Apple Crumble Bars
This recipe is a great alternative to apple pie. It has a shortbread base with apple slices and a buttery crumb topping. After it's baked, it can be frozen, and most of the components made ahead.
Servings 9 squares
Ingredients
For the shortbread base:
- ½ cup unsalted butter at room temperature
- ¼ cup white sugar
- 1 cup all-purpose flour
- pinch of salt
For the crumble:
- 1 cup all-purpose flour
- ⅓ cup white sugar
- ⅓ cup light brown sugar
- ½ cup unsalted butter diced and cold
For the apples:
- 5 cups Granny Smith apples about 5, peeled, cored, and sliced
- ¼ cup white or brown sugar
- 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
- 2 tablespoons lemon juice
Instructions
For the shortbread base:
- With a wooden spoon or electric hand mixer on low, cream ½ cup unsalted butter with ¼ cup white sugar until smooth.
- Add a pinch of salt and 1 cup all-purpose flour in two parts, combining well. Do not overmix. It will be crumbly.
- Grease an 8-inch square pan. Line with a strip of parchment paper covering the bottom and two of the sides.
- Press the dough evenly to cover the bottom. Lightly flour the tips of your fingers if needed.
- Prick the bottom crust with a fork and freeze for 30 minutes.
- Preheat the oven to 350ºF (180°C).
- Bake for about 15 minutes, until it’s dry in parts and starts to color lightly. Reserve on a wire rack.
For the crumble:
- Mix 1 cup all-purpose flour, ⅓ cup white sugar and ⅓ cup light brown sugar in a medium bowl.
- Add ½ cup unsalted butter in pieces and integrate them with a fork, a pastry cutter, or your hands (my choice) until you have a clumpy crumble.
- Keep refrigerated.
For the apples:
- Peel and core 5 medium/large apples.
- Cut in half and then in half again to have 4 wedges. Remove the seeds and hard center parts. Slice with a kitchen knife. You should have 5 cups Granny Smith apples5 cups sliced apples. Transfer them to a large bowl.
- Sprinkle ¼ cup white or brown sugarand 1 teaspoon ground cinnamonon top and drizzle with 2 tablespoons lemon juice. Stir to coat and transfer to the prepared pan.
- Alternatively, layer the apple slices on the shortbread base, sprinkle with cinnamon and sugar, and drizzle with lemon juice. It's a lot of apples, but they shrink considerably during baking.
To assemble:
- Top the crust with the apple mixture, spreading to cover it all.
- Top the apples with the crumble mixture. It will cover them almost completely. Lightly press with your hand so the topping is a tad compacted.
- Bake for about 40 minutes, until the top is golden and the apples can be easily pierced with a knife.
- Let cool on a wire rack.
- Serve at room temperature or warm with a scoop of ice cream or whipped cream.
Notes
Baking time: consider that all ovens and pans are different, even if they look similar. The baking time in my recipes is as accurate as possible, but it might take you more or less time. You can use a thermometer to check that your oven is at the right temperature. I recommend keeping track of how your oven works and what tiny details you might need to adjust.
Apples: peel and cut at the last minute to avoid them turning brown as much as you can. Use a mandoline for very thin slices if you like a softer filling, or a kitchen knife to cut thicker ones if you want some crunch.
Make-ahead: both the base and the crumble can be made ahead and frozen for a month or kept in the fridge for a week.
Storing: if not eating the day they are baked, store these apple bars covered in the refrigerator for up to a week.
Freezing: they can be frozen after being baked, well covered. To eat, let them come to room temperature or warm in a low oven. But I prefer to make the shortbread base and crumble ahead and have them frozen. And then only have the apple layer to make from scratch the day I bake.
