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Buttery Apple Pie Bars Pie Filling Recipes

I love a tray of warm pie bars. Butter meets apples and the crust snaps. We cut neat squares and the kitchen smells like fall. I learned this version after a rainy market day when I grabbed too many apples and a box of butter. These bars feel like Sunday. They slice clean. They hold well. They feed friends. We talk about Pie Filling Recipes and how to keep them simple. I keep a short list and I use it. I lean on apple pie filling recipes when time feels tight. I reach for apple pie filling recipes easy when family drops by. I keep a recipe for apple pie on the fridge. I also test canned apple pie filling recipes for busy nights. A small apple pie recipe helps when I bake for two. An easy apple pie recipe with premade crust saves me when the day runs long. You can bake these bars on a cool afternoon. The crust stays tender. The apples sit soft. Each bite brings cinnamon and a hint of lemon. We share a plate. We talk. We go back for one more square.
Prep Time25 minutes
Cook Time50 minutes
Total Time1 hour 15 minutes
Course: Dessert
Cuisine: American
Keywords: apple bars, apple pie filling recipes, apple pie filling recipes easy, buttery crust, canned apple pie filling recipes, easy apple pie recipe with premade crust, Pie Filling Recipes, recipe for apple pie, simple dessert, small apple pie recipe
Servings: 16 servings
Author: Kathy

Ingredients

For the Crust

  • 2 cups all purpose flour
  • 1 cup cold unsalted butter cut in cubes
  • 1/2 cup granulated sugar
  • 1/4 teaspoon fine salt

For the Apple Filling

  • 6 cups peeled and thin sliced apples Honeycrisp or similar
  • 1/2 cup granulated sugar
  • 1/3 cup light brown sugar packed
  • 2 tablespoons cornstarch
  • 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
  • 1/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg
  • 1/4 teaspoon fine salt
  • 1 tablespoon lemon juice
  • 1 teaspoon vanilla extract

For the Top

  • 2 tablespoons coarse sugar for crunch
  • 1 tablespoon cold unsalted butter cut in tiny pieces

Instructions

Prep

  1. Heat oven to 350 F and line a 9 by 13 pan with parchment with overhang on two sides
  2. Stir sliced apples with both sugars cornstarch cinnamon nutmeg salt lemon juice and vanilla then set the bowl aside

Make the Crust

  1. Pulse flour sugar and salt in a food processor
  2. Add cold butter and pulse until the mix looks like damp sand and holds when pressed
  3. Press two thirds of the mix into the pan in a tight even layer

Assemble

  1. Spread the apple mix over the crust and press down with a spatula
  2. Crumble the rest of the crust mix over the apples
  3. Dot with tiny butter pieces and sprinkle with coarse sugar

Bake and Cool

  1. Bake for 45 to 50 minutes until the top turns golden and the filling bubbles at the edges
  2. Cool the pan on a rack for one hour then lift the slab with the parchment and cut into bars

Serve and Store

  1. Serve warm or room temp with vanilla ice cream or sharp cheddar
  2. Store covered at room temp for one day or chill up to four days

Notes

Use firm tart apples for structure. Mix Honeycrisp with Granny Smith for balance. Cornstarch thickens clean and keeps the filling clear. For a deeper taste swap half the sugar for maple sugar. If the top browns fast tent the pan with foil for the last ten minutes. For gluten free use a 1 to 1 baking flour blend and add one extra tablespoon cornstarch to the filling. To freeze wrap cut bars tight and freeze up to two months then thaw in the fridge.