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Salted Caramel Apple Pie Bars

apple dessert recipes

Thank you Sally’s Baking Addiction for the recipe!

Ingredients

Shortbread Crust: 

  • ½ cup unsalted butter (melted)

  • ¼ cup granulated sugar

  • 1 tsp pure vanilla extract

  • ¼ tsp salt

  • 1 cup all-purpose flour

Apple Filling: 

  • 2 large apples (peeled and thinly sliced)

  • 2 Tbsp all-purpose flour

  • 2 Tbsp granulated sugar

  • 1 tsp ground cinnamon 

  • ⅛ tsp ground nutmeg

Streusel: 

  • ½ cup old-fashioned oats

  • ⅓ cup packed brown sugar

  • ¼ tsp ground cinnamon 

  • ¼ cup all-purpose flour 

  • ¼ cup unsalted butter (cold and cubed)

  • Salted caramel sauce

Instructions

  1. Preheat the oven to 300°F. Line the bottom and sides of an 8-inch square baking pan with parchment paper leaving enough overhang on all sides.

  2. Stir the melted butter, sugar, vanilla, and salt together in a medium bowl. Add the flour and stir until everything is combined. Press the mixture evenly into the prepared baking pan. Bake for 15 minutes and then remove it from the oven. 

  3. Make the filling. Combine the sliced apples, flour, sugar, cinnamon, and nutmeg in a large bowl until all of the apples are evenly coated. Set aside. 

  4. Whisk the oats, brown sugar, cinnamon, and flour to make the streusel. Cut in the chilled butter with a pastry blender or two forks until the mixture resembles coarse crumbs. 

  5. Turn the oven to 350°F. Evenly layer the apples on top of the warm crust. It will look like there are too many apple slices, so layer them tightly and press them down to fit. Sprinkle the apple layer with streusel and bake for 30-35 minutes or until the streusel is golden brown. 

  6. Remove from the oven and allow them to cool for at least 20 minutes at room temperature. Chill in the refrigerator for at least 2 hours. Lift the foil or parchment out of the pan using the overhang. Cut the bars into 16 even smaller bars or 12 larger bars. Once they’re cut, drizzle some salted caramel sauce on top of each. Serve warm or cold.