Cinnamon Spice Apple Bars made from scratch. These bars are an easy recipe with a cookie-like crust, spiced apple filling, and topped with crust crumble. Eat this warm with a spoonful of ice cream and you will be getting up to grab seconds. They taste so good!
The inspirations...
It is Fall Y'all! The classic catchphrase of this fall season has got me inspired to make these apple bars. I love apple pie but I didn't want to make a whole apple pie with all the apples I had in my kitchen. These apple bars were inspired by my craving for apple pie but I made these bars instead. For me, I love more crust to apple ratio and so these bars are a way for me to make up for the higher crust to apple ratio.
These bars are filled with soft cinnamon sliced apples with a crumble topping. This is a dessert that I can get behind and enjoy all weekend long. This recipe will be my new go-to for apple season because it is easy, quick to make, and tastes so GOOD!
The crust layer is like a pie dough with added spices, walnuts, and oats. It is very flavorful and delicious...
The base is pre-baked so you don't get a soggy bottom from the apples. As Paul Hollywood would say in the Great British Baking Show, "No one likes a soggy bottom."
The apples are caramelized and softened on the stove...
You add sugar, spices, lemon juices, and saute in a pan full of butter to soften and caramelize the apples. This step will expedite the baking process in the oven because you already soften the apples. I let the apples cool on parchment paper with the juices. I would recommend adding some extra juice to the filling so you get a nice juicy layer. You need to find a nice balance because you don't want this layer to be too wet.
The glorious crumble topping...
This is my favorite step because you can get creative in your design. You can be random and crumble the crust all over the top like I did or you can roll out the dough and make an organized design. Also, if you like more crust to apple ratio you can adjust the layer thickness.
A few tips:
Pre-bake the apple crust - this step is a must because it makes sure that your apples don't soak up the bottom crust layer. One trick when you are pre-baking is to use a fork to make multiple holes before you bake the crust. This will prevent the crust from rising too much.
Apples - I used the in-season farmers market apple but for baking tarts, pies, bars with apples I think Granny Smith is the best option. The tartness of the apple pairs well with the sweetness you add to the bars.
Nuts & oats - I used walnuts in the crust layers because I think it pairs well with the cinnamon spice layer. You can leave out the walnuts and oats if you prefer a classic crust flavor.
Storage - these apples will last for 2 days after baking in an air-tight container in the fridge. Since there are fresh apples in the bars they do not last very long. They are best eaten the day of.
Cinnamon Spice Apple Bars
Serving size: 16
Total Time: 1 hour 45 mins
Source: Adapted from NYT cooking
Apple Crust:
2 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1 cup sugar
1 teaspoon sea salt
1 cup unsalted butter, cold and cut into cubes
3/4 cup walnuts, chopped
1/2 cup oats, blended
1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon cardamom
1/4 teaspoon nutmeg
3/4 cup cold water
Apple Filling:
6 large tart apples, like Granny Smith, peeled, cored, and sliced
3 tablespoons lemon juice
1/4 cup unsalted butter
1 teaspoon cinnamon
1 teaspoon nutmeg
1/2 teaspoon cardamom
2/3 cup sugar
Step 1: Prepare the crust, preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Line an 8x8-inch cake pan with parchment paper. You can leave some overhang on the edges so the bars are easy to remove after baking.
Step 2: In a large bowl, add flour, sugar, and salt. Cut the butter into cubes and add the cold butter to the flour mixture. Use your hands to break up the flour-butter mixture into tiny pebbles. The mixture should resemble a coarse sand texture. Mix in the walnuts, oats, cinnamon, cardamom. I pre-blended the oats and walnuts together to make it a very powder consistency. Slowly add the cold water until a dough forms. Don't add all the water at once because you might not need all the water. You want the dough to just form and it may still be dry. Wrap the dough in plastic wrap and store in a refrigerator for at least 15 minutes.
Step 3: After the dough is cooled, take 3/4 of the dough out of the fridge and press at the bottom of the cake pan. Bake the crust for 20 minutes or until golden brown.
Step 4: To make the filling, add the sliced apples, sugar, lemon juice, and spices to a bowl. Melt butter in a large pan over medium-high heat. Add apple mixture and cook until just starting to soften about 5-10 minutes. Remove from heat and cool. You can add the apple mixture to parchment paper on the baking pan to let it cool quickly.
Step 5: Once the crust is ready, spread the apple filling evenly over the crust with some extra juices. Don't add too much juice because you don't want to soak the bottom crust layer. Take out the remaining crust and roll it out to place on top. You can make a lattice on top or scatter clumps on top depending on your preference. I scattered clumps on the crust on top because I like the scattered look.
Step 6: Place the apple bars in the oven and bake until the topping is golden brown, 40 minutes. Cool completely in pan on a rack. To serve, lift apple bars out of the pan and onto a large cutting board and slice into bars.
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