Homemade apricot pastille

Content

1 Methods for preparing marshmallow base
2 Drying methods
3 Apricot marshmallow recipes
4 How to store
5 Useful tips

Pastila is a confectionery product obtained by drying crushed berries or fruits. Its important component is honey, which can be replaced with sugar. Apricot dessert has a wonderful taste and bright orange color. Adding nuts helps diversify its taste.

Methods for preparing marshmallow base

To prepare marshmallows, use ripe sweet apricots. The fruits are first washed, dirt and rotten areas are removed. The bones are thrown away.

To soften the fruits, they are subjected to heat treatment, but raw fruits can also be used. Apricots can be processed by boiling them in a saucepan with added water. The fruit pieces are also placed in the oven and baked for 15 minutes.

The fruit pulp is crushed in any convenient way:

manually using a knife;
blender or food processor;
through a meat grinder;
using a sieve.

Drying methods

The marshmallow is considered ready if its top layer loses its stickiness. You can dry apricot puree using one of the following methods:

On the street. In regions with warm climates, it is enough to leave processed apricots in the fresh air. The prepared mass is spread on baking sheets in a thin layer.Under the sun in hot weather, the entire process takes from one day to a week.
In the oven. Drying marshmallows requires a temperature of 60 to 100 degrees. The hardening process of the apricot mixture will take from 3 to 7 hours.
In the dryer. There are special devices designed for drying vegetables and berries. Chopped apricots are placed on special trays provided in the dryer. The dessert will be prepared in 3-7 hours at a temperature of 70 degrees.

The finished product is rolled or cut into square or rectangular pieces. Pastila is served with tea as a dessert.

Apricot marshmallow recipes

To prepare apricot marshmallow, you need to process the fruit into puree. To do this, use a blender, meat grinder or food processor. In addition to apricots, you can add honey or nuts to the prepared mass.

Classic recipe

Using classical technology, preparing an apricot dessert requires a minimum set of ingredients. It is enough to select ripe fruits, prepare a large enamel container, a sieve and a baking sheet.

Traditional method of preparing apricot marshmallow:

Apricots (2 kg) need to be washed and halved. Bones and rotten areas are removed.
Place the fruits in containers and add 4 tbsp. l. Sahara. The mass is mixed and placed on low heat. If the fruits are sweet enough, then you don’t need to use sugar.
The mass is constantly stirred to obtain a homogeneous consistency. Stirring will prevent the puree from burning.
When the pulp is boiled, it is ground through a sieve.
Grease a baking sheet with vegetable oil or place parchment paper on it.
Place apricot puree on top in a 0.5 cm layer.
The baking sheet is kept for 3-4 days in a ventilated area.
On day 4, the dessert is turned over and kept in similar conditions for another day.
The finished marshmallow is rolled up and put in the refrigerator.

With citric acid

Citric acid is a preservative and helps thicken the fruit mass. The process of preparing marshmallows with citric acid includes several stages:

Ripe apricots (1 kg) are pitted and divided into halves.
The fruits are placed in a saucepan and filled with a glass of water.
Place the container with apricots on moderate heat. When boiling begins, turn down the heat and continue cooking for 10 minutes.
When the fruits become soft, they are ground through a sieve.
Add 0.2 kg of sugar to the resulting puree, mix and place on high heat.
When boiling begins, the contents of the container are stirred. Continue cooking the pastille over low heat.
When the mass thickens, add 0.8 kg of sugar, a glass of water and a pinch of citric acid. Then cook over low heat until the water has completely evaporated.
Place the hot puree on a baking sheet or other dish. The mixture is kept in an electric dryer for 3 hours.
Before serving, the marshmallow is cut in a convenient way.

With nuts

Step-by-step process for preparing apricot marshmallow with nuts:

Ripe apricots (2 kg) are pitted and minced twice through a meat grinder.
The puree is transferred to a saucepan and cooked over low heat. It is important not to let the mixture boil.
Add 0.8 kg of granulated sugar to the hot puree. The mass is thoroughly mixed.
Almonds or other nuts to taste (200 g) are chopped with a knife.
Nuts are added to the apricots and mixed thoroughly.
The mass is left to simmer over low heat.
When the volume of apricot puree is reduced by 2 times, it is transferred to pallets. The permissible layer is from 5 to 15 mm.
The baking sheet is placed in the oven or electric dryer.
The finished product is rolled or cut into cubes.

Apricot pastille in the dryer

An electric dryer allows you to preserve the beneficial properties and taste of berries and fruits. Such devices are equipped with trays with sides where the fruit mass is placed. On average, the process of preparing dessert in an electric dryer takes 12 hours.

Apricot marshmallow recipe:

Fresh apricots (1 kg) are pitted. The pulp is ground in a food processor or blender.
Sugar is added to the puree to taste, after which it is mixed well.
The dryer tray is wiped with a cotton pad soaked in vegetable oil.
Place puree into the pan. Its surface is smoothed with a spoon.
The pallet is placed in the dryer, which is closed with a lid.
The device is turned on for 12 hours. You can check the readiness of the product by its consistency. The sheets should be easily separated from the surface of the pallet.

Apricot marshmallow in the oven

A regular oven is suitable for making apricot marshmallow. The dessert will be prepared faster than in the fresh air.

Recipe for apricot pastille in the oven:

Apricots (1 kg) need to be washed well. The pulp is divided in half and the seeds are removed.
Place the apricot halves in a saucepan and add 1 glass of water. Cook the mixture for 10 minutes until the fruits soften.
The pulp is rubbed through a sieve or crushed in a blender.
Cook the resulting mass over low heat, stirring constantly. When its volume decreases by 2 times, the tile is turned off.
Spread paper on a baking sheet and grease it with vegetable oil. Spread apricot puree on top in a layer of up to 2 cm.
Turn the oven on at 60 degrees and place a baking sheet in it.
The apricot mass is dried for 3 hours. It is turned over periodically.
When the surface of the dessert becomes hard, it is removed from the oven and rolled into a roll.

Apricot marshmallow without cooking

To prepare marshmallows, it is not necessary to boil the apricot mass. There is a simple recipe for apricot dessert without cooking:

Ripe apricots need to be washed and pitted.
The fruits are crushed with a mixer to obtain a homogeneous mass.
Add 2 tbsp to the mass. l. fresh honey.
The resulting puree is placed on a baking sheet covered with cling film.
The surface is leveled to form a layer no more than 0.5 cm thick.
Cover the top of the marshmallow with gauze.
The baking sheet is transferred to a sunny place.
When the surface is dry, the dessert is put in the refrigerator.

How to store

The shelf life of apricot marshmallow is limited. It is kept both at room conditions and in the refrigerator. At low temperatures, the dessert can be stored for 3-4 months.

If the apricot mass has not been subjected to heat treatment, the shelf life of the marshmallow is reduced to 30 days. To extend the shelf life of the dessert, it is placed in glass jars and covered with lids.

Useful tips

The following tips will help you get delicious apricot marshmallow:

use ripe apricots; if the fruits are not ripe, the dessert will have a bitter aftertaste;
if apricots are sweet enough, you can reduce the amount of sugar or completely eliminate it;
the thinner the layer of marshmallow, the longer its shelf life;
dry well not only the top, but also the bottom layer of the dessert;
if you grind the apricots through a sieve, the dessert will be more homogeneous, but it will take longer to harden;
In addition to apricots, apples, quinces, pears, raspberries, and plums are added to the marshmallow.

Apricot marshmallow is a delicious and healthy dessert made from fresh fruits and sweetener.The easiest way to prepare marshmallows is to use an oven or dehydrator. The fruit pulp is crushed using a sieve, blender or other devices.