For those of us who love the crunch and texture of a good chip, this is a tangy and sweet variation, with a lot less oil and salt (none, actually). And a bonus - it makes a great treat or snack, with lots of vitamins. Unfortunately, I plow through them pretty quickly - I can eat a bowl in one sitting (the equivalent of large bag of potato chips!)
This takes prep and drying time - upwards of 15 hours of drying time if you use a dehydrator. I haven't used the oven technique (baking at a low temperature for several hours), and I don't add anything to the apples (although you could add add lemon juice or cinnamon).
I just peal (sometimes - they're ok with the skin left on - up to you), cut and pack them in my dehydrator (I use this one
). If you don't have a dehydrator, you can place the fruit slices in the oven for several hours, or overnight. The chips needs to be sitting for at least several hours at a low temperature. In any case, when you first take them out, they will not be crunchy - they need to cool for about 5 minutes or so.
The only questionable part of this recipe is it may be running up my electrical bill when I use it a lot. And I keep mine in the garage because it's a bit noisy and does heat up the surrounding space to some degree. But think of all the things you can make in a dehydrator: jerky, dried herbs, fruit, yogurt, chips, and so on. I guess you could dry clothing and other stuff in it also. No smelly socks though!
Michelle says
I know this is an old post that I just found, but how thick do you cut your slices for the dehydrator? I haven't been able to get it right yet.
Thanks
Erica says
Hi. Yes, I haven't done this in over a year, but I do slice them pretty thin. I'd say not paper thin, but about 1. 5 mm for a thin, crisp chip. I use a pairing knife, and I don't get them all exactly the same. You can slice it thicker, but it will take longer to dry. A mandolin will help, but I don't have one. If you do, lucky you! Use a 1.5 mm to 2 mm setting.
Michelle says
So sorry for the typo.....that should be...do you core them?
Erica says
Yes, I cut around the core 🙂
Michelle says
Do you ore them!
EricaKerwien says
I'm blushing. Thanks. It is just too bad that they go so fast (because they take so long to make).
Michelle says
We haven't done this in years, but your photo is so gorgeous it makes me want to try it again.
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