Mmmmmm, apples

“I've got a load of apples dehydrating, filling the place with that great scent. MacIntoshes and a tart apple I got at a roadside stand last week.

Ate up that first batch on the A-Trail yesterday. Just great!”

“MacIntoshes are one of my favorites. I love Empire apples too. I miss NY State apples.”

“I just tasted some commercially prepared apple chips. No comparison at all. Mine are miles ahead of their, and they apparently fried theirs in fat.

I like a balance between tart and sweet, with a very slight lean toward tart. Apples growing on trees along the trail in Virginia have it just right, but I don't know that they are the same as any commercial variety.”

“I did my first batch 2 weeks ago...I love dehydrating apples...they were great, gonna get lots more and make lots more.”

“put a slight dusting of ground cinnamon on some of them. delicious. especially on macintosh. northern spy are gooood too. gala dehydrate very tasty.

geo, there are a couple of apple trees in the field at hog gap camp and up over tar jacket ridge that have that delicious tart flavor to them. if they only grew a little bigger.”

“Also at Woods Gap right along the AT and Blue Ridge Parkway.

Came through that whole section of AT back in the early 80s, and I was adding food weight because I was picking so many apples. Dang did they ever taste great while backpacking!

Apples growing in abandoned orchards are always good, always small, and always a bit wormy. You can eat around the worm holes, and you can eat as many as you want.”

“I just bought a bunch of gala apples when I went food shopping this morning. This thread has inspired me to go ahead and make chips out of them. Thanks Geo! Good idea with the cinnamon, Baume. I'm going to have to do that. :-)”

“I peeled mine before drying them. Makes them crunchier and better.”

“Also, the recommended time was five hours. I found it took about eight-nine hours to completely dry them.”

“How thick did you slice your apples before drying them? I've only done jerky. Apples sound like they would be good.”

“It varies from very thin to about 1/8 inch, although some are a tad thicker. The thicker part takes longer to dry, and some stay soft in the center regardless. Doesn't affect their taste any, but I prefer them crunchier. Makes a nice snack on the trail or at work.”

“Will give them a try.”

“What I do is peel them with a potatoe peeler, cutting out any brown spots. Then I core them with a corer (you don't need a corer, it just makes it easier).

That cuts them into about six hunks, which I then cut with a knife into three or four slices.

I place the slices on the drying racks. It takes 8-9 hours to dry them completely. I let them cool awhile, then place them into Zip Lock freezer bags, using a straw to suck out the air before sealing them for those I will store awhile.

You can sprinkle cinnamon on them as Baume 66 suggested, or leave them without to your taste. I will do some both ways because I like them both ways.

Apples are easier than jerky, but seem to take longer to dry completely. You can stop them while they are still a little soft (about five hours) if you like them that way or are taking them on the trail and want to cook with them (easier to rehydrate when softer).”

“Cool, will try them soon.”

“Geo I have one of those vacuum sealers, I have to tell you I have saved so much money it has paid for itself 10 times over. Sounds like you might want to put that on your Christmas list!”

“Okay, it's on my Christmas list. Puleeez Santartex.”

“i use one of those apple corer, slicer, peeler things. i don't peel them though. it slices them to about 1/8 inch or so. let them dry till crispy. if you do numerous batches and put them in the same container for storage, the entire container will equalize on moisture content (this is true with anything you dehydrate). so, if you get one batch too dry for your liking, leave the next batch not quite so dry and store them together (same ziploc) and they will equalize.”

“Candy apples! :)”

“Potatoe, Geo? Did you have a European upbringing, or did you go to the Dan Quayle school of spelling?”

“Pour some sugar on me
Ooh, in the name of love
Pour some sugar on me
C'mon fire me up
Pour your sugar on me
Oh, I can't get enough

I'm hot, sticky sweet
From my head to my feet yeah”

“I shudda just writ tater and bin safe!”

“WHAT? Shaken Ramen??”

“No.”

“Mmm fresh sliced apples with warm caramel dip. It's keeping Laurel busy and quiet, lol! I guess I'll have to toss her in the tub to wash the caramel off of her though. Oh well. SHe's happy.”

“Some things are worth the price, treebait.”

“Oh god, she just hugged a cat. LMAO!”

“oh man..

never mind......”

“Stuck to a cat. What a fate!”

“Dang treebait, did you get them unstuck yet? Hot water!”

“Oh yeah no problem. All the fur pulled out of the cat easily enough. ;)

She cleaned up in a jiffy. Now getting sand out of her hair is another story.”

“I'm baking homeade (from scratch) apple cinnemon rolls :)”