Hey there, it's Gearia City editor, Susie on.

Today's question asker, Teresa Flanagan of Chicago's Norwood Park neighborhood, wanted to know,

are apple slices a local or even a hyper-local thing?

Apple slices?

As in, slices of apples people cut up for their kids, the kind

McDonald's offers as a healthy side in a happy meal? At first, we were confused, and then we

were intrigued. Pretty soon, we were hungry. Teresa had grown up eating apple slices from her local bakery and had largely

forgotten about them until recently. I asked my husband, who's from Central Illinois, and you had

no idea what I was talking about. I asked a friend who grew up in Rogers Park. She was like,

no, but if you find them, like, that sounds amazing.

So we got WBEZ reporter and fellow sugar addict Esther Yunji Kang to investigate.

Esther, what exactly is an apple slice?

Well, Susie, first of all, when you Google it, you got to make sure you add the word Chicago in front of apple slice, or all you're going to get is pictures of cut-up apples.

But anyway, this bakery item is essentially a slab pie baked in a sheet pan.

It's got a bottom layer of dough, then a layer of gooey apple filling, and then another layer of dough, and it's all covered in a sugary glaze.

Ooh.

They then cut it up into squares and sell it by the slice or by the pan.

Those sound good.

Okay, so coming up, Esther hunts down the origins of this dessert,

and she tries some for the first time.

That's after the break.

If you're already a WBEZ member, thank you.

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