Apple Crumb Bars

This summer, I stumbled upon a recipe for blueberry crumb bars. Little did I know, they would become a problem. A problem as in, I felt the need to make a double batch the second time I made them, because I knew that I was probably going to eat all of one batch by myself.

The blueberry bars were so good that they became known by the code name 'crack.' As in, "Hey, I'm making some crack. I'll bring some over." And then blueberry season was a thing of the past, and I had frozen no berries; blueberry bars would have to wait until next June.

However, inspiration struck during a standard 5 a.m. bout of insomnia--how about some apple crumb bars?

The resulting bars are delicious and seasonally satisfying, but as a friend said, they're 'crack-like,' as in not-quite-crack. I think they're worth making, though, and it may even be a good thing that they're just super-delicious, as opposed to insanely delicious.

Apple Crumb Bars

• 2 cups all-purpose flour
• 3/4 teaspoon salt
• 1/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon
• 1 cup (2 sticks) unsalted butter, chilled and cut into 1/2 inch cubes
• 1 cup (packed) light brown sugar
• 1 cup old-fashioned oats
• 1/2 cup sliced or chopped almonds
• 3 Granny Smith apples
• 1 Fuji apple
• Juice of 1/2 lemon
• Zest of 1/2 lemon
• 1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
• 1/4 teaspoon freshly grated nutmeg
• 1/4 teaspoon allspice
• Pinch ground ginger
• 1/4 cup plus 2 tablespoons apple butter (made with no added sugar)

Preheat oven to 375°F. Line a 13x9x2-inch metal baking pan with foil, and spray the foil with non-stick cooking spray.

Add flour, sugar, salt, and cinnamon to the bowl of a food processor and process until combined, about 3 seconds. Add the butter and pulse (about 5 times) until pea-size lumps are all that remain of the butter. Transfer to a large bowl and add the oats, stir to combine.

Transfer 2 cups of this mixture to another bowl, and stir in the almonds. Set aside.

Press the almond-less crumb mixture evenly onto bottom of prepared pan. Bake crust until golden and just firm to touch, about 20 minutes. Cool 10 minutes.

While the crust cooks and cools, peel and core the apples. Cut them into thin slices, about 1/8 inch thick. Place the slices in a large bowl and toss them with the lemon juice, lemon zest, cinnamon, allspice, nutmeg, and ginger.

When the crust has cooled a bit, spread the apple butter over the top; it will be a rather thin coating. Fan the apple slices out in an overlapping pattern along one long side of the pan. Lay out another line of slices next to the first one, and continue to do this until the pan is full. You're basically laying out the slices the way you would lay out potato slices for a potato gratin, but working in the other direction. It may seem a bit fussy to do it this way, but if the apples are just dumped into the pan, they will not cook properly.

Spread the almond crumb topping over the apples. Cover with foil and cook 55 minutes in the center of the oven. Remove the foil and cook 10 more minutes, or until the topping is golden brown and the apples are very tender and just starting to bubble.

Allow to cool, and cut into bar shapes to serve. This dessert is generally better the day after it's made, and keeps well for about 3 days.

Blueberry Crumb Bars

So I was just telling some of my co-workers that I made some delicious blueberry crumb bars, but forgot to bring them in. And I really meant to bring them in, because, as the doctor said, "Wow. Those sound buttery."


"Yes they are," I said. "I made a double batch and used a pound of butter."


This is where a fellow nurse stifled a gasp and became very wide-eyed. "But each batch was the size of this patient's chart," I tried to justify.


But really, there's no getting around the fact that these specimens contain a  lot of butter. That's why they need to get the heck out of my house. These little bars of crumby, gooey deliciousness are like little pies (my most favoritest dessert ever), but better, because you can eat them with your hands. Everything is better when eaten with the hands.
We made these for our Fourth of July picnic, at which point we pondered the origins of their deliciousness. We pronounced,"They're the perfect combination of sweet (the blueberries), salty (the dough), starchy (the dough), tart (the lemon), smooth (the filling), and crunchy (the topping)." Not to mention buttery. With all of these fantastic flavors and textures all going on at the same time, your tongue just can't say no. At least mine can't--these things are becoming seriously problematic, much like the zucchini patties.


Like one of Nick's co-workers said, "Your brain tells you to eat it, and you have no choice." 


These bars are easy to make, and they're delicious the day after they're made, which makes them quite convenient. Also convenient is the fact that they're super-portable. The perfect summer food.

Blueberry Crumb Bars

(Adapted from Epicurious)

Crust: 

• 2 cups all purpose flour
• 1 cup old-fashioned oats
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 1/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon
• 1 cup (2 sticks) chilled unsalted butter, cut into 1/2-inch cubes
• 1 cup (packed) golden brown sugar
• 1/2 cup sliced or chopped almonds

Filling:

• 3 cups fresh blueberries (about 15 ounces) or one 12-ounce package frozen blueberries (do not thaw)
• 1 cup blueberry preserves (10 to 11 ounces)
• 1 tablespoon all purpose flour
• 1 teaspoon finely grated lemon peel (packed)

For crust:
Preheat oven to 350°F. Line the bottom of a 13x9x2-inch metal baking pan with aluminum foil, and spray foil with non-stick cooking spray.


Add flour, sugar, salt and cinnamon to a food processor and mix for a few seconds until combined. Drop the chunks of butter onto the surface of the flour, and pulse a few times until the butter has turned into pea-sized lumps. Dump this mixture into a large bowl and add the oats. Mix to combine.


Transfer 2 cups to medium bowl; mix in almonds and reserve for topping.


Press remaining crumb mixture evenly onto bottom of prepared pan. Bake crust until golden and just firm to touch, about 20 minutes. Cool 10 minutes.


For filling:
Mix all ingredients in medium bowl. Spread evenly over crust in pan, then sprinkle reserved topping over.


Bake bars until filling bubbles thickly at edges and topping is golden brown, about 50-60 minutes; cool in pan on rack. Cut lengthwise into 4 strips, then cut each strip into 6 pieces, forming 24 bars.


These bars are excellent the day they're made, but I think that they really reach the peak of perfection on their second day of existence. Store covered in the refrigerator.