Homemade “apple chips”
Homemade “apple chips”– make (organic) dried fruit in your own oven for a fraction of the price!
My kids LOVE dried fruit– and so do I! But I do NOT love the cost of buying dried fruit– nor do I like the added chemicals/additives that they tend to use to preserve the dried fruit, so I decided to make my own– and it was SO easy (why didn’t I think of this before?!) Oh, and since conventional apples contain as many as 50 pesticides, I used organic apples.
Ingredients:
-Apples (Gala apples work well!); washed well, cored (I use a corer) and sliced into ‘rings’– it’s important to cut the apple into even slices so they dry/cook at the same rate– using a mandoline instead of a knife works extremely well!
-Optional: Cinnamon, to taste
Tools:
Apple Corer: Find the one I have and use HERE or here: http://amzn.to/qEUDlK
Mandoline: Find the one I have and use HERE or here: http://t.co/GMi9n9h
Silpat: Find one that fits your sheet pan HERE or here: http://amzn.to/rgmbZJ
Directions:
Preheat oven to 200*, wash and dry the unpeeled (whole) apples. Remove core using a corer– and then slice the apple into even rings using a mandoline (thin slices will cook faster and end up crispier– thicker slices will take longer to cook and be chewier/softer) Place apples (make sure not to crowd them!) onto a cookie or baking sheet lined with a Silpat (or similar)– if you prefer, you can use an unlined sheet but the apples might stick. Cooking time will depend on how thick/thin you slice the apples and how crispy/chewy you would like the finished product– start checking the apples after 45 minutes to determine how they are progressing.
Once done to your desired doneness, allow to cool and serve– or store in an airtight container (not sure how long they store as they are devoured here within minutes!) Enjoy!
This same process should work with almost ALL fruits– bananas, berries, etc!
