Pamela Ellgen - The Ultimate Healthy Dehydrator Cookbook: 150 Recipes to Make and Cook with Dehydrated Foods

Copyright 2016 by Pamela Ellgen

No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, scanning, or otherwise, except as permitted under Section 107 or 108 of the 1976 United States Copyright Act, without the prior written permission of the publisher. Requests to the publisher for permission should be addressed to the Permissions Department, Sonoma Press, 918 Parker St., Suite A-12, Berkeley, CA, 94710.

Limit of Liability/Disclaimer of Warranty: The publisher and the author make no representations or warranties with respect to the accuracy or completeness of the contents of this work and specifically disclaim all warranties, including without limitation warranties of fitness for a particular purpose. No warranty may be created or extended by sales or promotional materials. The advice and strategies contained herein may not be suitable for every situation. This work is sold with the understanding that the publisher is not engaged in rendering medical, legal, or other professional advice or services. If professional assistance is required, the services of a competent professional person should be sought. Neither the publisher nor the author shall be liable for damages arising herefrom. The fact that an individual, organization, or website is referred to in this work as a citation and/or potential source of further information does not mean that the author or the publisher endorses the information the individual, organization, or website may provide or recommendations they/it may make. Further, readers should be aware that Internet websites listed in this work may have changed or disappeared between when this work was written and when it is read.

For general information on our other products and services or to obtain technical support, please contact our Customer Care Department within the United States at (866) 744-2665, or outside the United States at (510) 253-0500.

Sonoma Press publishes its books in a variety of electronic and print formats. Some content that appears in print may not be available in electronic books, and vice versa.

TRADEMARKS: Sonoma Press and the Sonoma Press logo are trademarks or registered trademarks of Arcas Publishing, a Callisto Media Inc. company and/or its affiliates, in the United States and other countries, and may not be used without written permission. All other trademarks are the property of their respective owners. Sonoma Press is not associated with any product or vendor mentioned in this book. Photography 2016 Front cover: Stocksy/Ina Peters (top); StockFood/PhotoCuisine/Thys/Supperdelux (bottom). Interior: Stocksy/Ina Peters, 2015 Rich Ellgen.

Illustrations 2016 Tom Bingham

ISBN: Print 978-1-943-45132-6 | eBook 978-1-943-45133-3

Quick Start Guide

Whether you have several pounds of fresh produce glistening on your kitchen counter or an epic backpacking trip to prepare for, chances are you picked up this book so you could get started dehydrating right away. I share your enthusiasm!

Turn to for the TOP EIGHT REASONS I love dehydratingfrom saving money and reducing food waste to eating locally and concentrating natural flavors.

Next, flip to to learn about DEHYDRATION METHODS and which one is best suited to your situation.

Turn to for all the TOOLS AND EQUIPMENT you need to dehydrate safely and efficiently.

For basic recipes for dehydrating FRUIT , VEGETABLES , NUTS , and HERBS , turn to part 2, which begins ) offers slightly more intricate recipes for FRUIT LEATHERS , JERKY , SNACKS , RAW VEGAN FOODS , and even COMPLETE MEALS you can make in your dehydrator.

So what do you do with all this tasty food youve prepared? Thats the subject of part 4 (), which has more than 60 RECIPES UTILIZING DEHYDRATED FOODS .

To Brad and Cole, my favorite people to prepare snacks for and my ultimate inspiration to eat healthfully.

Introduction

There are few things that make us feel so positively domestic as putting food in store. I feel Im putting down roots, laying down a part of the foundation for living.

Nigella Lawson

s there anything quite as satisfying as making edibles from scratch? It provides a sense of empowerment. Some of my absolute favorite do-it-yourself food projects emerge from my dehydrator. From homemade banana chips and fruit leathers to grass-fed beef jerky and gourmet herb blends, the seemingly endless range of items fulfills my desire to createwith an undeniably delicious side benefit of having healthy foods that feed both my creative soul and my family.

I purchased my first dehydrator as an adult while exploring the raw foods. But my real start with dehydrating foods came as a young child. My mom owned a large box dehydrator that she placed in the laundry room on top of the clothes dryer. It hummed along all day and night filled with the abundance from our garden and fruit treesapples, pears, apricots, and blackberry leathers were my favorites. She also made banana chips that were sweet and chewyunlike any I found in the market after I left home. An insatiable desire to make these wonderful dried foods remained with me until I plugged in my first dehydrator.

Dehydrating is a cinch to master. Most recipes require fewer than five ingredients, sometimes only one, and less than five minutes of preparation. Simply prepare the food, put it into the dehydrator, oven, or under the sun, and wait. Okay, the waiting isnt always easy. I may or may not have a slight problem with reaching in before the food has finished drying to sneak a bite! I still adore raw foods, but since have expanded my dehydrating repertoire to preparing healthy desserts, preserving fresh fruits and vegetables from my local farmers market, and making healthy snacks for my two boys.

Im not the first one to think drying foods is totally brilliantdehydrating is one of the oldest known food-preservation techniques. Archaeological records indicate that humans have been drying foods for thousands of years, and sun drying was the obvious choice. Early cultures even without consistent sunlight built their own dehydrators to dry everything from fish and meat to fruit and hops. Many of the foods we cook with and enjoy today are prepared according to those early methods, such as raisins, beans, jerky, and seaweed.

If early humans can do it, so can youand you dont even have to invest in a dehydrator if you dont want to. Outdoor drying presents an economical and environmentally friendly option, especially if you live in a dry climate with plentiful sunshine. The flavor of sun-dried foods may be even better than what you can produce in your home dehydrator. Alternatively, your kitchen oven, especially if its a convection oven, can be used to dry foods. This book offers suggestions for all these methods.