I got my dehydrator. First thing I made was jerky. It turned out
nicely. Good flavor and texture and I'm happy.

Blueberries are plentiful and inexpensive and I thought..."why not
dehydrate some blueberries"?
I love dried (not freeze dried) blueberries, but they cost an arm and
a leg even in the bulk bins.

I bought a 2 pound clamshell pack and brought it home, washed the
blueberries and put them in the dehydrator. They have been drying
for 3...wait, 4 days. I've been taking out the ones
that are 'raisiny' each day and letting the larger ones stay in to
keep drying. It's a bit of a PIA.
And, boy that 2 pounds will make probably 2 cups of dried
blueberries.

Now I know why the dried ones are a jillion dollars a pound.

I'm going to do some apricots and peaches, etc next.

On Jun 25, 12:52*pm, ImStillMags > wrote:
> I got my dehydrator. *First thing I made was jerky. * It turned out
> nicely. * Good flavor and texture and I'm happy.
>
> Blueberries are plentiful and inexpensive and I thought..."why not
> dehydrate some blueberries"?
> I love dried (not freeze dried) blueberries, but they cost an arm and
> a leg even in the bulk bins.
>
> I bought a 2 pound *clamshell pack and brought it home, washed the
> blueberries and put them in the dehydrator. * *They have been drying
> for 3...wait, 4 days. * I've been taking out the ones
> that are 'raisiny' each day and letting the larger ones stay in to
> keep drying. * It's a bit of a PIA.
> And, boy *that 2 pounds will make probably 2 cups of dried
> blueberries.
>
> Now I know why the dried ones are a jillion dollars a pound.
>
> I'm going to do some apricots and peaches, etc next.

ah ha ! found out why it took so long to dry them. You are
supposed to blanch them quickly first to break
the skin. Breaking the skin let's the moisture out of the berry more
easily. I'll do that next time.

"ImStillMags" > wrote in message
...
>I got my dehydrator. First thing I made was jerky. It turned out
> nicely. Good flavor and texture and I'm happy.
>
> Blueberries are plentiful and inexpensive and I thought..."why not
> dehydrate some blueberries"?
> I love dried (not freeze dried) blueberries, but they cost an arm and
> a leg even in the bulk bins.
>
> I bought a 2 pound clamshell pack and brought it home, washed the
> blueberries and put them in the dehydrator. They have been drying
> for 3...wait, 4 days. I've been taking out the ones
> that are 'raisiny' each day and letting the larger ones stay in to
> keep drying. It's a bit of a PIA.
> And, boy that 2 pounds will make probably 2 cups of dried
> blueberries.
>
> Now I know why the dried ones are a jillion dollars a pound.
>
> I'm going to do some apricots and peaches, etc next.
>
Finely slice some Granny Smiths I use one of those rotary
corer/slicer/peelers). Then, when they are dry, store them in the freezer.
Snack on them straight from the freezer! Waaaaay better than potato chips.

ImStillMags wrote:
> I got my dehydrator. First thing I made was jerky. It turned out
> nicely. Good flavor and texture and I'm happy.
>
> Blueberries are plentiful and inexpensive and I thought..."why not
> dehydrate some blueberries"?
> I love dried (not freeze dried) blueberries, but they cost an arm and
> a leg even in the bulk bins.
>
> I bought a 2 pound clamshell pack and brought it home, washed the
> blueberries and put them in the dehydrator. They have been drying
> for 3...wait, 4 days. I've been taking out the ones
> that are 'raisiny' each day and letting the larger ones stay in to
> keep drying. It's a bit of a PIA.
> And, boy that 2 pounds will make probably 2 cups of dried
> blueberries.
>
> Now I know why the dried ones are a jillion dollars a pound.
>
> I'm going to do some apricots and peaches, etc next.

Blueberries do take a long time, but unless you want "raw" ones (such as
done at a low temp) you might want to blanch them first and/or cut a slit in
them to hasten the drying process.

ImStillMags wrote:
> On Jun 25, 12:52 pm, ImStillMags > wrote:
>> I got my dehydrator. First thing I made was jerky. It turned out
>> nicely. Good flavor and texture and I'm happy.
>>
>> Blueberries are plentiful and inexpensive and I thought..."why not
>> dehydrate some blueberries"?
>> I love dried (not freeze dried) blueberries, but they cost an arm and
>> a leg even in the bulk bins.
>>
>> I bought a 2 pound clamshell pack and brought it home, washed the
>> blueberries and put them in the dehydrator. They have been drying
>> for 3...wait, 4 days. I've been taking out the ones
>> that are 'raisiny' each day and letting the larger ones stay in to
>> keep drying. It's a bit of a PIA.
>> And, boy that 2 pounds will make probably 2 cups of dried
>> blueberries.
>>
>> Now I know why the dried ones are a jillion dollars a pound.
>>
>> I'm going to do some apricots and peaches, etc next.
>
> ah ha ! found out why it took so long to dry them. You are
> supposed to blanch them quickly first to break
> the skin. Breaking the skin let's the moisture out of the berry more
> easily. I'll do that next time.

Yep.

On 6/25/2011 2:52 PM, ImStillMags wrote:
> Now I know why the dried ones are a jillion dollars a pound.
>
> I'm going to do some apricots and peaches, etc next.

The dried blueberries I bought at Sam's Club were $6.67 per pound, but I
really like the frozen wild blueberries. The brand I buy is Dole and
they come in 32 ounce bags, they cost about $8.50.

Becca

On Sat, 25 Jun 2011 23:02:14 -0700, "Julie Bove"
> wrote:

>ImStillMags wrote:
>> On Jun 25, 12:52 pm, ImStillMags > wrote:
>>> I got my dehydrator. First thing I made was jerky. It turned out
>>> nicely. Good flavor and texture and I'm happy.
>>>
>>> Blueberries are plentiful and inexpensive and I thought..."why not
>>> dehydrate some blueberries"?
>>> I love dried (not freeze dried) blueberries, but they cost an arm and
>>> a leg even in the bulk bins.
>>>
>>> I bought a 2 pound clamshell pack and brought it home, washed the
>>> blueberries and put them in the dehydrator. They have been drying
>>> for 3...wait, 4 days. I've been taking out the ones
>>> that are 'raisiny' each day and letting the larger ones stay in to
>>> keep drying. It's a bit of a PIA.
>>> And, boy that 2 pounds will make probably 2 cups of dried
>>> blueberries.
>>>
>>> Now I know why the dried ones are a jillion dollars a pound.
>>>
>>> I'm going to do some apricots and peaches, etc next.
>>
>> ah ha ! found out why it took so long to dry them. You are
>> supposed to blanch them quickly first to break
>> the skin. Breaking the skin let's the moisture out of the berry more
>> easily. I'll do that next time.
>
>Yep.

Yeah, also lets all the flavor and nutrients run down your leg. It's
much smarter to buy freeze dried berries and eat your fresh ones
fresh. Someone has to be mentally defective to freeze perfectly good
fresh berries... but then imbeciles freeze fresh prime beef steaks
too... I guess it's okay if you can afford $30/lb pot roast.

On Jun 25, 3:52*pm, ImStillMags > wrote:
> I got my dehydrator. *First thing I made was jerky. * It turned out
> nicely. * Good flavor and texture and I'm happy.
>
> Blueberries are plentiful and inexpensive and I thought..."why not
> dehydrate some blueberries"?
> I love dried (not freeze dried) blueberries, but they cost an arm and
> a leg even in the bulk bins.
>
> I bought a 2 pound *clamshell pack and brought it home, washed the
> blueberries and put them in the dehydrator. * *They have been drying
> for 3...wait, 4 days. * I've been taking out the ones
> that are 'raisiny' each day and letting the larger ones stay in to
> keep drying. * It's a bit of a PIA.
> And, boy *that 2 pounds will make probably 2 cups of dried
> blueberries.
>
> Now I know why the dried ones are a jillion dollars a pound.
>
> I'm going to do some apricots and peaches, etc next.

I tried grapes once - days later, I had some awful tasting raisins.
NOT worth doing.

I mainly use my dehydrator to dry a bunch of parsley, cilantro etc.
when I just KNOW I won't use it all before it goes bad.

Turkey jerky is another good dehydrator product - beef too.

On Sun, 26 Jun 2011 10:20:32 -0700 (PDT), Kalmia
> wrote:

>On Jun 25, 3:52*pm, ImStillMags > wrote:
>> I got my dehydrator. *First thing I made was jerky. * It turned out
>> nicely. * Good flavor and texture and I'm happy.
>>
>> Blueberries are plentiful and inexpensive and I thought..."why not
>> dehydrate some blueberries"?
>> I love dried (not freeze dried) blueberries, but they cost an arm and
>> a leg even in the bulk bins.
>>
>> I bought a 2 pound *clamshell pack and brought it home, washed the
>> blueberries and put them in the dehydrator. * *They have been drying
>> for 3...wait, 4 days. * I've been taking out the ones
>> that are 'raisiny' each day and letting the larger ones stay in to
>> keep drying. * It's a bit of a PIA.
>> And, boy *that 2 pounds will make probably 2 cups of dried
>> blueberries.
>>
>> Now I know why the dried ones are a jillion dollars a pound.
>>
>> I'm going to do some apricots and peaches, etc next.
>
>I tried grapes once - days later, I had some awful tasting raisins.
>NOT worth doing.

Unless you have access to a commercial dehydrater or a hot dry sunny
climate you're just making compost.

>I mainly use my dehydrator to dry a bunch of parsley, cilantro etc.
>when I just KNOW I won't use it all before it goes bad.

Leafy herbs dry best at normal air temps; tie bunches of sprigs leaf
side down inside a paper bag and hang in a dry place.

On Jun 25, 3:52*pm, ImStillMags > wrote:
> I'm going to do some apricots and peaches, etc next.

Try pineapple and melon. For my first tries I added confectioners
sugar and it came out great. 3/16 inch slices and two days at 155.

On Jun 25, 12:52*pm, ImStillMags > wrote:
> I got my dehydrator. *First thing I made was jerky. * It turned out
> nicely. * Good flavor and texture and I'm happy.
>
> Blueberries are plentiful and inexpensive and I thought..."why not
> dehydrate some blueberries"?
> I love dried (not freeze dried) blueberries, but they cost an arm and
> a leg even in the bulk bins.
>
> I bought a 2 pound *clamshell pack and brought it home, washed the
> blueberries and put them in the dehydrator. * *They have been drying
> for 3...wait, 4 days. * I've been taking out the ones
> that are 'raisiny' each day and letting the larger ones stay in to
> keep drying. * It's a bit of a PIA.
> And, boy *that 2 pounds will make probably 2 cups of dried
> blueberries.
>
> Now I know why the dried ones are a jillion dollars a pound.
>
> I'm going to do some apricots and peaches, etc next.

Ever try to do "craisins"? Total PIA & failure after days of work...I
did do blueberries, but overdid them so they were like little rocks.
Please let us know how they turn out...

On Jun 27, 11:38*am, merryb > wrote:
>
> Ever try to do "craisins"? Total PIA & failure after days of work...I
> did doblueberries, but overdid them so they were like little rocks.
> Please let us know how they turn out...- Hide quoted text -
>

My first batch took forever since I didn't blanch them or poke a hole
in them (no way am I poking toothpicks into that many
blueberries).

Second batch I blanched them by using a strainer dipping them into
boiling water for just a few seconds to break the skins.
They dried in one day and they are perfect little blue 'rasins'.

Blanching is the key.

On Jul 1, 4:49*pm, ImStillMags > wrote:
> On Jun 27, 11:38*am, merryb > wrote:
>
>
>
> > Ever try to do "craisins"? Total PIA & failure after days of work...I
> > did doblueberries, but overdid them so they were like little rocks.
> > Please let us know how they turn out...- Hide quoted text -
>
> My first batch took forever since I didn't blanch them or poke a hole
> in them (no way am I poking toothpicks into that many
> blueberries).
>
> Second batch I blanched them by using a strainer dipping them into
> boiling water for just a few seconds to break the skins.
> They dried in one day and they are perfect little blue 'rasins'.
>
> Blanching is the key.

Thanks for the report- I hope there is a better season for them this
year. There is a great little blueberry farm in Puyallup, and I like
to pick them myself- turns out to be like a buck a pound. Last year,
they never evened opened for the season as the weather was so crappy.