Apple Chips

My kids love apple chips! In fact, I have yet to meet a kid that didn’t like my apple chips. It is a great way to use apples. A bucket full of apples will fill up my dehydrator. 

How to make apple chips

the short version :

• clean the apples
• peel and slice apples 
• rinse 
• make them taste delicious: (these are all optional, but might make the difference between stored and devoured, just say’n)
  • Lemon juice (so they don’t turn as brown)
  • Sugar
  • Cinnamon
  • Nutmeg
  • Cloves
• lay them out on dehydrator tray or baking sheet
• dry the heck out of them, in other words, wait
• try not to eat them all at once
• store any extra

More details

Clean apples: I just fill my sink with water and put the apples into it. Then I rub each one really well. I am going to be taking the skin off, so I don’t stress over much. 

Peel and slice apples: I have an “apple peeler-corer-slier” that I bought when I realized that I was going to be doing more than one season of apples. If you have your own tree I highly recommend investing in something like this. Otherwise, just peal them by hand and try to make your cuts as uniform as possible.

Some people like leaving the skins on. My kids won’t eat them that way, but everyone is different. My whole goal is to make something that will get eaten. There is no point in doing all this work if they just sit on the shelf.

Rinse: I like to rinse the cut apples in lemon juice and water. This step is optional if you have really good apples. I sometimes use apples that are windfall, so it’s nice to rinse them off one last time to make sure they are all clean before you add the spices and things.

Make them taste delicious:  As I said, my whole goal is to make something that everyone will love to eat. So I add:

• Lemon Juice- because who wants brown apple chips?
• Sugar- Not a lot, but trust me, it helps. I actually think it gives them a snap. I’m not 100% sure if that is what does it, but I have heard that adding extra sugar to cookies will make them crunchier. I have not done the research yet, but that is my current theory.
• Cinnamon- This is a must in my opinion, but you are entitled to your own opinion.
• Nutmeg- optional
• Ground cloves- optional

I don’t actually measure, I just shake it on, mix it up, and taste it. If it tastes delicious wet, it will taste delicious dry. Really, if you have good apples, you probably won’t need much seasoning, a little goes a long way. I mean that in two ways. As in, you don’t need to add a lot, and also, adding just a little of this and that makes a big difference.

Lay them out: You just need them in a single layer. My apples don’t usually stick to each other (like some other fruits do) so I can pack them in pretty tightly. They will shrink as they dry.

Dry: You can use a dehydrator (mine only has one temp, so I can’t help you on that) or your oven on as low as it will go. This can take 7-12 hours depending on how humid it is. However, unlike fruit leather, you want this to turn into chips, so you can’t really over dry it. If they are in the oven just make sure they are not in danger of burning, but otherwise, don’t stress too much. 

Also, they will be soft when they are warm, so if you are pretty sure they are as dry as they can get but they are still not crisp, try letting them cool and see if they crisp up. You can always dry them some more if you think they need it. 

Try not to eat them all at once: Yeah, that’s pretty self explanatory. Or you can, because, come on, they are apples.

Store them: I like to store them in glass jars. The glass doesn’t affect the taste like plastic sometimes does. I have a vacuum sealer with an attachment for jars. I feel like vacuum sealing keeps them crisp longer. Plus, I love that I can reuse my jars and lids. When I started out, I used to put them in Ziploc bags, but they didn’t keep as well. You could use any air tight container.

If you are not living in the desert, I suggest packaging them as quickly as possible, otherwise they will absorb moisture from the air. They will still be yummy, just not as crisp.

That’s it! They are great for snacks or desserts. I served them with caramel dip at a party and they were a big hit.

Let me know how yours turn out!