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We love a dessert with a good crumble topping, can you tell? So, today our month of apples continues with a crumb bar recipe from Sherrie of With Food + Love. Made with tart apples, pantry oats and an easy maple glaze, these bars are a perfect fall treat. Here’s how to whip them up…
Apple Crumb Bars
By Sherrie Castellano of With Food + Love
These bars taste just like apple pie, but they aren’t nearly as complicated or time consuming. Serve them warm or room temperature with a heavy drizzle of maple coffee glaze. They are entirely vegan, refined-sugar free and gluten-free accommodating.
Recipe: Apple Crumb Bars
Serves 9
You’ll need:
For the crust
1 cup all-purpose or gluten-free flour
1 cup oats
1/4 tsp salt
1/2 cup vegetable shortening
3 tbsp maple syrup
For the filling
4 cups apples, peeled and thinly sliced
1 tbsp lemon juice
1/4 tsp salt
1 tsp cinnamon
1/4 tsp nutmeg
1/8 tsp cloves
1/8 tsp ginger
3 tbsp maple syrup
2 tbsp organic cornstarch
For the glaze (optional)
1/2 cup raw cashews
1/2 cup strong freshly brewed hot coffee
2 tbsp maple syrup
Pinch of sea salt
Preheat the oven to 350F, and line an 8-inch square dish with parchment paper. Toss the apples with the lemon juice. In a small mixing bowl, whisk together the spices and cornstarch, then add in the maple syrup. Pour this mixture over the apples and toss to evenly coat. Set aside until the crust is ready.
In a large mixing bowl, combine the flour, oats and salt, by stirring. Add in the shortening and mix with your hand until crumbly. Add in the maple syrup and stir until well-combined.
Set aside 1/3 cup of this mixture for the crumb topping. Press the remaining mixture into the lined dish. Pour the apples into the dish, pressing gently. Crumble the remaining oat mixture on top and bake for 40 minutes. Allow the bars to cool almost completely inside the dish. Remove the bars and cut into 9 squares.
To make the maple coffee glaze, combine all of the ingredients in a blender, and process until very smooth. Depending on the quality of your blender, this could take up to a few minutes. Drizzle over bars before serving.
Thanks so much, Sherrie!
P.S. More recipes, including blackberry crumb bars and apple crumb cake.
(Photos and recipe by Sherrie Castellano. This series is edited by Stella Blackmon.)
