Easy Apple Pie Bars With Almond Butter Crust

Name: Easy Apple Pie Bars With Almond Butter Crust
Prep time: 5 min
Cook time: 25 min
Total time: 30 min
Ingredients: ¾ cup almond butter ((creamy and salted)); Sprinkle of sea salt; 1 cup whole wheat flour; 2 tablespoons coconut oil (melted); 1 teaspoon vanilla; 2 tablespoons maple syrup; 2 teaspoons plain unsweetened almond milk; 2 tablespoons unsweetened applesauce; 3 cups diced apples ((I used 3 Jazz apples)); 1 teaspoon cinnamon; ¼ teaspoon nutmeg; ⅛ teaspoon salt; 1 tablespoon coconut oil (melted); ½ lemon juiced; 1 teaspoon cornstarch; 1 teaspoon vanilla

by Kaileigh Gaffney on November 15, 2022 0 comments

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Well, I’m in love. These Easy Apple Pie Bars With Almond Butter Crust are sweet and tart, with the comforting spices of cinnamon and nutmeg. The almond butter crust has a subtle background flavor and provides a solid, cookie-like texture and structure to the Apple Pie Bars.

Not only that, these Apple Pie Bars are vegan, very low in sugar, and ready in just 30 minutes!

Apple Pie Bars are in a baking dish, uncut, with two apples sitting next to it.

In the rivalry between pumpkin lovers and apple lovers that presents itself each fall, I am definitely on Team Apple. (But, shhhhh…I’m also very down for a pumpkin dessert. 😉 )

Because I love apple desserts so much, I have been dreaming up this recipe for a while and have been so excited to bring it to life.

I wanted to capture the bursts of sweetness and tartness of apples along with the coziness and warmth that cinnamon and nutmeg bring to the table. The Apple Pie Bars were to be easy to pick up with your hands, so they could function like a snack. I also wanted them to contain minimal added sugar, so that I would feel comfortable with my toddler eating them and for my family to be able to eat them as a snack (or even breakfast!).

Apple pie bars sit in rows on parchment paper with two apples and cinnamon sticks surrounding it.

Why You’ll Love These Easy Apple Pie Bars

Delicious. They taste like apple pie, cinnamon, and everything nice.

Great for a holiday party. They make a beautiful and tasty treat to bring to or serve at a holiday party. I made them for Thanksgiving last year and they were a hit!

Toddler-friendly. Our toddler simply loves them and because there are only 2 tablespoons of maple syrup in them, I feel okay with him devouring them!

Quick. These only take 30 minutes to make!

I like these Apple Pie Bars so much that when I was about to eat the last Apple Pie Bar, my husband, Drew, commented, “Wait, I’ve only had one!”…It was me. I ate them all. Minus the two I shared with my toddler. When I write this out, yes, I do feel kind of bad.

A close up view of apple pie bars in rows, one is sitting slightly sideways.

Easy Apple Pie Bar Ingredients

Almond Butter Crust

Almond butter (creamy and salted)

Whole wheat flour

Coconut oil

Vanilla

Maple syrup

Almond milk

Apple Pie Filling

Unsweetened applesauce

Apples (be sure to use a sweet apple! I used Jazz Apples)

Spices: cinnamon and nutmeg

Lemon

Cornstarch

Salt

How to Make Easy Apple Pie Bars With Almond Butter Crust

STEP 1

In a large bowl, mix all of the almond butter crust ingredients together so that it forms a dough and shape it into a ball. If the dough seems too dry, add another teaspoon of almond milk. Lay the ball of dough on a piece of parchment paper and begin spreading it out with your fingers. Next, place another piece of parchment paper on top of the dough and use a rolling pin to help roll out the dough further so it’s about ½ an inch thick. Transfer the bottom piece of parchment paper and the rolled-out dough to an 8×8 baking dish. Then, push all the corners down so it sits evenly. Bake the crust in the oven for 15 minutes, until the crust is mostly firm.

STEP 2

While the crust is cooking, prepare the apple pie filling by combining all of the apple pie filling ingredients together in a large bowl.

STEP 3

Once the crust is cooked, pour the apple pie filling on top of it and spread the mixture out evenly. Bake in the oven for another 10 minutes.

A close up view of the side of an apple pie bar. More apple pie bars sit behind it as well as two apples.

Healthy Apple Pie Bar Ingredient Substitutions

Almond butter: You can use any nut butter you’d like for this recipe or sunflower butter if needed to accommodate a nut allergy.

Whole wheat flour: You can use regular flour if you don’t have whole wheat flour on hand! I have not tried making this recipe with flour alternatives like almond flour or coconut flour, so I am not sure how the crust would hold up using these types of flour and therefore, would not recommend using them.

Coconut oil: You can use a similar cooking oil instead, such as avocado oil or canola oil.

Maple syrup: You can replace the maple syrup with honey, agave syrup, or molasses at a 1:1 ratio.

Almond milk: You can use any plant-based milk or regular milk.

Apples: I use Jazz Apples, but you can use any sweet apple for this recipe!

Cornstarch: You can replace cornstarch with arrowroot powder, tapioca flour, or regular flour.

How to Store Leftover Vegan Apple Pie Bars

Store leftover Apple Pie Bars in an air-tight container in the fridge for up to 5 days.

More Tasty Fall Treats!

Healthy Pumpkin Bars

Easy Vegan Apple Cinnamon Muffins

Gluten-Free Chocolate Chip Banana Bread

Healthy Banana Zucchini Bread (Gluten-Free)

If you tried this Easy Apple Pie Bar recipe or any other recipe on the blog let me know how you liked it by leaving a comment/rating below! Be sure to follow along on Pinterest, Instagram, and Facebook for even more deliciousness!

A stack of Easy Apple Pie Bars with more bars surrounding it and two apples in the background.

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