Oh-So-Easy Apple Chips
Is meal planning a struggle? I'm so excited to announce... The CHK Seasonal Meal Planner is now available!!! Plan your meals with purpose and intention as you think through special days, holidays, and what each season uniquely offers. It will guide you, step-by-step, through planning each month allowing you to save time and money. It’s no secret that apples are one of my favorite fruits. I shared a whole list of delicious and fun apples recipes yesterday highlighting this perfect in-season fall fruit. What I also love about apples is they can also be a wonderful snack too!
When I snack I like something that is light and crunchy, which often leads me to make some compromising choices of chips or crackers. While those are tasty in moderation, I usually find that the salt makes me then crave something sweet to top it off. Are you seeing the downward spiral that is happening during my snack attack?
One bad choice often leads to another.
I have since created a list of some healthy snack options I keep stocked in our pantry and refrigerator to go to when the urge to snack does emerge. But I also love eating festive treats during the season as well. Most of my favorite fall treats though are a little less than healthy, tasty but not necessarily figure friendly which makes them not so great to eat for frequent snacking.
During my first Whole 30 back in January, I discovered apple chips for the first time and I fell in love.
Crunchy, sweet, light, sweet, savory… apple chips pretty much hit the bill on all my favorite snack categories. As I quickly devoured the bag I purchased at the store, I started to think I could probably make apple chips for a fraction of the price I was paying for them.
And you know what? I was right!
With only two ingredients and a little bit of prep work, apple chips are incredibly easy (and super frugal too!) to make. The take only a few minutes of prep work before slowly cooking in the oven and store really well in an air tight container… if they last that long!
Oh-So-Easy (& Yummy Too!) Apple Chips
Ingredients and Supplies Needed
2-3 apples of any variety (I used Gala but this time of year, you can get just about any variety and flavor in the store or from your nearby apple orchard for super cheap)
Sprinkle of Cinnamon (Some people also like to use a little sugar too but I think the apples are plenty sweet without. Plus if you go without, this is a wonderful Paleo and Whole 30 snack!)
2 Large Baking Sheets
Mandoline Slicer
Step One
Pre-heat the oven to 225 degrees Fahrenheit. Wash the apple under water and remove the stem. You can core the apple if you wish, but I love that star pattern the core makes when being thinly sliced.
Step Two
Using a mandolin or a food processor, thinly slice your apples. I had to cut my apples in half to fit inside the chute but you can leave the apples whole as well. If you don’t have a mandolin or food processor you can cut the apples yourself into thin slices but it’s going to take a lot of work to get them as thin as possible.
Step Three
Lay parchment paper over the baking sheets (this will help keep the apples from sticking) and arrange the apples into single rows making sure they don’t overlap.
Sprinkle the tops of the apples with a little cinnamon but do be careful because as you can see from my photo, the cinnamon came out a little too quickly! You could also mix the cinnamon up with the apples before placing on the baking sheet to make sure the cinnamon is evenly distributed.
Step Four
Place the baking sheets in the heated oven and cook for one hour. Remove and gently flip the apple slices but do be careful because the apples will be very delicate (I ended up ripping a few). Place back in the oven rotating which pans you place on the top and bottom. Bake for another 30 minutes.
Step Five
Remove from the oven and let cool for a few minutes before placing them in an airtight container. They will keep for up to a week if stored tightly, but I can tell you from personal experience… they won’t last that long!
- 2-3 apples
- 1 Tbsp cinnamon
- Pre-heat the over to 225 degrees Fahrenheit.
- Wash the apple under water and remove the stem.
- Using a mandolin, a food processor or a knife thinly slice the apples.
- Lay parchment paper over the baking sheets and arrange the apples into single rows.
- Sprinkle the tops of the apples with a cinnamon,
- Place the baking sheets in the heated oven and cook for one hour. Remove and gently flip the apple slices Place back in the oven rotating which pans you place on the top and bottom. Bake for another 30 minutes.
- Remove from the oven and let cool for a few minutes before placing them in an airtight container. They will keep for up to a week if stored tightly.
What is your favorite snack or treat to make with apples?
This post is part of the 31 Days of Savoring Fall Series. Click here to see all the posts in the series.
Yummm! I made apple chips in my dehydrator over the summer & they were delish! I’ll definitely need to try them with cinnamon next time. I bet your house smelled amazing!!
It did! 🙂 I was still smelling the cinnamon for hours 🙂
I know exactly what you mean about salty snacks leading to sugar cravings. I can hardly eat popcorn without wanting chocolate. I love apple chips, as well. I use my dehydrator to make them and they last a really, really long time. Not only are they wonderful for snacking on, but they are also perfect in oatmeal, cookies, granola bars, etc. I use them a lot during the winter when apples are more expensive.
I hear ya! I’ve been wanting to look into dehydrators, I would be able to make so many fun snacks for the kids!