Apple Bars, the next best thing to apple pie

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If you love apple pie, wait until you try Apple Bars. Start with a buttery shortbread crust that is covered with both sweet and tart apples. A crumble topping makes them easy enough to eat with your hands and just as scrumptious as an apple pie.

Feeding a crowd? A pan of apple bars is a perfect solution, and no forks required!🍎

A glass serving platter with apple bars next to serving plates and forks.

If you haven’t even started thinking about apples yet, they’re a nice change after all the peaches we’ve been consuming this summer and boy do I have a great recipe for you to try.

Apple pie is one of my favorite apple desserts and brings back memories of childhood holidays. There’s nothing quite like my mom’s apple pie with a streusel topping. However, there are times when you want an apple dessert that feeds more than eight people, or maybe you don’t like to make a pie crust.

Those are the times that you’ll want to give these amazing apple bars a try. The flavor is just what you would expect from apple pie but instead of a flaky pie crust, you get a buttery shortbread crust. Walnuts are added to part of the shortbread which is then sprinkled over caramelized apples. The texture and flavor from the walnuts make things interesting and this isn’t an overly sweet dessert.

Two apple bars stacked with walnuts in the background.

The shortbread on the top and bottom keeps the filling intact so that you can eat these with your fingers. By caramelizing the apples first, the juices are concentrated along with a little apple brandy which enhances the apple flavor even more.

This is a fantastic dessert to take to a potluck, you can cut the squares even smaller so that people can try more than one dessert. A pan will give you 24-32 bars. Everyone wants apple pie for Thanksgiving but a whole slice after a big feast can be overwhelming, apple bars are just the solution. Best of all you can make them in advance.

A batch of apple pie bars on parchment paper.

Why you’ll love apple bars

When it’s fall baking season, apple dessert recipes are the best!
These bars aren’t soggy, instead they offer a crunchy bottom that compliments the baked apples perfectly.
You can eat them warm, at room temperature or refrigerated.
They will feed a crowd.
You can make them in advance and refrigerate or freeze until ready to serve.
The bar stays together so that you can eat them with your hands, no fork required.
You don’t have to make a pie crust!

What you’ll need

Ingredients for the filling of apple pie bars.

Butter – You’ll need plenty of butter for the shortbread crust and topping.
Walnuts – these add the perfect crunch! Easily ommited if you don’t love nuts.
Large apples – I recommend using a variety of apples, ½ sweet and ½ tart.
Spice mixture – cinnamon and nutmeg are my spices of choice for apple pie.
Pantry staples – flour, vanilla, sugar, salt, lemon juice

How to make Apple Bars

Step 1. Prepare the crust. The recipe is simple to make with a buttery shortbread crust on the bottom and the top. First cream the butter and sugar and then add the flour and divide. Add ⅔’s of the shortbread to your baking pan and refrigerate for 20 minutes, then bake.

Butter and sugar creamed together in a mixing bowl.

To the rest of the shortbread, add walnuts and cinnamon and refrigerate.

Step 2. While the crust is in the refrigerator, peel and thinly slice the apples then cook them in a skillet with a little butter, sugar, lemon juice and apple brandy.

Once they start to brown and have softened, place them over the baked crust.

Apples being spooned onto a baked crust.

Sprinkle the remaining shortbread on top for a final bake.

Pro Tip: A splash of apple brandy added to any apple dessert will bring out the flavor of the apples.

Recipe Notes

Top your apple bars with a drizzle of salted caramel or a dollop of ice cream for next level dessert!

Sometimes fruit bars can be a bit soggy, but these have 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.

Taylor came by the house to sample and took all the leftovers home with her. These freeze great!

Apple combinations for baking

Sweet apple brands –

Golden delicious
Gala
Honeycrisp
Fuji
Red Delicious

Tart apple brands –

Granny Smith
McIntosh
Braeburn
Pink Lady
Jonathan

FAQs and tips

Are apples good for you?

This fruit is high in fiber and also in the peels because they have pectin in them, which helps you feel fuller, while naturally sweet.

What’s the best way to freeze apples?

The best way to freeze apples is to peel, slice and soak in a bowl of water and lemon juice for a few minutes. Let dry and place on baking sheet and freeze for a couple of hours. Once frozen place in a freezer proof container.

What apples are best for apple pie and other apple desserts?

I recommend baking with a variety of apples. My suggestion is to select two kinds: one sweet and one tart.

Can I mix in another fruit with my apples for bars?

You can add other fruit to your apple bars but depending on how juicy the fruit is, it may change the texture. Pears would be an obvious choice, just add them with the apples in the skillet. You could also throw in some blackberries, add them right before baking.