At any rate, leaving church one Thursday there was a box of organic apples sitting there waiting for a good home. The box said "great for pies!" DH suggested we take some and I could make a pie. Oh, how I wish I took that class!! But, these were really good apples, I just couldn't pass them up. We later had the same priest over who was offering these apples and I just had to make something with them. This is what I made. It was a huge success! I gave some to the boys for lunch and they actually called them apple pie squares. Thank you Eating Well!
INGREDIENTS
CRUST
- 1 cup chopped nuts (walnuts, pecans, almonds or hazelnuts) or old-fashioned rolled oats, divided
- 3/4 cup whole-wheat pastry flour (see Tip)
- 3/4 cup all-purpose flour
- 1/2 cup sugar
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 4 tablespoons cold unsalted butter, cut into small pieces
- 1 large egg
- 2 tablespoons canola oil
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 1/4 teaspoon almond extract
FRUIT FILLING
- 6 cups diced peeled apples, divided
- 1/2 cup apple cider or orange juice
- 1/2 cup sugar
- 1/4 cup cornstarch
- 1 1/2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
PREPARATION
- To prepare crust: Combine 3/4 cup nuts (or oats), whole-wheat flour, all-purpose flour, sugar and salt in a food processor; pulse until the nuts are finely ground. Add butter; pulse until well incorporated.
- Whisk egg, oil, 1 teaspoon vanilla and almond extract in a small bowl. With the motor running, add the mixture to the food processor. Process, then pulse, scraping down the sides, if necessary, until the mixture begins to clump, 30 to 45 seconds (it will look crumbly). Measure out 1/2 cup of the mixture and combine in a bowl with the remaining 1/4 cup chopped nuts (or oats). Set aside for the topping.
- Preheat oven to 400°F. Generously coat a 9-by-13-inch baking dish with cooking spray.
- To prepare fruit filling & assemble bars: Combine 4 cups apples, cider (or orange juice), sugar and cornstarch in a large saucepan. Bring to a simmer over medium heat, stirring constantly, until the mixture is very thick, 4 to 5 minutes. Stir in the remaining 2 cups apples, cinnamon and 1 teaspoon vanilla.
- Transfer the dough to the prepared baking dish. Spread evenly and press firmly into the bottom to form a crust. Spread the fruit filling over the crust. Sprinkle the reserved topping over the filling.
- Bake the bars for 15 minutes. Reduce oven temperature to 350° and bake until the crust and topping are lightly brown, 25 to 30 minutes more. Let cool completely before cutting into bars, at least 1 1/2 hours.
TIPS & NOTES
- Make Ahead Tip: Cover and refrigerate the crust and topping (Steps 1-2) for up to 1 day. Cover or individually wrap and refrigerate the cooled bars for up to 5 days.
- Tip: Lower in protein than regular whole-wheat flour, whole-wheat pastry flour is milled from soft wheat and has less gluten-forming potential, making it a better choice for tender baked goods. You can find it in the natural-foods section of large supermarkets and natural-foods stores. Store in the freezer.
