Dried Apples

These smelled sooooo good while baking! I have a good dehydrator and have used it many times this summer with fresh strawberries and apples this fall... But I've never made it in the oven.

For a few reasons I tried it in the oven...
1- I wanted to see how long it would take...
2- See if it tasted any different - and
3- Well, I was just curious! ;)

It is easier to do it in the oven because it didn't stick to my stone at all! Now, if you use anything else, or a stone that isn't as seasoned as mine, it may stick a bit more.. I really don't know. You could always use some parchment paper on the pan before putting your apples, or whatever fruit you decide to do...

I tried making some fruit leather with banana's, strawberries and orange juice, I blended it all in my Vitamix. I poured it on my parchment paper on a stone, (the bar pan it's called). I didn't like how it turned out, so will change the temp setting and how long I keep it in before I post it all. Not only is fruit leather healthier for you, it's WAY cheaper! You have the option of putting sugar, if ANY in it! I chose not to put any in, you don't need any! The fruit is soo good by itself, and if it a bit tart, just add some banana's or something that would mellow it all out!

Ok, not that I have kinda gone away from the dried apples... ;)


Dried Apples

2 Apples of your choice (I used Macintosh, GREAT flavor! I think Honey Crisp and Granny Smith would be awesome as well!)
Lemon juice, only if you want your apples to not turn a brown color right away... ;)

Grate your apples and spread them on a cookie sheet.
Place them in a 280d oven until dried and slightly crispy.
Take off pan if you have any left by the time they are done! ;)
And store in an airtight container or baggies, and ENJOY!! I am telling you, they won't last long at all! I recommend making more than one batch at a time!!! :D SUPER easy and SUPER healthy! You can do thin slices if you want! ;)
(Hopefully this makes sense and if it doesn't, call, e-mail or leave a comment and will talk you through it! But really, it's soooo easy!!! I think I baked mine for about 5 hours? not 100% sure on that one though! :\)



Peel, core and I cut mine in half, your apples


Grate your apples onto a pan


Here they are... They turned kinda brown, but it's ok! Thin it out as best as you can! You could put them in a bowl and sprinkle lemon juice over the top and stir a bit before placing on a pan to help prevent them from browning...


Tried to take a pic of how thick it is... ;)


Here they are, all nice and brown and PERFECT!!!!!! :D


I seriously ate half the pan before they were even done! The kiddos really didn't get much! But, I got some more apples and will make some more for them! I can see these going REALLY fast!!!!

Mandy's Crunchy/Clumpy Granola

So I was looking at a few different recipes for granola and didn't find one that actually really clumps together. I LOVE and I mean L-O-V-E to snack on granola! There are days where I don't get to eat lunch, but I will either grab a homemade granola bar or a few handfuls of granola... ok, sometimes both.... But it really gives me that energy that I need to get through the day when I don't have the time to sit and eat lunch.

Sure, I feed my kids, I make them sit down and eat, and I know, I should practice the same thing, but I'm tellin' ya... There just are days when I can not do that!

So after looking at a few recipes and remembering the one that I make ALLLL the time, which is tried and true... It's really good, but it just doesn't make those clumps that I like. So... I experimented and gave some of it away and they told me it was good. Along with my kids, but my kids don't count, they eat anything and like pretty much anything! ;)

You will need a glass Pyrex measuring cup for this, or something that is clear and you can heat in the microwave.

It's how I did my measuring, I know, maybe not the best method, but it worked! :)

3 cups oats, quick cooking is what I used b/c I only have about 50 pounds of it! ;)


Take your clear Pyrex measuring cup and put it any combo of things you want in your granola. I used un-sweetened coconut, a mixture of dried cherries, craisins and diced up dried apples, then to top it off, peanuts, not chopped. Put it in to measure 2 cups, you can use ANY combo of items you want! You could nix the coconut, or just use 1 cup dried fruit and 1 cup peanuts.. whatever you wish, you use! :)


Dump into the bowl with the oats and stir to combine


I then grabbed my 100% PURE Maple syrup.... Dump in about 1/2 a cup in your clear Pyrex measuring cup that you just used...


And then grab your brown sugar. You could use regular, but then it wouldn't be as "healthy"! So I tried using my organic light brown sugar...


I dumped in 2 heaping tablespoons of that stuff... Ya know, grab your soup spoon and use that to measure! ;)


next grab some vanilla... I didn't measure but it was right about 1 to 1 1/2 teaspoons of vanilla. (this is the GOOD stuff from Mexico, yummy!!!!)


Ok, by now this is where your measurements should be at. You see it's right under the 1 cup line....


Next I grabbed my coconut oil and filled it to make it to the 1 cup line. So I put in right about 1/4 cup.... Stir it up using a small whisk and pop that whole Pyrex in the the microwave for a minute, just enough to heat it up and get that sugar dissolved. If it still isn't dissolved, put it in the microwave for 30 seconds, stir, and that should do the trick. But you should be fine after 1 minute! ;)


Dump the liquids over the top of your oats mixture...


Stir to combine....


Place the granola onto a foil covered cookie sheet.


Cover your cookie sheet, but press down the edges, and place in the oven at 250 degrees. Bake for an hour with it covered, then take off the foil and cook for another 15 minutes. Let it cool, then break the pieces apart...

It's sooo easy and sooooooooooooooo good! I just had a bowl of it for my breakfast, so tasty!!! And healthy! ;)

I forgot to take a pic of my "after", so will be making it again and will take a picture! ;)

Enjoy and let me know what you think!! :D