Homemade Craisins

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Craisins are dehydrated cranberries that are soft and chewy like a raisin. I have bought them from the store to use in chicken salad and granola bars. But if I want to save money during the winter and want to know what exactly is in the craisin, I will make them myself with my dehydrator. It is actually simple and doesn't take much prep work. I love the sweet and tart combination of these homemade crainsins.

I bought a bag of cranberries that was 12oz which is about 3 cups of cranberries. They shrink down to a little over a cup of craisins.

Start by washing the fresh cranberries.

Next measure out 1 cup of water and 1 cup of cane sugar.

In a medium to large pot, mix together the cranberries, water and sugar.

Place the pot on the stove and bring to a simmer for 5-7 minutes. Cranberries need to be popping open to absorb the sugar water.

Once most of them are split open, remove from heat. You can use a knife or utensil to finish cracking all of the cranberries open.

Using a slotted spoon, place cranberries on dehydrator trays.

Assemble or place trays in dehydrator.

Turn the dehydrator on to 135 degrees. Let the cranberries dehydrate for 24-30 hours.

Check after 12 hours, then at about 24 hours to make sure all the berries are shrinking. Then check every 2 hours until done. They are done when they are much smaller and resemble raisins. I like mine softer and chewy.

I use this Nesco dehydrator.

Turn off the dehydrator and allow the craisins to cool.

Place craisins in an airtight container to store, shaking every day until they don't stick together.

These will only keep for a short time but using a vacuum sealer will help store them for longer. We eat them fairly fast so I am not sure exactly how long it will last in storage.

Yield: 1 cup

Homemade Craisins

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Sweet, chewy and tart dehydrated cranberries. Perfect for baked goods, granola bars and snacking.

Prep Time 10 minutes

Cook Time 1 day 6 hours

Total Time 1 day 6 hours 10 minutes

Ingredients

• 3 cups (12oz) of raw cranberries
• 1 cups of cane sugar
• 1 cup of water

Instructions

1. Start by washing a bag of fresh cranberries.
2. Next measure out 1 cup of water and 1 cup of cane sugar.
3. In a medium to large pot, mix together the cranberries, water and sugar.
4. Place the pot on the stove and bring to a simmer for 5-7 minutes. Cranberries need to be popping open to absorb the sugar water.
5. Once most of them are split open, remove from heat. You can use a knife or utensil to finish cracking all of the cranberries open.
6. Using a slotted spoon, place cranberries on dehydrator trays.
7. Assemble or place trays in dehydrator.
8. Turn the dehydrator on to 135 degrees.
9. Let the cranberries dehydrate for 24-30 hours.
10. Check after 12 hours, then at about 24 hours to make sure all the berries are shrinking.
11. Then check every 2 hours until done. They are done when they are much smaller and resemble raisins. I like mine softer and chewy.
12. Turn off the dehydrator and allow the craisins to cool.
13. Place craisins in an airtight container to store, shaking every day until they don't stick together.
14. These will only keep for a short time but using a vacuum sealer will help store them for longer. We eat them fairly fast so I am not sure exactly how long it will last in storage.