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These apple bars are so delicious, you won’t believe they’re healthy too!
Apple Bars Everywhere
Fall has arrived! Maybe not by the calendar yet, but to most of us Labor Day marks the end of summer.
I live smack dab in the middle of New York’s apple country. Orchards are everywhere and we’re beginning to see our local apples in the food store. When you see them all around you, you definitely start thinking about making some recipes with them.
Apart from the usual strudels, pies and spiced rings for pork, I wanted to try something I’ve never made before. These apple bars, as simple as they are, filled the bill for something new.
These Are Good–And Healthy Too
I ran across this recipe while pinning content for BHG. It sounded very interesting and it was easy to make.
The apples aren’t peeled so that’s a prep step that can be eliminated. It also uses white whole wheat flour and I liked the idea of sneaking some whole-grain flour in here.
But wait, there’s more–it uses very little fat! I consider this an added bonus that this is a healthy snack. First and foremost, they are delicious and that’s the main point!
If you don’t have white whole wheat flour on hand, you can easily substitute all-purpose flour. I just happened to have some white whole wheat on hand from another project, but you don’t have to buy it special, although it’s nice to have on hand. My tip for flours/grains that you want to have on hand but don’t use often is to freeze them! I do this with all flours, especially when it’s on sale and I want to stock up.
Yummy Topping
If these apple bars weren’t good enough by themselves, they also have a yummy topping!
The topping resembles crumbs when you make it, but they melt on top of the bars. They are slightly chewy and even though they use very little butter, they have a lovely buttery spicy flavor.
The Recipe
Apple Bars
Ingredients
- 3/4 cup sugar
- 1 1/4 cups white whole wheat flour all-purpose is OK too
- 1 tsp cinnamon
- 1/2 tsp baking soda
- 1/4 tsp salt
- 3 tbsp vegetable oil
- 2 eggs slightly beaten
- 1 tsp vanilla
- 2 cups chopped apple I used 1 braeburn and 1 granny smith
Topping
- 2 tbsp white whole wheat flour all-purpose is OK too
- 2 tbsp brown sugar
- 1 tsp cinnamon
- 2 tbsp butter
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350℉. Line a 13 x 9 pan with foil or parchment. Spray the foil or parchment with non-stick spray.
- In a medium bowl, mix sugar, flour cinnamon, baking soda and sale. Blend well.
- In another medium bowl, whisk together the oil, eggs and vanilla. Stir in chopped apples. Add this to the dry ingredients and mix just until moistened.
- Spread in prepared pan.
- For the topping, in a small bowl, mix together the flour, brown sugar and cinnamon. Cut the butter in with a pastry blender until mixture is crumbly. Sprinkle crumb mixture over batter in pan.
- Bake for 20-25 minutes or until toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean. Cool completely on a rack. Lift the cooled cookies out of the pan by grabbing the edges of the foil or parchment. Cut into bars.
Nutrition
*Adapted from BHG.com
