A tasty recipe for dried apple slices

Recently, I got to travel out to the Okanagan Valley to meet up with my coworkers to plan for the next year’s Arctic^® adventures. During our breaks, we snacked on dried Arctic^® Golden and Granny apple slices. I was amazed at how the flavor of each apple variety was still so prominent, even after being dried! Though both were delicious, the Arctic^® Granny Smith slices really caught my attention because they reminded me of the caramel apple candies I used to eat growing up.

You might remember from my ‘hello’ blog post that I love baking, so this got my wheels turning, and I decided to capture that flavor with these caramel apple granola bars: the taste I loved as a kid but with more fibre, because I’m a grown up now (or so I’m told). These bars are made with dulce de leche, a milk-based caramel spread that you should be able to find in your local grocery store. The dulce de leche adds just a bit of sweetness, while allowing the apple slice flavor to shine through. If you have a bit of a sweet tooth, you can also drizzle your granola bars with icing or more dulce de leche.

Caramel Apple Granola Bars

1.5 cups oats

1 cup bran cereal

½ cup chopped pecans (or seeds if you have a nut allergy)

1 cup dried apple slices, roughly chopped

1 cup dulce de leche spread

Vanilla icing (optional)

Preheat oven to 325⁰F
Mix all ingredients, except icing, until combined
Lay mixed ingredients onto silicone baking sheet or parchment paper and press into a rectangle about 1” thick
Bake for 18-20 minutes, or until edges are golden brown. Allow to cool completely, drizzle with icing, if desired, and cut. Keep your yummy apple bars in a sealed container for freshness
Enjoy!