Easy Dehydrated Apples

A great method for long-term storage of apples is to dehydrate them.  On the flip side, dried apples are one of our very favorite snacks so they really don’t stick around long enough to store long-term.  I always have to make sure and slice up a TON of apples but with many hands reaching for such a yummy snack, I can’t keep them in my house for more than a couple of days.

That said, these are pretty easy to make.  Here’s how:

• Core and slice apples to 1/4″ thick.  (I never peel them but some people prefer this extra step – if you’d like, go ahead and do that before slicing them.)  You can slice them into rings or slices, whatever floats your boat.
• Throw the slices in a bowl of water with ~1/4 c. lemon juice to help prevent excessive browning.
• If you have a dehydrator: Arrange fruit on the drying trays so that it’s not overlapping.  Dry at 130˚ for 5-6 hours.  Store in an airtight container.  I prefer mason jars.
• If you don’t have a dehydrator: Arrange the apples on a cookie sheet and preheat the oven to 150˚ (or your lowest setting).  Bake the apples for about 7 hours.  Let cool and store.

How do you know when they’re done?

They’ll be leathery, flexible and dry feeling.  If you bake them in the oven at a higher temperature, you’ll get a little more “crispy” apple.

Tips:

Using a mechanical apple peeler makes the hardest part of the chore a breeze.  You can peel, slice and core many apples in a matter of minutes.  You can also choose to not have it peel and just slice and core the apples.

The best apples for dehydrating are Fuji, Gala, Jonathan, McIntosh, Empire, Cortland and Granny Smith.