July 25, 2018

Drying Frozen Peaches

I’m drying frozen peaches today. Every month I pick up frozen peaches from the Pantry Market. I get 2-3 baggies a month. Each baggie holds about 1-2 whole peaches sliced into quarter wedges.

I usually make smoothies out of them or eat them frozen in my morning oatmeal. Sometimes I don’t use it all, so instead of leaving them in the freezer where they can get freezer burn, I dehydrate them. After dehydrating them, I can grind them into powder. Peach powder mixed with boiling water makes a great syrup for flavoring drinking water or pancakes. Depending on how much water is used. When I dehydrate segments I can still use them in smoothies by rehydrating them in the milk or whey.

Once dried they can be used in different types of recipes or eaten as a snack. Peaches and cream oatmeal for breakfast is a good change from the regular plain flavor. I might try to make a peach sorbet if I can find a good recipe for one.

Ready to Dry Peaches

Allow to thaw.

Soak peach segments in citric acid for 5 minutes.

Cut parchment paper to cover dehydrating trays. If you are using a Nesco they are round trays. Make sure to cut the hole in the center and cut it on the inside edge of the tray. The hole in the center and the holes that run on the edge of the trays is the way the dehydrator moves the air flow through the machine. So, you don’t want to cover the holes that run around the outside of the tray.

Spread peaches on the tray. Try not to stack the peaches on top of each other. They dry better if the peaches do not touch.

Dehydrate 135 degrees for 10-18 hours. Check the peaches half way through for dryness.

I use a NESCO FD-60 Snack Master Express Food Dehydrator. I can use up to 12 trays with this model.

Dried segments. They should be dry and pliable. Bending them without breaking.

I can grind segments into a peach powder and use it to make syrup. (Not shown here) I’m not using these in powder form. I’m using these in tea and snacks.