Name: Apple Pie Bars
Prep time: 30 min
Cook time: 30 min
Yield: 32
Ingredients: 2 cups butter (room temp); ¾ cup sugar; ½ cup brown sugar; 2 teaspoons vanilla; 4 cups flour; 1 ½ teaspoons salt; ½ cup walnuts (chopped); 1 teaspoon cinnamon; 6 large apples (1/2 sweet and 1/2 tart); 2 tablespoons lemon juice; ¼ cup sugar; 1 teaspoon cinnamon; ⅛ teaspoon nutmeg; 4 tablespoons butter

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Apple Pie Bars have a buttery shortbread crust and cookie like topping over a combination of sweet and tart apples. Ina Garten’s recipe is a winner. No fork required for this delicious apple pie in a bar.

This is a sponsored post, but as always the opinions are my own.

Stemilt sent me a box of a brand new variety of apples called Rave™ which are ready to harvest for the first time in August and September. I haven’t even started thinking about apples yet but it’s a nice change after all the peaches we’ve been consuming this summer. This particular variety is one that is only being produced by Stemilt and I’m super excited about the taste. I’m not a huge Honeycrisp fan because they can be just a bit too tart for my taste. My go-to apple is either Fujis or Piñatas. However, I may have a new favorite. Raves™ are a little tart like a Honeycrisp but not so tart that you feel like you’re biting into a lemon. For me it’s the perfect combination, a little sweet and a little tart. They are a wonderful and juicy apple to eat all by itself but Stemilt sent apples to a food blogger so of course I’m going to cook with them and Apple Pie Bars are a great way to show off their tartness.

After devouring the first one in the box, I decided to try a few of them in Ina Garten’s recipe for Apple Pie Bars. I’ve been waiting for Fall to try it and now I have a perfect excuse.

How to make Apple Pie Bars

Step 1. Prepare the crust. The recipe is simple to make with a buttery shortbread crust on the bottom and the top. However, you’ll add some walnuts and cinnamon to the top portion for a little more flavor and crunch. Refrigerate the crust and then bake it.

Step 2. While baking the crust, I cooked a combination of Rave™ and Fuji apples in a skillet with a little butter. Once they were starting to brown and had softened I placed them over the crust and sprinkled the remaining shortbread on top for a final bake.

Sometimes fruit bars can be a bit soggy, but these had a really nice crunch on the bottom and a cookie like texture on the top. While I love apple pie, sometimes you want that great apple taste without making an entire pie. These have all the deliciousness of an apple pie but in a bar that stays together so that you can eat them with your hands, no fork required. The combination of apples was great. If I had just used Rave™ apples, they would still have tasted great but might not have stayed together as well. I think you need a firmer apple like Fuji for the texture. The slightly sweet and slightly tart combination was amazing. Taylor came by the house to sample and took all the leftovers.

If you want to try this variety of apples, do it quickly as they’ll only be around for a couple of weeks.

Looking for more Apple dessert recipes, here are some of my favorites

If you make Apple Pie Bars be sure to leave a comment and/or give this recipe a rating! Above all, I love to hear from you guys and always do my best to respond to each and every comment. And of course, if you do make this recipe, don’t forget to also tag me on Instagram! I would love to see your creation.

Ina Garten Cooking for Jeffrey

Apple Pie Bars

Apple Pie Bars have a buttery shortbread crust and cookie like topping over a combination of sweet and tart apples. Ina Garten's recipe is a winner. No fork required for this delicious apple pie in a bar.

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Course: Dessert

Prep Time: 30 minutes

Cook Time: 30 minutes

Servings:

Calories: 239kcal

Ingredients

CRUST

2 cups butter room temp
¾ cup sugar
½ cup brown sugar
2 teaspoons vanilla
4 cups flour
1 ½ teaspoons salt
½ cup walnuts chopped
1 teaspoon cinnamon

APPLE FILLING

6 large apples 1/2 sweet and 1/2 tart
2 tablespoons lemon juice
¼ cup sugar
1 teaspoon cinnamon
⅛ teaspoon nutmeg
4 tablespoons butter

Instructions

Preheat oven to 375º. Place parchment paper in a 9 x 13 baking pan.

CRUST:

Add butter, both sugars and vanilla to the bowl of an electric mixer and beat until light and fluffy, about 2 minutes.
In a separate bowl whisk together flour and salt and add to butter mixture. Beat until combined. Lightly flour your hands and take 2/3’s of the dough and place it in the prepared baking pan pressing it into the bottom and 1/2 inch up the sides. Press down with the bottom of a measuring cup.
Refrigerate for 20 minutes. Then bake for 18-20 minutes until the entire crust is golden brown. Let cool.
To the remaining dough add walnuts and cinnamon and combine. Set aside.

FILLING:

While the crust is cooking, peel and slice apples into 1/8 inch slices and place in a large bowl. Add sugar, cinnamon and nutmeg and mix. Melt butter in a large skillet and add apples. Simmer over medium heat, stirring occasionally until he apples are tender and the liquid has evaporated. Spread evenly onto the crust.
Place pieces of the remaining dough over the top of the apples, they will not be completely covered.
Reduce oven to 350º and bake for 25-30 minutes until the top is golden brown. Let cool before cutting.

Notes

Use a variety of sweet and tart apples

Nutrition