Barb Hodgens
Barb Hodgens

Barb Hodgens loves to cook with alternative, healthy whole food ingredients, with a focus on gut health. Barb has overcome her own gut health issues through healthy eating. Share your ideas, comments and photos at the end of this post :)

making raisins at home

Sweet little morsels of dried deliciousness.

Grapes have become a popular backyard crop, but as with many seasonal fruits, they come in all at once and often there’s way too many to just eat fresh. Dehydrating is a great way to preserve your harvest. It takes a little prep and some patience but with the Breeze dehydrator you will master the process and find it fun and easy to do. You’ll absolutely love the results!

Drying grapes at home means you can explore the incredible range of flavours, textures and colour possibilities that aren’t available in commercial raisins. It’s also satisfying knowing they’re free from preservatives and have been dried at a temperature that won’t destroy any of the grapes nutrient filled goodness.

dehydrating grapes

The flavour is truer to that of a fresh grape, only sweeter and more intense. They’re perfect little morsels to store in the pantry to satisfy a sudden sweet tooth. Use them in baked goods like these muffins, add them to Bircher muesli or granola, a hiking trail mix or toss them into salads for a burst of colour and sweetness.

The best choice for dehydration is seedless grapes, however some of the tastiest home-grown grapes, such as muscatels are full of seeds. With an extra step you can scoop them all out after slicing or just leave them in. Truth is, a large number of nutrients are contained in those pesky little seeds and once dehydrated they lose the bitterness and add a satisfying crunch.

The time it takes for grapes to dry varies significantly depending on the type and size of grape. It’s a good idea to check after about 18 hours and revisit as needed until they’ll done.

dehydrating grapes

dehydrating grapes

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Making raisins in a food dehydrator