Caramel Apple Bars

I think I’ve shared with you before, I LOVE ANYTHING CARAMEL! When most of you are drooling over chocolate, I’m drooling over caramel.

 

About a month ago, I was getting ready to do personal progress for the teenage girls in my ward, and of course, I had to take a treat. With it being Fall, my mind always goes to the flavors that scream the season.

 

I had a lot of girls tell me that they didn’t like apple pie and didn’t know if they would like this. By the end of the night, the same girls were sneaking another square. It made my heart sing!

This is super simple and will be a hit with everyone!

 

 

 

Caramel Apple Bars

Caramel Apple Bars

Directions:

• Preheat oven to 300 degrees. Line the bottom of an 8-inch baking pan with parchment paper, leave enough to overhang the sides.
• Crust: In a medium bowl, combine the melted butter, sugar, vanilla, and salt. Add the flour and stir until everything is well combined. Pour the mixture into the prepared pan. Press the crust evenly in the bottom of the pan. Bake for 15 minutes.
• Filling: In a different bowl, combine the apples, flour, sugar, cinnamon, and nutmeg until all of the apples are coated. Set aside.
• Topping: Yes, use another bowl, combine the oats, brown sugar, cinnamon, and flour with a fork until completely blended. Cut in the cold butter with a pastry blender or a fork. The mixture will be coarse crumbs. Set aside.
• Remove the crust from the oven. Turn the oven to 350 degrees. Pour the apples on top of the warm crust. Make sure they are spread evenly and make sure the apples are pressed in tightly. With your hands, sprinkle the apple layers with the topping and bake for 30 to 35 minutes or it’s golden brown.
• When done, let cool until its room temperature, and then put it into the fridge for at least 2 hours or even overnight. This will help you cut your bars. Lift the parchment paper edges out of the pan and cut your yumminess into bars. Once cut, drizzle each bar with caramel sauce. I suggest our caramel sauce, the recipe is below.

 

I was telling my mother in law about this caramel sauce. She told me that when she was a little girl, people would bring burnt sugar from the sugar mill because it always made the best caramel, in fact, this was the only way they would ever have caramel.

 

You will be drooling over this! It will make your bars heavenly but would be great ice cream topping.

 

Ingredients: Click to print
2 cups white sugar
3/4 cup butter, cut into pieces
1 cup heavy cream
2 teaspoons vanilla

 

Directions:

• Heat the sugar in a saucepan over medium heat, stirring constantly with a wooden spoon.
• Sugar will form clumps and eventually melt into a thick brown, liquid as you continue to stir. Make sure not to let it burn.
• Once sugar is completely melted, add the butter. Be careful, when you add the butter it will make it bubble rapidly.
• Stir the butter into the caramel until its completely melted.
• Slowly add the heavy cream while continuing to stir. Allow the caramel to boil for about a minute, keep stirring.
• Remove from the heat and stir in the salt. Allow cooling for about 10 minutes before using it.

COOKIE BAR RECIPES