Apple Pie Bars

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My first thought on tasting these bars? They're SOFT! Like, really really soft. I didn't expect them to be that soft considering the recipe didn't call for any butter, so it was a pleasant surprise. You know what else was a pleasant surprise? The butterscotch chips. I'm not too big a fan of butterscotch to begin with so I wasn't sure how well they would work with these bars. But they certainly exceeded my expectations, playing on the delicious flavors of the cinnamon, nutmeg, and soft tart apples in a way I never thought they would. Definitely a combo for the books.

I wouldn't say that these bars necessarily taste like apple pie, but they do have all the flavors and qualities of an amazing apple dessert.

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Ingredients

  • 1 cup vegetable oil
  • 2 cups sugar
  • 3 eggs
  • 2 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
  • 2 teaspoons baking powder
  • 1 teaspoon salt
  • 1 teaspoon baking soda
  • 1 teaspoon cinnamon
  • 1 teaspoon nutmeg
  • 3 large Granny Smith apples, peeled, cored, and finely diced
  • 3/4 cup butterscotch chips

Preparation

Step 1

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Grease a 13x9 inch baking dish.

In the bowl of a stand mixer, beat together the oil, sugar, and eggs until fully combined (about 2 minutes). The mixture should be thick and pale yellow.

Sift together the flour, baking powder, salt, baking soda, cinnamon, and nutmeg. Add to the sugar mixture in the mixer and beat until completely combined. Using a sturdy spoon or spatula, fold in the apples. The batter should be very thick.

Scrape the batter into the prepared pan and scatter the top with butterscotch chips.

Bake in the preheated oven for 45 minutes to an hour, or until a toothpick comes out with only a few, moist crumbs attached. Be careful not to over-bake.

Let cool slightly on a wire rack. Serve the bars warm or at room temperature.
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● Sandy's apple of choice for this recipe is McIntosh. "They cook up soft, and the taste can range from very tart to sweet, which is great."

● If the pastry begins to brown too quickly, before the bars are fully cooked, and there are at least 20 minutes of baking time left, Sandy recommends covering the crust with foil to keep it golden brown.

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