Perfectly Thin Fruit Is Key for Cinnamon-Apple Chips


Product Reviewed
Rösle Adjustable Vegetable Slicer with Grip


Let’s talk fall. Specifically, an East Coast fall. The crispness in the air, the smell, the orange, yellow and red trees. We might have “better” weather out West, but we most certainly do not have fall. Which is why, every year, I plead with my husband to agree to go to Apple Hill, an orchard located about an hour east of Sacramento, to pick apples, pretend the leaves are changing color, sip cider, and forget that it’s October and 82 degrees.

I also stock up on enough apples to make the classics: apple pie, apple cider, apples-and-peanut-butter, and — my favorite treat — cinnamon apple chips.

I’d like to introduce you to one of my favorite kitchen gadgets, the under-appreciated but very much loved, vegetable slicer. Essential in making scalloped sweet potatoes, homemade potato chips, thick tomatoes slices, and, of course apple chips.

The Rösle Adjustable Vegetable Slicer with Grip is a fantastic product that slices vegetables and fruits into perfectly thin slices. If you’re looking to up your vegetable intake, a slicer makes it so, so easy. It’s especially useful for those who are working on knife skills, have trouble using a sharp knife, or want faster prep time. While I love my food processor, I don’t always want all the fuss of dragging it out just to slice a few vegetables. Instead, I grab my slicer. I put this one to the test to make chips from fresh Apple Hill varieties.

I’ve owned a few mandolins over the years, but this was by far the most comfortable. The extremely sharp blade made slicing through the hard apples, core and all, easy as slicing through butter.

The vegetable grip is essential to protecting your fingers as you get down to the last bits of fruit. I confess, though, I usually use my hands to slice on a mandolin, but I took no chances with this one. The sharp blade made cutting extremely fast, too quick for me to switch over from my fingers to the grip. The grip is what makes this slicer topnotch. It covers the entire surface so you can stay in contact with the blade and food the entire time. I get very frustrated when I have to constantly readjust my grip to finish slicing the food.

The only negative I found with this variety is the lack of a stand. I love when slicers have an adjustable stand on the back to help prop it up against a cutting board. Instead, I placed the slicer over a bowl and sliced the apples directly over. Alternatively, you could hold one end of the slicer at an angle, but I’m not always so coordinated! However, this was much, much smaller than my full size mandolin so if you’re looking for something that takes up little space, this is it!

Lastly, I know that this slicer costs a bit more than some other brands on the market; in my opinion, it’s worth it. If you see yourself using a slicer on a regular basis, you want something of quality. Personally, I have thrown away quite a few cheap slicers over the years because they slipped or became dull. This is a lesson I’ve learned throughout my journeys in the kitchen: sometimes higher-quality/higher-price items are worth it in the long run.

Now, let’s make some Cinnamon Apple Chips! Fresh apples with just a bit of cinnamon-sugar… you’ll be making this one over and over again.


 

Cinnamon Apple Chips

Ingredients
3 apples, cored and sliced this using a mandoline or sharp knife
3 tablespoons cinnamon
3 tablespoons sugar
1/8 teaspoons grated fresh nutmeg

Instructions

  1. Remove core from apples. Using a mandoline or sharp knife, slice into thin rounds.
  2. Place apples in a single layer on baking sheet, lined with parchment paper or silpat mat.
  3. Sprinkle top side with cinnamon and sugar, using your fingers to spread mixture over apple.
  4. Place in a 200°F oven for one hour.
  5. Flip and bake an additional one hour.
  6. When finished, allow apples to sit for another 30-60 minutes to crisp up.
  7. Store in an airtight container.
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Alexandra Caspero
Alexandra Caspero, MA, RD, CLT, is a registered dietitian and nutrition expert with a passion for health and wellness. Alex is a nationally recognized nutritionist and appears regularly on TV, print and social media. She was most recently featured in Runner's World, Men's Health, Fitness, Shape Magazine & Vogue. As the campus dietitian, director of wellness and adjunct instructor at University of the Pacific, Alex teaches what she preaches. Through innovative programs and services, Alex inspires students to become their healthiest selves. Her blog, DelishKnowledge, focuses on making whole-food eating deliciously simple. Alex also dishes out delicious tips to her thousands of social media followers.