VALENTINE GIFT: Pink Or Red Food Dehydrator
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A growing number of people are switching to good-for-you snacks. If they like to make their own, an unusual and generous Valentine gift is a food dehydrator from Excalibur, in red or pink.
According to the USDA’s Agricultural Research Service, Americans consume a third of their daily calories from snacks. Many pre-packaged bars, cookies, dried fruit and jerky are high in salt, sugar, preservatives and additives. Dehydrating your own food allows you to swap out those questionable ingredients for healthy, nutrition-dense alternatives that allow the true flavors of natural foods to shine through. Think dehydrated fruits and vegetables, or meats and fish jerky. You can also dry herbs and flowers (to decorate cakes or make your own potpourri and sachets) and make granola. It’s easy to get hooked on dehydrating. |
Instead of roses: a bright red food dehydrator. Photo courtesy Excalibur. |
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WHO’S DEHYDRATING FOOD? Man has been dehydrating for thousands of years, initially to preserve meat and other foods in the millennia prior to refrigeration. Today, our most commonly enjoyed dehydrated foods include jerky and bottled herbs. Many “practitioners” dehydrate summer crops—berries, peaches, tomatoes—for enjoyment through the winter. Dehydration is used everywhere from hunters’ cabins to Michelin-star kitchens. Grant Achatz, Ferran Adrià, Dan Barber, Matthew Lightner, Sam Mason, Sarma Melngailis, Iliana Regan, Rich Torrisi and Ming Tsai dehydrate ingredients to intensify and concentrate flavors, decrease marinating time, thicken sauces and soften saturated fats like coconut oil or cacao butter. |
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 Radiant Raspberry is another option, along with Antique Copper, Copper, Radiant Blueberry, Radiant Cherry and Twilight Black. Photo courtesy Excalibur. |
THE EXCALIBUR DEHYDRATOR Compact enough to fit on your kitchen counter, the Excalibur Dehydrator has a patented airflow drying system to optimize speed in drying, among other features. It is up to 10 times faster than common round dehydrators, and available in a variety of color finishes and sizes, including commercial and non-commercial grade units. You pay for quality, of course. Excalibur machines are top of the line, and these are $349 at ExcaliburDehydrator.com. But if you enjoy kale chips, carrot chips, apple chips and the like, it will pay for itself in less than a year. Instead of baking cookies, bring your hosts your homemade snacks. |
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While even pricier than those pricey red or pink roses, it will be a permanent change in better-for-you food preparation. You can package the dehydrator with a book:
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