Spiced Apple Chips

This past weekend I went apple picking for the first time ever! My husband planned a little day trip for us to Ellijay, the apple capital of Georgia. The orchard of choice was B.J. Reece, mainly due the fact that they had a petting zoo I could go in. Truth be told, my favorite part of the day was giving belly scratches to the pigs (it was probably the best part of their day too). I love animals & it was so sweet of him to put it all together for me. We had a some cold apple cider and we bought some apple cider donuts. I have a recipe for those from last year that you can find HERE. 

The types of apples we picked were Rome Beauty, Granny Smith, Golden Delicious, Mutsu, Crimson Crisps, and Fuji. The first thing I made with my newly picked apples was Mt. Dew apple dumplings. I followed Pioneer Woman's recipe & used Granny Smith apples. The next thing I made were these apple chips. A lot of apple chip recipes call for just cinnamon, but I think there are several other spices that really compliment apples. I've got nutmeg, cardamom, allspice, and cloves along with the cinnamon. You can literally use any type of apple you've got on hand.

I really love these chips because they're chips. Duh. Anything crispy & crunchy is a great snack for me, but these are actually healthy! (Paleo & technically Whole30 compliant.) I feel like these fix my fix without added sugars or weird preservatives, and they're not lacking on flavor. Technically they are just dehydrated apple slices, but the average person doesn't own a dehydrator so this is how you can easily do these at home with a little bit of time and patience. 

INGREDIENTS

4 apples
1 tsp apple pie spice
1/4 tsp cloves
1/8 tsp allspice 


INSTRUCTIONS

1) Preheat the oven to 230 degrees Fahrenheit. 

2) Pick apples that are free of bruises & make sure they are washed well. It is also important to pick apple that will fit on your mandolin slicer. Check the width of the apples against the width of the blade.

3) Use an apple corer to remover the core. At this point you could also peel off the skin if so desired, but I prefer the texture it adds.

4) Using a mandolin or an incredibly sharp kinfe, slice the apples into super thin rings, about an eight of an inch thick. 

5) Spread the apple rings out on baking sheets that are lined with parchment paper or silpat mats.

6) Mix together the seasoning blend and evenly sprinkle it over all the slices. 

***If you can't find apple pie spice at the store, make your own blend. I use this RECIPE from allrecipes. 

4 tsp ground cinnamon 
2 tsp ground nutmeg
1 tsp ground cardamom 

7) Use clean hands to rub the spices in on both sides of the apple slices. Then arrange each slice on the baking sheet so that none are touching or overlapping.

8) Place baking sheets in the oven and cook for 1 hour. 

9) At the one hour mark turn down the oven temp to 200 degrees. 

10) This step is optional, but I like to flip each slice over and sprinkle a bit more cinnamon over all of them. 

11) Cook for another hour, but begin checking after 30 minutes. Some of the smaller pieces will be done quicker while some of the larger pieces might take a little longer than an hour. The chips should not feel flimsy or rubbery. They should be firm & crisp to the touch. 

12) Let the chips cool to room temperature before eating. They are best served on the same day, but will last for 2-3 days when kept sealed tight in a ziploc bag.