apple crumble bars

do you love apple pie? why am i even asking? of course you love apple pie. what if you could take an apple to eat on the go? well, i present to you these apple crumble bars: “they’re like mini apple pies!”

the most time consuming part of this recipe is dicing up 6 cups of apples. the hardest parts of this recipe are a) not eating most of the crisp granny smith apples as you dice them and b) not digging into the bars with a fork before you bake them.

spring is the perfect time to turn fruit into refreshing desserts (even though i’ve been eating these for breakfast). strawberries and rhubarb (actually a vegetable) are great this time of year too.

i’ve listed these apple bars as “cookies.” are bars cookies? is it anyone’s job to classify baked goods like this? anyway, enjoy!

apple crumble bars
this one, like most of my recipes (and my baking knowledge), i owe to my mom.

4 cups flour
1/2 tsp salt
1 1/2 cups sugar
1/2 cup brown sugar
1 1/2 cups butter, softened
6 cups granny smith (or a variety of your choice) apples, skinned and diced (about 5 apples)
1 tsp cinnamon

1. take the butter out of the fridge to soften (do NOT melt) on the counter as you peel and dice up the apples into small cubes. squirt with some lemon juice and set aside.

2. combine the flour, salt, white sugar and brown sugar in a bowl.

3. cut the butter into the dry ingredients. the butter should not be melted. what we’re going for here are crumbs. you can either do this with a wooden spoon, or you can do what i do, and use your hands to crush it all together.

4. take 1 cup of the crumb mixture and mix it with the apples. add the cinnamon as well and set aside.

5. preheat the oven to 350 F and grease and flour a 9×13 baking pan. take 1/2 of your remaining crumb mixture and press it into the bottom of the pan. bake for 10 minutes.

6. remove the crust from the oven, pour in the apple mixture and top with last of the crumbs. put it back in the oven for another 45 minutes. when it’s done, the top should be a beautiful golden brown. cool by putting the pan on a wire rack so air can circulate around it. cut into bars after they’ve completely cooled, fi you can resist it. it’s a great idea to refrigerate the bars so they set a bit more.