We all love to munch. Unfortunately, most foods on the market that we have gotten used to munching on are quite harmful to us. Potato chips, Doritos, pretzels, popcorn, even commercial nuts can be loaded with artificial flavors and enhancers that take away from any nutritional value the nuts originally had.
So here are 2 super easy and super healthy, non-guilty munchy snacks for you to make: Carrot chips and sweet potato chips. I make them both in one go because the basic ingredients, prepping and baking method are the same. I start off with the carrot chips first because they take less time. You will need:
2 large carrots
1⁄4 teaspoon sea salt
1 teaspoon extra virgin olive oil
You can add other spices like curry, cayenne or garlic powder if you like. My kids like curry so I used that.
Preheat the oven to 350°F/180°C. Wash and peel the carrots thoroughly. Slice the carrots into thin slices and put them into a large mixing bowl. I used a knife since I don’t have a mandolin slicer. If you do have one, use it as it will not only save you time but the even slicing means they will all bake evenly. Add the extra virgin olive oil, sea salt, and any other spice you may be using to the mixing bowl with the carrots. Toss until the carrot slices are well coated. Place the carrot chips onto a baking sheet. Be sure that each strip is laid out flat and does not overlap to ensure even cooking.
Depending on how thick or thin you sliced them will determine their baking time. Very thin slices will bake for about 10 minutes while thicker ones, like mine, took up to 30 minutes. Check your oven regularly. When the chips are done, remove from the oven and transfer them to a wire cooling rack to crisp. When the chips are cool, serve.
While the carrot chips were baking I prepared the sweet potato chips. You will need:
3 sweet potatoes
1-2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil depending on the size of the sweet potatoes. The ones I used were pretty small so I only used 1 Tbs olive oil.
1⁄2 teaspoon sea salt Again you can add more spices if you like (cayenne, garlic or curry). I used garlic.
Once the carrot chips are done, raise the temperature of your oven to 425°F/220°C. Wash and peel the sweet potatoes and cut them into chips. Add the extra virgin olive oil, sea salt and any other spices to a large bowl. Mix the sweet potatoes thoroughly making sure each slice is coated. Lay them on a non-stick baking sheet and bake each side of the chip for 18-20 minutes. Make sure you flip the chips halfway through and then cook the other side.
Again, depending on how thick or thin your chips are will determine how long they bake. Keep checking your oven. Some of the smaller/thinner chips will bake faster and possibly burn (happened to me). Remove the chips and let them cool before serving and enjoy:)
Dana