in one sitting if he could, haha! Trying a combination of flavors next – thank you for the recipe.
Zane
0I recently bought a dehydrator and tried this recipe! I used a mix of blueberries and strawberries and loved how it turned out!
Cassie
0This was such a hit with the kids! Quick and easy to make and much better than store-bought ones because it’s homemade so you definitely know it’s a healthier choice for them. And I just know I’ll be making this more often now!
Parker
0I can’t believe how easy this was. We have berry bushes growing wild in our neighborhood so this year we are going to collect as many as we can and make a bunch of fruit roll ups! I assume it’s okay to use frozen berries too?
Wholesome Yum D
0Hi Parker, Yes, You can use frozen fruit. Simply defrost it fully in the fridge and drain off any extra liquid before pureeing.
Patty
0We loved this so much!! I made it just fruit the first time, and then followed your tip in post to add spices and woooo it was amazing! I’m thinking I’ll start to add this to my treats boxes over the holiday’s, too. Thank you!!
Patricia
0Who knew it was so easy to make homemade fruit leather?! My kids absolutely loved it and I felt so domestic. 🙂
Mel
0I loved throwing this into my kids home made lunches for school! It was so delicious and I loved knowing it had clean ingredients!
Krissy
0I had some Hood strawberry puree in the freezer from last summer and decided to make these. They turned out so good and the kids loved them!
Jo Ellen
0Hi, just found your recipe. When measuring fruit do you puree first? 1 cup pureed fruit and 1 tea lemon juice?
Wholesome Yum D
0Hi Jo Ellen, The fruit is measured before it’s pureed.
Faith H
0I made this in my dehydrator using blueberries… it turned out absolutely delicious!!! Thank you for the amazing recipe! I think I dehydrated it just a bit too much, so I simply cracked it into large pieces and am calling it “blueberry leather.” Love it!!
Efream
0Mine did not turn out. Does it matter the type of fruit used? Plus they have been in the oven for like 6 hours and still haven’t completely dried out. I have no idea what I did wrong, but I’ll try them again.
Wholesome Yum D
0Hi, What fruit did you use?
Connie Poole
0I’m looking at your fruit leather recipe but I don’t see what temp the oven should be
Wholesome Yum D
0Hi Connie, You should set your oven to the lowest temperature possible (mine was 170 degrees F). You will find that info in step 1 on the recipe card.
HP
0Followed the instructions to the letter. Left with unusable trash–the parchment paper wouldn’t pull off the fruit leather before OR after cooling. The tiny piece I was able to try tasted good, though.
Wholesome Yum D
0HI, Sorry this recipe didn’t meet your expectations. If you try again I recommend using a silicone mat.
Heather
0Will canned fruit (ie peaches) work if it’s well drained??
Wholesome Yum D
0Hi Heather, Yes, I think that should work for you.
Ann
0Would this recipe work if using frozen fruit?
Wholesome Yum D
0Hi Ann, Yes, you have to defrost fruit fully in the fridge and drain off any extra liquid before pureeing.
Jill
0I tried to make these but it ended up burning. I want to try again..loved the idea of no added sugar..but not sure what happened.
Victoria
0How do you store?
Wholesome Yum D
0Hi Victoria, Keep the fruit roll-ups in a sealed container in the fridge for up to 1 week.
Dana
0What a great lunchbox treat for the kids! Now I don’t have to worry about all the extras that are in store bought, and we can make whatever variation sounds good at that time!
Gen
0What a fun idea! My niece loved these.
Jenna
0I loved fruit roll ups when I was a kid but I’ve never tried making them before. I definitely plan on giving this recipe a try. Thanks for sharing.
Toni
0This is so fun to make and eat!! My kids loved it! Thanks!
Jaimie L
0Hi there! I just made a batch of these with strawberries and had such a hard time not eating them all! However, I do have a question: I used parchment paper and noticed it immediately wrinkled, leaving too-thin spots which crackled. Any tips on keeping your parchment paper from wrinkling?
Wholesome Yum D
0Hi Jaimie, Using parchment paper sheets may be a better option for you.
Cori
0Help. Things went horribly wrong. My edges were crispy and most of the inside never hardened. Also had black spots pop up everywhere. Was in the oven almost 5 hours. I just gave up. Super great flavor and my kid loved the crispy parts he was able to eat. Where did I maybe go wrong? Wanna get this one right for him! Thanks so much!
Wholesome Yum D
0Hi Cori, What temp was the oven set at?
Cristie
0When I was a young cook, I used to think that wax paper was the same as parchment paper, and ruined several recipes. Lol. Be aware that they are very different!
Addison
0My kids loved this recipe.
EJ
0What temperature should the oven be set to?
Wholesome Yum D
0Hi EJ, You want to set the oven to its lowest possible temperature. Mine was 170 degrees F.
KT
0What size baking sheet is best to spread out 1 lb of fruit puree for these fruit leathers? I am so intrigued by this recipe!
Wholesome Yum D
0Hi KT, The ones I used were 18×13.