Cinnamon Apple Crisps

📝 Ingredients

• 3 firm, tart apples (about 200 g each)
• ½ lemon (for the juice)
• 500 ml cold water
• 1 tbsp light brown sugar (about 12 g)
• 2 tsp ground cinnamon
• ¼ tsp ground ginger
• 1 pinch of nutmeg

🍴 Utensils

• Mandoline with hand guard
• Apple corer
• 2 baking trays and baking paper
• Mixing bowl
• Clean tea towels
• Small sieve

📖 Steps

1. Preheat the oven to 110 °C fan (120 °C conventional) and line two baking trays with baking paper. Pour the cold water into a mixing bowl and add the juice of the half lemon.
2. Wash and dry the apples without peeling them. Remove the cores with an apple corer, going right through the centre: keeping the apples whole gives you pretty rings with a hole in the middle.
3. Slice the apples on the mandoline into rounds 1 to 2 mm thick, always using the hand guard. Drop the slices into the lemon water as you go so they don't turn brown. The thinner and more even they are, the crisper they will be.
4. Drain the slices, then dry them thoroughly by pressing them between two clean tea towels. This step matters: the less water left at the start, the faster and better they'll dry in the oven.
5. In a small bowl, mix the brown sugar, cinnamon, ginger and nutmeg. Arrange the slices on the trays in a single layer without overlapping, then dust them with the mixture using a small sieve for a fine, even coating.
6. Bake for 45 minutes, then turn the slices over one by one and swap the two trays around. Continue baking for 40 to 50 minutes, until the edges curl up and the slices feel dry to the touch, without browning.
7. Turn off the oven and leave the crisps to cool inside for 30 minutes with the door ajar: they harden as they cool. If some are still soft in the centre, put them back in the oven at 110 °C for 10 minutes.
8. Store the completely cooled crisps in an airtight container or glass jar, where they'll stay crunchy for 4 to 5 days. Divide them between two bags or small tubs to take with you.