Looking for a healthy snack for hiking and camping? Look no further. Fruit leather, aka fruit roll ups, are the tasty and nutritious snack you’ve been waiting for.

This recipe is lip-smackingly delicious. And with the added flavor of the fresh basil, it’s sure to impress.

Why buy hiking snacks when you can combine in-season fruit with herbs from the garden and prepare an additive-free snack with minimal effort? Fruit leather is more appealing than dry biscuits when you’re working hard, preserves well in all climates, and it provides an optimal nutrition-to-weight ratio for longer treks. Ultralight aficionados, this is perfect for you.

You can make this easily at home, even if you don’t have a dehydrator.

This is the perfect snack to make in early summer when strawberries are in season and abundant.

All you need is a blender, a large punnet of strawberries, a lemon, a large handful of fresh basil, and sugar to taste.

Ingredients:
about 4 cups prepared strawberries
juice of a lemon, to taste
10 or so large leaves of fresh basil
scant 1/2 cup sugar, to taste

Directions:

Blend all the ingredients, then cook them gently to reduce the liquid. Evaporate off about a quarter of the water to save yourself oven time later. This will take about 20 minutes.

Spread your strawberry basil liquid thinly on oven trays, using non-stick paper. It makes a delightful swirl pattern.

Leave in a fan oven at 80º Celsius / 180º Fahrenheit for about a day, or until the fruit leather is no longer sticky.

Cut into strips and you’re ready to go hiking!