Our life living off the land in our log cabin, breathing fresh mountain air, and getting back to basics.

Thursday, September 5, 2013

Dried Apples...Easy & A Great Snack

We've had access to lots of apples picked fresh off a friend's trees.  We've eaten some fresh...they are crispy crunchy tart-n-sweet goodness...and shared some with friends. 


Johny made cobbler not too long ago...it was from a box so I'm not sharing the recipe but it was made with love...here's evidence of his efforts...
...it was so good we dug into it before I thought about taking a picture!

I made dried apples...they are a favorite snack of ours and last a very long time (can't say for sure how long, but we've not had any spoil on us and we still have some from last year).

They are easy to make, especially if you have a food dehydrator (you can use your oven set at 150 degrees for 10 - 12 hours, place the apples slices on a rack so the heat can circulate around each slice).  You start with a bunch of washed apples...
 ...peel and core them...
 ...then slice (cutting out any bad spots) and put in a little bit of lemon juice to keep them from turning brown. Them place them on the drying rack and turn the machine on.  I had 3 full trays that dehydrated for about 20 hours, rotating the trays every few hours.  They are ready when they are the consistency something like the feel of a raisin, though you can make them crisper if you like...no moisture should remain in the slices for them to last.
The end result is rings of apple that are a little crisp on the edges and chewy on the inside.
We take them on hikes or have a slice or two with breakfast or lunch.  Tasty, healthy munchies!

I tried dehydrating:
~bananas...they turned out so crispy I'm afraid they'll break my teeth
~green beans...they were excellent but only when they were fresh out of the dryer but then became leathery
~summer squash...also excellent right out of the dryer but then became rubbery

I haven't given up on dehydrating things, but apples seem to fare best.  Have you ever tried dehydrating fruit or vegetables?  Do you have a favorite?

Thanks for reading my blog, you are the best f/f/r/s/f's, see you tomorrow,
Lise

3 comments:

Osage Bluff Quilter said...

You gotta love a man who can made desserts!

Don't forget walendorf salad, miracle whip, diced apples , celery and some nuts. Walnuts are best but tonight when I made it we only pecans.

Dad/Pepere said...

No dehydration experience here. The apples do sound/look delicious. Another Thanksgiving treat? Hugs!

Lise said...

True Patti! Great salad reminder, Johny's out picking apples as I write! It made me laugh when I remembered you saying you use miracle whip and I use mayo...you said "I've never used mayo!". LOL!

The apples are delicious, I'll bring some! Hugs back:)