Caramel Apple Bars with Buttery Oat Topping

Layered caramel apple bars make a delicious, crowd-pleasing fall dessert! Made with an oatmeal cookie crust that doubles as a crumble topping, the bars are baked in an 8-inch pan until golden. Filled with spiced apples and finished with a drizzle of caramel sauce, they taste like a cross between warm apple crisp and Dutch apple pie.

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When I’m craving caramel apple pie but not in the mood to make pie crust from scratch or roll out dough, I make these salted caramel apple pie bars!

The buttery, brown sugar crust and crumble topping are made from one simple dough, with a cozy layer of tender apples and buttery caramel sauce in the middle.

My favorite way to serve them: warm with a scoop of vanilla ice cream and extra caramel!

Craving more caramel apple desserts? You may also like my caramel apple puff pastry tarts or caramel apple tart!

Ingredient Notes

For best results, use regular rolled oats (instead of quick-cooking or instant) for a nice chewy texture. Light or dark brown sugar work well in the crust/crumble mixture. Dark brown sugar will add a slightly richer molasses flavor.

You’ll need 2 1/2 cups of peeled and diced apples for the filling. Whenever I’m baking with apples, I like to use a mix of sweet-tart varieties with a semi-firm texture, like Honeycrisp, Granny Smith, and Golden Delicious.

And caramel sauce is a must! As a timesaver, you can make the sauce up to a week ahead and store it in the fridge. Gently re-warm it in the microwave before making the bars.

Caramel Apple Bars with Buttery Oat Topping

5 Stars 4 Stars 3 Stars 2 Stars 1 Star 5 from 2 reviews

• Author: Laura Kasavan
• Prep Time: 20 minutes
• Cook Time: 55 minutes
• Total Time: 1 hour 15 minutes
• Yield: 16 bars
• Category: Dessert
• Method: Bake
• Cuisine: American

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Description

Layered caramel apple bars make a delicious, crowd-pleasing fall dessert! Made with an oatmeal cookie crust that doubles as a crumble topping, the bars are baked in an 8-inch pan until golden. Filled with spiced apples and finished with a drizzle of caramel sauce, they taste like a cross between warm apple crisp and Dutch apple pie.

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Ingredients

Crust and Crumble

• 1 1/4 cups (175 g) all-purpose flour
• 1 cup (84 g) rolled oats
• 3/4 cup (150 g) light or dark brown sugar
• 1/2 tsp baking soda
• 1/4 tsp salt
• 10 Tbsp (140 g) unsalted butter, melted
• 1 1/2 tsp (6 g) vanilla extract

Apple Filling

• 2 1/2 cups (300 g) peeled and diced apples
• 1 tsp lemon juice
• 1/4 cup (50 g) granulated sugar
• 1/2 tsp cinnamon
• 1 1/2 Tbsp (12 g) arrowroot starch (or cornstarch)

Caramel

• 1/2 cup salted caramel sauce

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Instructions

1. Preheat oven to 350°F and line an 8-inch square baking pan with parchment paper.
2. Make crust and crumble: Combine flour, oats, brown sugar, baking soda, and salt in a medium bowl. Fold in melted butter and vanilla until combined. Reserve 3/4 cup of dough for topping (chill until ready to use); press remaining dough evenly into bottom of prepared pan.
3. Bake crust for 14 to 16 minutes, until lightly golden and set. Transfer to a wire rack and cool for 15 minutes.
4. Make apple filling: Combine apples and lemon juice in a medium bowl. Whisk together sugar, cinnamon, and arrowroot starch; add to bowl with apples and toss together until combined.
5. Spoon apple filling evenly over the cooled crust and drizzle the apples with 1/4 cup salted caramel sauce. Crumble reserved dough over the top.
6. Bake bars for another 40 to 42 minutes, or until topping is golden and filling slightly bubbly. Cool completely in pan on a wire rack.
7. Just before cutting, chill in the freezer for 10 minutes. Carefully lift parchment and place bars on a cutting board; cut into squares with a sharp knife. Drizzle with remaining salted caramel sauce.
8. Store leftover bars in an airtight container in the refrigerator and warm briefly before serving.

Equipment

Mixing Bowls

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Square Baking Pan

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Notes

Gluten Free Bars: Use your favorite 1-1 gluten-free flour and gluten-free oats.

Larger Batch: For a larger batch of bars, double the recipe and bake in a 9 x 13-inch rectangular baking pan.