Dried apple slices

Ready to dry

Peeled and cored

Cored

Fresh from the tree

Got an orchard or a glut of apples that you don't want to go to waste? Whilst there are many ways to preserve fruit, drying works well with apples and makes a nice healthy snack or diced as a sprinkle for breakfast cereals. This recipe is ideal if you have access to an Aga or a dehydrator.

Many thanks to Debbie Haddow for inspiring, testing and then photographing this recipe!

Ingredients

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• 4 kg ripe fresh apples. Discard any bruised, damaged over-ripe or mushy apples.

Method

1. Remove any labels if they are shop-bought apples.
2. Wash them in clean, fresh cold water and pat dry with a towel.
3. They can be dried with or without the peel, it's your choice - though why not make half and half?
4. Cut out any damaged parts.
5. Peel them if required.
6. Core them and cut into slices or rings, about 5 mm thick (¼”)
7. If you have a dehydrator follow the manufacturers instructions from here on.
8. If you wish to prevent discolouration (browning), then follow the step in preventing discolouration, below.
9. Preheat the oven to its lowest setting - use the slow oven if you have an Aga.
10. Arrange on mesh racks so they are not touching each other and leave for 24 hours to dry
11. You can use trays but you will need to flip the apples half-way through to dry both sides properly
12. The finished product should at least be as dry as a sultana to touch, though you can dry to a crisp if required
13. Allow to cool at room temperature and bag up in zip-lock poly bags, squeezing out any excess air
14. They will keep for months like this or even longer if frozen

Preventing discolouration

There are various way to prevent discolouration:

Ascorbic acid

Dissolve one tablespoon of crystalline ascorbic acid in one litre of cold water. Soak the sliced apples for a few minutes, remove with a slotted spoon, drain and then dehydrate.

Vitamin C

Using two tablespoons front to back or a rolling pin on a board, crush normal vitamin C tablets so you have 1 tablespoon of vitamin C powder. Dissolve in one litre of cold water. Soak the sliced apples for five minutes, remove with a slotted spoon, drain and then dehydrate.

Lemon juice

Mix one cup of lemon juice with 1 litre of cold water. Soak the sliced apples for five minutes, remove with a slotted spoon, drain and then dehydrate.

Variations

For a warm, spicy apple, sprinkle with a little cinnamon powder before drying

Chef's tip

Rehydrate with cider vinegar or apple juice to suite your recipe.

Try cooking a chicken or turkey on a bed of dried apple slices that have been rehydrated with apple juice.

For a nice snack, roll dried apple slices around pieces of ricotta cheese and diagonally skewer with a cocktail stick.

See also

• Freezing apples

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