The perfect dessert for apple season – these apple crisp bars have a shortbread crust, cinnamon apples, and an oatmeal crumble on top. They’re wonderful with a drizzle of caramel or a scoop of ice cream.
If the crunchy topping is your favorite part of apple crisp, you’ll love these apple crisp bars. A buttery shortbread base supports a layer of tart, cinnamon-spiced apples, finished with a crunchy oatmeal and brown sugar crumble. The bars cut cleanly once cooled and taste great the next day.
I’m fond of fruit crumble bars, and this apple version is no exception. It requires about the same effort as a traditional apple crumble but yields more buttery, cinnamon-crisp topping and a portable bar format that’s easy to serve.
Apple Crisp Bars
This recipe has three simple components: a shortbread cookie base, a spiced apple filling, and an oatmeal crumble topping. Breaking the recipe into parts makes it look longer than it is, but each step is straightforward.
The shortbread base is a tender, buttery cookie pressed into a lined pan and baked on its own for 20–25 minutes. Baking the base separately is essential; if you skip this step the base can turn soggy or underbaked.
While the base bakes, prepare the apple filling and the crumble. For the filling, peel, core and thinly slice apples, then toss them with a little sugar, flour and cinnamon. Choose a crisp, tart apple—Honeycrisp, Pink Lady or Granny Smith are great choices—so the fruit holds up and balances the sweetness as it bakes.
The topping is a brown sugar oatmeal crumble: combine flour, brown sugar, a bit of white sugar, oats and cinnamon, then stir in melted butter until it resembles wet sand. Squeeze the mixture with your fingers to form small clumps before sprinkling it over the apple layer.
Bake the assembled bars until the topping is golden and the apples are tender. It’s very important to cool the bars completely in the pan before slicing—cutting while hot will make a mess. Once cooled to room temperature, use the parchment overhang to lift the slab from the pan and slice on a cutting board.
Serve warm after a quick microwave blast for a few seconds, or room temperature. A drizzle of salted caramel or a scoop of vanilla ice cream makes them an indulgent fall dessert.
More apple desserts to try:
- Caramel Apple Galette
- Apple Spice Cake with Cream Cheese Frosting
- Apple Bread
Apple Crisp Bars
Ingredients
Shortbread Base
- 1/2 cup unsalted butter, softened
- 1/4 cup white sugar
- 1 cup all-purpose flour
- 1 tablespoon cornstarch
- 1/4 teaspoon salt
Apple Filling
- 2 large apples (Honeycrisp, Granny Smith or Pink Lady recommended)
- 1 tablespoon white sugar
- 1 tablespoon all-purpose flour
- 2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
Crumble Topping
- 1/2 cup all-purpose flour
- 1/3 cup packed brown sugar
- 2 tablespoons white sugar
- 1/3 cup rolled oats
- 1/4 cup unsalted butter, melted
Instructions
Shortbread Base
- Preheat the oven to 350°F (180°C). Line an 8×8 inch (20×20 cm) pan with parchment, leaving an overhang.
- In a medium bowl, beat the butter and sugar until combined.
- On low speed, mix in the flour, cornstarch and salt until a dough forms.
- Press the dough evenly into the bottom of the prepared pan.
- Bake for 22–25 minutes, until set and slightly golden at the edges. Remove from oven and keep oven on.
Apple Filling
- Peel, core and thinly slice the apples.
- Toss the slices with the flour, sugar and cinnamon.
- Arrange the apple slices evenly over the baked shortbread base.
Oatmeal Crumble Topping
- Combine flour, brown sugar, white sugar, cinnamon and oats.
- Stir in melted butter until the mixture feels like wet sand.
- Crumble the topping over the apples.
- Bake for 35 minutes, until the topping is golden and the apples are tender.
- Remove from oven and cool completely in the pan.
- When cooled, lift the bars from the pan using the parchment overhang and slice on a cutting board.
Notes
- Two large apples (or 2½ medium/small) work. Use a crisp, flavorful variety; avoid McIntosh or Golden Delicious for this recipe.
- Store bars in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 3 days. Freeze for up to 2 months and thaw in the fridge before serving.
- Nutrition is an estimate per bar (without caramel or ice cream), assuming 9 equal pieces.
Nutrition
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