I have a habit of collecting and storing food each season when it is at it’s peak. This may sound weird but I have a reason for squirreling this food away.

A few years ago my parents got us a dehydrator and I adore it. If you are considering getting one I wrote about how I use ours in this post. The main thing I use our dehydrator for is to preserve my children’s favourite fruit of each season, as well as any excess from our garden – such as summer tomatoes. Once dehydrated I store the fruit or vegetables for later use when it is no longer available, or in season. I like to bulk purchase seasonal fruit when it is at it’s best and most abundant (and cheapest).

Apricots are the reason this recipe came about.

My 6 year old adores dried apricots. I am happy for him to choose them as a snack when I have dried the summer excess in our dehydrator as I know for sure that there are no added sulfates or sprays on the fruit. It is a simple, clean food. One of the main reasons I process and store seasonal fruit I’ve dried in the dehydrator is for use in baking across the year. This stored dried fruit allows me to provide variety to the kids snack options, saves me money, allows me stock my pantry with ready to use ingredients and is known to be of a high quality – spray free or organic.

When my children recently discovered the little apricot delight squares at a party they attended they began asking for them as a lunch box treat. Generally speaking, I hate to buy lunchbox snacks at the store because I have no idea about the quality ingredients that are used to create the product, I assume they are poor quality and cheap. They are also packaged in plastic, transported long distances and stored for long periods of time. I will again generalise and say that these snack foods are likely to be created by someone whose interest is not in providing  my children with the best possible quality food available.

Earlier this week the depths of my pantry revealed a jar of apricots I’d dried last year.  These newly requested apricot delight squares were on my mind so out came the apricots to trial my own version.  As an allergy friendly snack they are nut and dairy free, grain free and naturally sweet. I added a dash of maple syrup because my 6 year old is a sweet tooth (and a picky eater so I wanted to tempt him (and get him to accept my version of apricot delights) but it is not really needed as the fruit is naturally sweet enough. This lunch box snack gives the kids a little treat to keep them energised through the school day and it was agreed to be at least as good as the processed store version they first tried – by one child. My fussy little one has agreed that they are an ok substitute, possibly because he knows that now I have made them myself I am unlikely to purchase them!

Aside from school, this apricot delight slice makes a nice treat to enjoy at the daily 3 pm slump with a cup of tea. I am making this recipe as one of my contributions to the Australia’s Biggest Morning Tea I am organising with some local mums this week to raise funds for the Anti-Cancer Council. It ticks all the allergy-friendly boxes and includes chocolate (dairy free of course!). There is sure to be a clear plate at the end of the event.

If you, or your kids enjoy these type of snack bars and are looking for some new versions to try these are others we enjoy:

Cocao Beetroot Fudge

Raw date and macadamia caramels

Raw Cocao Muesli Balls

Raw Lemon Slice

Pin this recipe to save for next week’s school lunch box baking