Cooking on Campus: Apple Nachos

Snacking is my favorite hobby. I enjoy it more as a pastime, especially when ice cream is somehow involved. In high school, I loved coming home and snacking on a bowl of ice cream or fresh fruit. College however, changed my snacking ways, along with just about every other one of my food habits. Now I snack on boxed food that last a long time in my dorm room, or what goodies I can find at the Cage.

I miss being able to snack on fresh fruit or leftovers, or on chips and salsa – all the food I took for granted at home. In college, we make trips to the grocery store once a week or less and are looking for the cheapest food possible. Spending an extra five dollars on a carton of strawberries or fresh chips and salsa just doesn’t seem worth it, especially when that carton of strawberries lasts about two days. Snacking in college has lost the joy it once provided when I lived at home, and I am searching for ways to bring that joy back to the dorm room.

I came across this perfect snack recipe the other day while surfing the vast world of online food blogs. I found this recipe for apple nachos on one of my favorite blogs: How Sweet It Is food blog (http://www.howsweeteats.com/ – check her out!). A lot of her recipes looked very dorm friendly, and these apple nachos looked too irresistible to pass up. Believe me, you do NOT want to miss out on tasting these ‘healthy’ nachos.

Apple nachos are perfect for the dorm because the ingredients are cheap, healthy(ish), and delicious. Preparation is doable in a dorm kitchen, and takes about 20 minutes or less. Apple nachos are a great weekend study snack, or just to curb your sweet tooth cravings.  Make these for your friends and they will be forever grateful as you share this sweet blend of apples, marshmallows, and caramely goodness!
 
Here are the ingredients you need to prepare Apple Nachos:

1/4 cup butter, 1/2 bag of marshmallows (either big or small), 4 tart apples, 36 caramels (or pre-made caramel sauce), chocolate chips and pecans (optional).
 
Start by slicing the apples into slices and spreading on a serving dish, so they look like this:

 
Next, melt butter & marshmallows in microwave safe bowl. Melt 1 tablespoon water and the caramels in another microwave safe bowl. Mix both until smooth

 
Both mixtures should now be smooth and pourable, but be careful because the bowls will be hot!

Pour marshmallow and caramel sauce over sliced apples, adding as little or as much as you want. Top with chocolate chips and pecans. At this stage, you can really add whatever toppings sound good to you – sprinkles, coconut, raspberries, strawberries. The pecans add that extra crunch I love, but some people might not like pecans.

 
The end result should look something like this:

These apple nachos might possibly be my new favorite snack/dessert ever! With the combination of apples, caramels, and marshmallows, you truly can’t go wrong.
 

Enjoy! :)