Strawberry Fruit Roll Ups
These homemade Strawberry Fruit Roll Ups are a fun, natural way to enjoy a better version of the childhood snack! Only three ingredients are needed to make it.
Can you think of a food that you would eat off the ground?
I know, strange question.
Back in college when my husband ate pizza that had been on the ground I gave him a pretty hard time about it.
“Ewww. How could you do that??? The ground is so dirty! That’s disgusting!”
About a year later we were walking to the library, and I had just bought a strawberry fruit rollup from the candy store. I ripped the package open a little bit too eagerly, and the fruit rollup flew out of the package and started rolling down the sidewalk. I ran after it, plucked it off the ground, ripped off the outer layer, and ate it.
I know. Such a hypocrite. He won’t let me live this one down.
In case you couldn’t tell, I’m a pretty big fan of fruit rollups, and it was a favorite childhood snack. Today’s homemade version is a cross between a fruit rollup and a fruit leather, made with real fruit, and it only requires three ingredients!
Step by Step Overview:
First you want to puree some fresh strawberries in a food processor or blender until smooth:
Pour that mixture into a saucepan and stir in lemon juice, and sugar, if you wish. Added sugar is not required and just depends on personal preference.
Cook this mixture for about 10 minutes until it gets thick and jammy:
Spread the jam out evenly onto a silpat or parchment paper lined baking sheet. If you have an offset spatula, that is the best tool for this:
Let the strip bake/dehydrate for 3 hours in a 170 degree oven, then let it cool.
Cut the rectangle into long strips using a pizza cutter:
Then you can roll each strip up into a fruit rollup!
Aren’t these so fun? I made a Strawberry Fruit Rollups video to provide a little extra guidance when making these homemade fruit snacks:
Recipe Tips and FAQ
Let cool completely, then keep in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 1 week. Or wrap the fruit rolls tightly with plastic wrap.
Yes, though dehydrating time will be different for different kinds of fruit. Strawberry is definitely the best, as other kinds of fresh berries like blackberries can get a bit too seedy. I recommend a blend if you want to mix things up, keeping 50% strawberries.
Yes, you can use frozen strawberries for this recipe, just make sure to thaw them before pureeing.
Just as with any other recipe where you are dehydrating something in the oven, it’s a bit of a guessing game judging when it’s done. You’ll know the rollup is done when it doesn’t feel sticky, just a bit tacky. Don’t bake for too long or the rollup will turn into a crispy chip!
If your oven doesn’t go to 170, you may need to open and close the door to moderate the temperature. 200 degrees seems to be the highest you should go for this recipe.
Did you enjoy the recipe? Please leave a 5-star rating in the recipe card below and/or a review in the comments section further down the page. Or, follow me on Facebook, Instagram or Pinterest!
Homemade Strawberry Fruit Rollups
Ingredients
- 8 oz strawberries (stems trimmed)
- 1 tbsp freshly squeezed lemon juice
- 3 tbsp sugar (optional)
Instructions
- Place the trimmed strawberries in a blender or food processor and puree them for a minute or so until smooth. You don’t want any strawberry chunks in the mixture.
- Transfer the strawberry puree to a saucepan and add the lemon juice and sugar, if using. Turn the heat to medium high, and cook the mixture for about 10 minutes, stirring frequently, until the mixture is thick and jammy. The goal here is to cook out much of the moisture.
- Preheat the oven to 170 degrees F, or as low as your oven will go, making sure it’s less than 200 degrees at the highest.
- Spread the strawberry jam into a rectangle shape onto a baking pan lined with a silpat or parchment paper. You may use an offset spatula or a regular spatula to help spread the mixture as evenly as possible, until the rectangle is about 1/8 inch thick. Keep in mind the fruit leather will lose some of its thickness in the oven as it dehydrates, so make sure that none of the jam is so thin that you can see through it as you spread.
- Cook in the oven for 3-4 hours, until the fruit mixture no longer feels sticky, just a bit tacky. Remove from the oven and let it cool completely. Transfer to a cutting board lined with wax paper, and use a pizza cutter to cut long strips. Roll them up into the fruit rollups, and enjoy!
Nutrition
Nutrition is estimated using a food database and is only intended to be used as a guideline for informational purposes.
Disclosure: this post contains an Amazon affiliate link.
147 Comments on “Strawberry Fruit Roll Ups”
Hi! Can I use raspberrys instead? 🙂
Yes, but you may want to strain out the seeds. Enjoy!
The fruit roll-ups that come in a box now are nothing like they were when I was a kid, they are processed and unhealthy. I do not like buying them, or the gushers, etc.for my own kids, but I LOVE roll ups-fruit leather like we had as kids, so I am very grateful for this recipe, and it’s so easy! Looking forward to trying this with other fruit as well. Thank you!
Hi Kerri, that’s interesting that they used to be quite different. Hope you and your family enjoy these!
I made these today and they have been out of the oven for 3 hours and sticky and wet still. Anyone know how to did this?
Hi Kimberley, you may have spread the mixture thicker, or you may not have cooked out as much moisture during the stovetop cooking. You can still succeed with the recipe by continuing to leave the fruit rollups in the oven until the moisture has cooked out to the point of not being sticky.
Do the seeds ever bother you?
I don’t mind them at all, but you can strain the mixture if you’d like, or try another fruit. Hope that helps!
Made these last night and brought them into work. Needless to say, they were a big hit! Has anyone tried the recipe with different fruit? I’m thinking about trying it with blueberries.
Hi Jakie, I’m so happy to hear that! As far as other fruit goes, you can use quite a few different kinds. One of my other favorites is actually mango!
A nice place
Hi Joanne!
First of, very. Cool recipe! 🙂
Secondly, any idea if I use Splenda if it’ll work the same???
Hi Meg, I’m not experienced with Splenda but I would imagine it would work fine.
I made tge jam and it turned out too runny. Any suggestions for recipes? Strawberry margaritas? Lol
Are you sure you cooked in the saucepan for long enough? It sounds like there is too much liquid in it, and it just needs to be cooked out. Also, I’m confused if you tried drying it in the oven yet. I still think this has potential, but yes, there are other uses for it too!
Hi Joanne, this is a super post since I have red grapes in excessive amounts and I was planning to make grape roll ups without knowing how to. I Your post will be a good guide. Thank you!
Do you have any experience freezing either the rollups or the mixture? I want to make a stockpile while fresh strawberries are cheaper than usual, but I don’t want them to go to waste.
Hi Laura, I have frozen them after dehydrating in the oven and they were still enjoyable (though a little wet after defrosting). If you froze the jam (what you’re left with after cooking in the saucepan) and thawed it out, that would probably work better.
I’m probably asking the a question with the obvious answer… but have you tried to make it with other fruit? I’m specially wondering about Apricots and White Peaches since I have plenty of both on hand right now that are ripe. Just tired of making Apricot Jam and Apricot Pepper Jelly.
Thanks
Hi Lori, I personally haven’t made this with other fruits but I know others have. You may need to adjust cooking times depending on the water content of the fruit you are using, but apricots and peaches would both do well for this kind of recipe.
Question(s): this is the third fruit leather/roll up recipe I’ve looked at and all of you have different temps and different times. One I read recommended 150° for 8 hours while another said 180°ish for 7 hours but you only required 170° for 3 hours…… I guess I don’t have a question so much as a request for help in decision making.
Wow, 7-8 hours?! That’s a really long time! I couldn’t imagine it taking that long. I’ve made these many times it takes around 3 hours (and this is a recipe adapted from a published cookbook, which I imagine they also test many times). Maybe they are spreading theirs thicker? I don’t have an answer for those other recipes.
Fair enough, I got another one for you. My regular oven starts at 200° but my toaster oven goes all the way down to 150°. Do you think the little toaster oven would work alright, or should time be adjusted somewhat since it’s enclosed and baking in a smaller space?
Hm, I would probably try in the toaster oven first since the temperature options are better, though in my experience since the burners in a toaster oven are so close to the tray it might cook the bottom a bit too much. But I think that’s just something you have to try. The heat might be low enough it won’t matter. Good luck!
The reason those recipes require a longer cooking time is because most of them just purée the fruit and plop it on the pan, thus resulting in higher water content and needing more time for it to dry out
i wish the store-bought rollups were made with these ingredients! thanks for sharing.
I so agree with you on that one, Kelsey!
Just wondering about the copyright notice. It’s right below the “pin it” button, so is it safe to pin this recipe without infringement?
Thanks!
Yes it’s fine to pin, thanks for asking! What I’m referring to is when people crop the watermark out of my photos and post them on their sites and say it’s theirs. But sharing is fine =) Thanks!
This is a great recipe! I make fruit leather at home too, but I use honey instead of the sugar and I also dry mine in the dehydrator. Cheers…..
Thank you Monika!
The honey doesnt spoil in the dehydrator? We just recently aquired one and I am still learning how to use it…..however I would much prefer honey over sugar due to honey’s healthy contribution 🙂
Have you tested this recipe substituting a natural sugar alternative of some sort? Agave, stevia? If so, with which did you have the best results? Food chemistry is something I’m keeping in mind for best results when trying to get the same texture while substituting sugar.
Hi Terri, I don’t think the sugar is vital to the texture for this recipe. I reduced the sugar for these significantly compared to most recipes which tend to use 1/2-3/4 cup of sugar! But I think it’d be fine to try agave or stevia. If you try it please share the results here since others may have the same question. Happy baking!
Do you think I could use honey instead of the sugar?
Honey spoils if heated, so I think it is not a good idea 🙁
Hi Lacey, yes Narek is right, I don’t think honey would work well here, sadly. It’s pretty sticky and can get brittle if you cook it.
Thanks for the help!
Agave syrup is actually highly processed and not very healthy . If interested please check : Dr.Axe -agave syrup ( just because you were looking for a healthier alternative)