Healthy Snack Ideas: Simple Apple Chips Recipe

September, for me, is apple time. In Texas, there isn’t much to distinguish September from August, except perhaps a bit more rain and a temperature drop of about 5 degrees. But dropping from 103 to 98 degrees hardly feels like fall weather, which is why I feel a bit silly doing fall leaf crafts and decorating my house with pumpkins in September.

Thankfully, there are apples. Apples are the perfect transition from summer to fall. My girls love apples, and usually, when I buy five pounds of apples, they are gone in about two days. Josh sometimes purchases apple chips from the store for a healthier snack, but at around $3 for a mini-bag, that isn’t really something I want to buy on a regular basis.

So, why not try to make our own? The process of making apple chips is rather simple, and they make an easy, delicious, and healthy snack! Basically, making apple chips involves dehydrating the apples and allowing them to cook at a low temperature until they crisp up. Here is how we made our apple chips recipe:

Homemade Apple Chips Recipe

 Ingredients:

•  Apples (1 apple makes about one cookie sheet full)
  Cinnamon
  Aluminum foil
  Baking sheet
  Apple corer (optional, find one here)
  Mandolin cutter (optional, find one here)
  Sugar (optional)

Steps:

Line your baking sheet with foil to keep the apples from sticking to the sheet. If you don’t want any core pieces in your apple chips, use an apple corer to remove the center. Thicker apple slices have trouble getting crispy in the oven.

Line the apples in a single layer on the baking sheet. Sprinkle them with cinnamon, or cinnamon and sugar.

Here Monkey is sprinkling on the cinnamon.

Put the apples in the oven at 200 degrees. The cooking time will vary based on how thick your apples are. In general, the apples will need to cook for at least 3 hours. You may need to leave them in there for up to 5 hours. Flip the apples over about half-way through the cooking time. We left our knife-sliced, slightly thick apples cook for 4 hours and they came out great.

When the apples are dried and wavy, turn off the oven and allow the apples to cool in the oven for 1 to 2 hours. This will give them a crispier texture.

The process of making apple chips is an all-day process, but it is well worth the effort when you have a delicious, healthy snack!

Apple Chips Recipe Variations: 

Try using different spices on the apples, like clove, nutmeg, or chili powder for an interesting kick. Drizzling the apples with chocolate, caramel, or honey before baking will also give them a slightly different flavor. Experiment and find your favorite combo!

 Bringing the Apple Chips Recipe to School

I like to make each experience cooking with Monkey as educational as possible. When we were making this apple chips recipe, I had her guess at what we needed to do to get them to turn out right. At first, she said cook them at a high temperature for a short time (I guess she thought it would work like toast), so then we talked about how dehydration works. I also had her guess whether the apples should be cut thin or thick. It wasn’t an incredibly involved lesson, but any excuse to put critical thinking skills to work is an opportunity I’m going to take!

Do you like our apple chips recipe? What is your favorite way to prepare apples?

More Apple Fun