Apple Pie Bars
If you love apple pie as much as I do (who doesn’t?) here is your apple pie fix that is easier and faster than a standard pie... but just as tasty. - Jenny Jones
Prep Time: 30 minutes
Cook Time: 50 minutes
Total Time: 1 hour, 20 minutes
Makes: 9 servings
Ingredients:
- 1 2/3 cups all-purpose flour
- 1 Tablespoon sugar
- 1/4 teaspoon salt
- 1/3 cup vegetable oil (I use avocado oil)
- 1/3 cup milk (low fat or whole milk)
- 1/2 cup sugar
- 1/4 teaspoon cinnamon
- 1/8 teaspoon nutmeg
- 1/8 teaspoon salt
- 2 Tablespoons flour or Minute Tapioca
- 8 cups (2 pounds) Granny Smith apples, peeled, cored & cut into large 1-inch chunks.
Crust:
Filling:
Instructions:
- Preheat oven to 375° F.
- Combine flour, sugar, & salt in a bowl.
- Add oil & milk all at once, stirring with a fork. By hand, divide dough in half and shape each half into a smooth mound.
- Roll one mound between 2 sheets of floured wax paper to about an 8" square and set aside.
- Between 2 more sheets of wax paper, roll the other mound into a 9-inch square and transfer to the bottom of an 8x8-inch ungreased or parchment paper lined square pan, pressing some crust up the sides. (or you can press the mound of dough into the pan, by hand.)
- Combine sugar, spices, and flour or tapioca in a large bowl.
- Add apples, combining well.
- Place into pan and top with second crust. Patch if needed but a few openings are okay.
- Brush with milk and sprinkle with 2 tsp. sugar. Poke about 9 holes in top crust with a sharp knife, .
- Bake about 50 minutes until top is golden. Cool. Cut into bars.
Crust:
Filling:
Can you use olive oil in this recipe?
I just made this recipe! I think it will turn out alright however there is way more filling than the picture indicated. It looks more like a pie in an 8×8 dish rather than bars. Did I do something wrong?
The filling reduces down in volume when it cooks.
I saw the comment about an oil crust will never be flakey. That’s not true. I used to have a recipie for Apple pie squares that had an oil crust that was so so flakey! But I lost it and now I’m looking for it but can’t find the same one I had. But it was flakey and delicious!
I usually prepare my pies ahead of time and freeze before baking. Has anyone tried freezing this recipe before baking? Would love to have this dessert on hand to pop in the oven for (expected or short notice)
I’m sure this would freeze well I have frozen pumpkin and peach pies raw and baked later for some reason when I freeze them the crust is always so moist and flaky better than if I baked before I froze them I wrap in foil and put in plastic bag stores well good luck
I’m an experienced baker, and as I’ve transitioned from wheat and have baked quite a bit with alternate flours and gluten free blends, I was very surprised how very bad my results were with the crust! It was incredibly dry and crumbly and even after trying to adjust with a bit more oil and milk, still very unworkable for me. Hmmm…
and 8 cups of apple chunks did not give me an 8X8″ pan with 1/2″ of filling as the photo would suggest. It filled the pan like a typical pie filling (didn’t even use a full 8C. Not sure what I missed (and no, I didn’t get through the other comments to see if anyone else had my experiences). I definitely was looking forward to the experience the photo implied I would end up with.
If you follow step number 3. Add liquid all at once you should get a workable crust.
Made your apple pie. Everyone loved it. Never was a fan of Granny Smith apples but now I love them! De-lish
Will be trying your bread next.
Thanks for sharing your recipes!
This crust is in the American heart association cook book . It can also be pressed into a pie pan and made into a great apple pie,or be baked with pie weights and be filled with most any filling. Your apple pie bars are wonderful with tea for breakfast. Thankyou
Unfortunately pie crust will never be flaky and tender using oil. It just doesn’t work. I am an experienced Baker.
I disagree… I made this pie crust. Not only was it foolproof, it was delicious and everyone loved it! Thanks Jenny! Love your recipes!
You are so wrong. I only make this type of pie crust. Never has it NOT been flakey and tender. I am asked for my recipe often.
what if I do not have tapioca
The recipe indicates tapioca or flour.
Jenny would this work using almond milk instead of dairy milk and a sugar substitute like erythritol?
I do love apple so I was very happy to get this recipe looking forward making it soon
My Polish Mother would make cheese cake.
She would make it with cottage cheese, would u
happen to know of that recipe.
Thank you!
2-16 oz cottage cheese and
1- 8oz pk cream cheese run through a sieve
Add 1-3/4 c sugar
3 eggs
4 tbls flour and
2 tbls vanilla
Pour into a 9×13” graham cracker crust and bake at 350 degrees for one hour
This recipe is from my grandmother and only recipe our families used.
Make a Graham cracker crust. 9/13 pan
Filling: 1/2 lb cottage cheese or 1 carton.( the cheese has to be sieved through a strainer a couple of hours or overnite) 1/2 C sugar, 1 T flour, 1 tsp salt, 1 tsp vanilla, 3 eggs separated, 1/2 C cream or milk
Beat the egg whites till frothy, then add 1/4 C sugar and beat till stiff. Put that into a bowl. In same bowl egg whites were beaten, beat cheese, remaining sugar, flour, salt & cream. Add the vanilla & egg yolks & beat again. Fold in egg whites & pour into crumb lined pan. Bake 375 about 45 min or till knife inserted comes out clean.
Hi Jenny
Getting ready to make your Apple pie bars. The description indicates you use hearthealthy olive oil in the crust, however, the actually recipes states vegetable oil. Does it make a difference?
Love your site & recipes. Thanks soooo much for sharing.
I’m glad you asked. I routinely update my recipes and I missed the olive oil note. I now use avocado oil for all my baking but you can use extra light olive oil or any vegetable oil for the crust. (I have updated the recipe correctly, thank you)
Hi, I love your recipes. Curious as to why you’ve switched to avocado oil?
I am curious also, as I just read on a website that pure olive oil has tremendous nutritive qualities, like lowering blood pressure.
I switched from EXTRA LIGHT olive oil in my baking to expeller pressed avocado oil but I use EXTRA VIRGIN olive oil every day in salads and sauteing. (the strong flavor of EVOO makes it unsuitable for most baking)
Extra Light olive oil is processed and does not have the health benefits of extra virgin olive oil. Avocado oil has many of the benefits of EVOO and is flavorless, perfect for baking.
What apples can I use don’t like grannysmith, sorry I goof befor
I have had good results with honeycrisp and jonagold apples if you have access to those. I add a bit of lemon juice to slightly increase the tartness. I’m doing that today, actually.
Jenny I. Love , your recipes, but the apple pie bars, can I use diffrerent, kind of apples I don’t care for grendiesmith
Hi Jenny. I am so grateful to have found your site. I love clean healthy eating & baking too. So glad for the section on baking without butter, because my son needs special oil (MCT) for his daily fat, and cannot have other fats due to rare metabolic disorder. Recipes that use oil successfully instead of butter are like gold. It really stinks when your mom (me) says you can have the filling but not the crust on apple pie. I look forward to exploring your recipes.
I would like to know can you use already made crust
I make this with 4 pillsbury piecrust rounds in a 9×13 pan for potlucks. You won’t need all rounds for this size but sprinkle with cinnamon sugar and cut into wedges and bake for old fashioned treat like Grandma used to make. Filling is 1 and 1/2 for 9 x 13.
Was wondering if I wanted to use a 9X13 pan how would i increase the recipe?
you pat the bottom crust onto the bottom of the pan and NOT up the sides? what does the top crust meld to?
According o jenny’s directions….
5. Between 2 more sheets of wax paper, roll the other mound into a 9-inch square and transfer to the bottom of an 8×8-inch ungreased or parchment paper lined square pan, pressing some crust up the sides. (or you can press the mound of dough into the pan, by hand.)
Do you think it would be ok with almond milk?
I can’t see any reason why it wouldn’t! Almond is exchanged for dairy milk all the time.
Substituted 6 cups rhubarb and Stevia for the sugar in the filling from our garden and this was awesome!!! Thanks for easy & quick pie.
How much stevia?
1/3 – 1/2 cup Stevia for Baking, depends how sweet apples are and how sweet you like apple pie.
Can you use puff pastry for this recipe?
Trouble you to explain what is “1/3 cup 1% milk”? Tks.
That is one-third of a cup (5 tablespoons + 1 teaspoon) of low fat milk. My milk has 1% fat but some have 2% fat. I will clarify the recipe.
I made this recipes just now for my friends. I can say, I had luck had one piece. Thank you for share this yummy tasty Apple Pie
About how many apples would 8 cups be?
I would say about 6 apples. I would purchase bout 6 apples and coarsely chop them and place them in a measuring cup or bowl. How ever many apples i have left will determine how many i will need time. I will use the extra apples in a salad, cereal, smoothie, or eat it alone. I hope this helps.
Hi Jenny,
I can’t wait to try this recipe. I needed an eggless, butterless recipe that is quick to make. We are having a food festival (in India) and I wanted to bring a bit of Canada to the people here using simple easy to get ingredients. This recipe is perfect and it looks really quick.
AB
I had a lot of trouble making the crust fit next time I think I’m going to make more crust then what was on the recipe. My apples where also cut to big, the cake would of bin neeter.
If you’re using an 8 x 8-inch pan the crust should fit. If you make more dough, the crust may be too heavy. Try also rolling the bottom crust between wax paper first. I roll it into a rough 8 by 8 size, then I lift off the top wax paper and trim it into a rough square. Then I lift it off and put it into the pan. You can then press it to the edges if needed. And the top crust does not have to cover completely. It’s okay for there to be some rough openings.
Jenny,
I have made these at least a dozen times and this is a fabulous recipe. Thank you for sharing! Perfect results every time.
Hi Jenny,
Can the crust dough be frozen for later use?
Love your videos! Thanks for sharing =)
I have never frozen my crust but I believe it can be frozen.
I was a little scared to make this recipe just because I love butter and eggs in my dessert but I gave it a try and it was delicious!! I loved it soo much!
Jenny just recently came upon your website when I was looking to make some desserts without butter. I tried your lemon brownies recipe and they were a hit. The only thing that I would change next time is to add some kind of pudding or custard in the middle for that extra umph. Also I tried your pallet bars and found that I needed to add a little extra milk and oil to the dough since it seemed a little dry. Also it was a huge hit and will continue to visit your website for new recipes.
Thanks a bunch.
I love polish “szarlotka”. This apple pie is different then szarlotka because it’s crust is made from different ingredients… much healthier ingredients ( it does not contain butter and sour cream:).But still it is very yummy. I have already made it several times. It works better for me better if I fry apples first.For this amount of crust I used 4 Granny Smith apples which I chopped and fried for couple of minutes in a pan until they became soft. I added a little bit of sugar but one does not have to. One can also add some lemon juice if the apples are too sweet.Thanks for the recipe.
Hi Jenny thanks for the receipe on apple pie bars for I love baking with olive oil. I just tried baking the bars but find the dough for the crust quite insufficient. Had to roll real hard in order to stretch the crust to barely cover my pan. What could be the problem? Please advise. Thanks.
I’ve made this recipe many times and only 2 things come to mind. One is maybe your pan is 9 x 9 and not 8 x 8? Another is are you rolling between wax paper? Between the wax papers you should be able to keep rolling as wide as you need. I actually roll bottom crust between wax paper instead of pressing in in the pan. It’s just less work than pressing it in so maybe you could try that – unless you’re already doing it. Please let me know and I will try to help further. It’s important to me that my recipes work for everyone.
Thanks for the prompt reply! You could be right that my pan may be slightly bigger. I did roll between wax paper as suggested in your recipe or i would not be able to get a decent crust at all! Having said that, the bars turned out very delicious.
The crust had to be thrown out. Dry, wouldn’t roll. I was hesitant to try oil and learned my lesson
It sounds like you used too much flour. If you don’t aerate your flour before measuring, you will use too much flour.
https://www.jennycancook.com/how-to-aerate-flour/
I don’t have any nutmeg on hand… Would it make a big difference if I omitted it? Any substitutes?
Nutmeg is a nice companion to cinnamon but you can either omit it or use an extra 1/8 teaspoon of cinnamon.
I made your apple pie bars for desert. OMG!! They are soooooooo good!!!
Jenny you have no idea how long I was looking for an apple pie bar recipe without eggs and came across yours. My daughter is allergic to eggs and I was getting frustrated at not finding a recipe without calling for them and now can enjoy the bars as much as everyone else. You don’t even know how much you helped.