How can we leave October without dropping an apple dessert recipe? Exactly.
I enjoyed the labor intensity of making this recipe, from peeling the apples, to beating the butter and sugar together. Sometimes there’s just something to experience the process of taking raw ingredients and working that kitchen magic on them, ya know?
Anyway, I’m not here to tell you a life story, but I am here to impart the deets. Check it out:
INGREDIENTS
For the dough:
- 2 cups all purpose flour
- 1 tsp baking soda
- 1 tsp salt
- 1 tsp ground cinnamon
- 1 tsp ground allspice
- 1/2 tsp ground cardamom
- 1/2 tsp ground nutmeg
- 1 cup (2 sticks) unsalted butter, softened
- 1 & 2/3 cup granulated sugar
- 2 eggs
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
- 4 cups peeled & finely chopped Granny Smith apples
For the glaze:
- 1/2-3/4 cup toasted chopped pecans
- 1/2 cup brown sugar
- 1/4 cup unsalted butter, melted
- 2 tbsp water
- 2 tbsp flour
- 1/4 cup rolled oats
DIRECTIONS
- Preheat oven to 350F
- In a large bowl, combine the dry ingredients – flour, baking soda, salt, and spices and whisk.
- In a stand mixer, beat the softened butter for ~30 seconds to a minute, then add granulated sugar and beat until fluffy. Scrape the sides as needed for incorporation. Beats in the eggs, then add the vanilla. Slowly add in the flour mixture. Once the flour mix is well incorporated, add the apple chunks. Optionally, you may also add chopped walnuts or more chopped pecans if you have any.
- Grease a 9 x 13 baking dish, and bake for ~50-60 minutes. The dough will be sticky and a little challenging to work with, but it comes out really moist and fluffy.
- While the bars bake, in a bowl, combine toasted pecans, brown sugar, melted butter, flour, water, and rolled oats. I also added spices to this mix. Evenly coat the top of the bars and then bake for an additional 5 minutes. Enjoy!
