Apple Pie Bars

Sometimes it’s too much to ask to roll out one’s own dough and cut cute little leaves and put together an entire pie. Sometimes you just want apple pie and you want it NOW. Or as close to now as you can get.

Apple pie bars for the win. Good warm and ever better when cold and topped with homemade vanilla whipped cream.



Apple Pie Bars:
(Taken from Cuisine at Home’s Holiday Cookies magazine)

2 cups flour
¾ cup brown sugar
¾ tsp ground cinnamon
½ tsp table salt
9 tbsp butter (6 tbsp cold, 3 tbsp melted)
3 Granny Smith apples, peeled, cored, and diced
1/3 cup white sugar
¼ cup heavy cream
1 tbsp flour
1 tsp vanilla extract
¼ tsp cinnamon

In a large bowl combine 2 cups of flour, brown sugar, cinnamon, and salt. Remove ¾ of the mixture to a small bowl and set aside for the streusel. Returning to the remaining mixture, cut in 6 tbsp cold butter and the milk using either a pastry blender or your fingers until clumps form.

Using a greased 9x9 pan, pat the base mixture into the pan, pressing down firmly to make a stiff crust. Bake for 15-20 minutes, until golden brown.

In another bowl, toss together apples, white sugar, heavy cream, 1 tbsp flour, 1 tsp vanilla extract, and ¼ tsp cinnamon. Pour this overtop of the finished crust.

Mix 3 tbsp melted butter into the reserved streusel mixture and sprinkle evenly over the top of the apples. Return to the oven and bake for 35-40 minutes, until apples are soft.

Serve with ice cream or whipped cream.

Makes ~six servings.

--Jirafa