Hello friends! Today we are teaming up with McCormick to bring you this recipe inspired by an old family favorite, the perfect holiday dessert that your friends and family will really enjoy!
It’s amazing to me how holiday recipes have the power to bring back memories, as well as bring loved ones together to make new ones! I love the way recipes passed down from generation to generation makes us feel so connected to those who have gone before us, with those who have impacted our lives far beyond their intended reach. There’s something comforting about thinking that even when the world was quite a different place than it is now, our grandmothers and grandfathers gathered their loved ones and enjoyed some of the very same dishes we do today. I think it gives us hope that maybe our children’s world will still value what we value, and cherish what we cherish.
These Iced Apple Pie Bars are inspired by a recipe from my grandmother, whose next door neighbor shared the recipe with her when they lived in Mt. Prospect, Illinois – they called it Apple Slices. Last year, I made that recipe with my mom, and while it tasted so very good, I thought it was really hard to make. The crust was super tricky, and had to be rolled out paper, paper thin in order to fit over the apples. It also used real live lard (gah!), which I know was common, but I just could hardly handle! So I adapted it a little bit to make it more manageable for me, and this is what I came up with.
This is a really good type of pie to make if you have trouble with traditional round pies. Not good at crimping fancy edges? No problem here. Just tuck it all in good and tight, and once it’s baked, no one will ever know the difference.
It is also a great recipe for those who love a good crust. The ratio of crust to filling is slightly in favor of the crust here.
I used an all-in-one Apple Pie Spice from McCormick that gives these bars the perfect flavor. Kind of neat to think that my grandma also used McCormick spices to make these apple pie bars considering they have been filling America’s spice cabinets for over 100 years! I’m sure many of you have memories of your own family’s spice cabinets filled with neat rows of these red capped spices as well. Any of you all alphabetize your spices? Extra points if you do for sure! 😉
As you gear up for holiday baking, now is a great time go through your spice cabinet and sure all your spices are fresh and ready to go. Here is a handy guide to refer to for the shelf life of spices.
I hope that you really enjoy the recipes that you choose the bake for your loved ones this holiday season. Whether you are baking an old family favorite, or adding something new and exciting to the table, may good cheer and joy be shared by all as you gather and celebrate together!
PrintIced Apple Pie Bars
Perfectly spiced squares of apple pie with crisscross icing on top!
- Prep Time: 30 minutes
- Cook Time: 1 hour
- Total Time: 1 hour 30 minutes
- Yield: 12 1x
- Category: Dessert
- Method: Bake
- Cuisine: American
Ingredients
- 2 2/3 cups all purpose flour
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 2 tablespoons sugar
- 1 cup unsalted butter, cubed and chilled
- 1/2 cup very cold water
- 6 medium sized Granny Smith Apples, peeled, cored, and chopped into 1/2 inch pieces
- 1/2 cup granulated sugar
- 1/3 cup brown sugar
- 1/2 cup all purpose flour
- 1 teaspoon McCormick Apple Pie Spice
- Optional: egg wash (beaten egg, plus 1 tablespoon milk)
- Sanding sugar
For the Icing
- 2 tablespoons melted butter
- 1 cup powdered sugar
- 1 teaspoon McCormick Pure Vanilla Extract
- 2 tablespoons milk
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
- In a food processor, or high powered blender, pulse flour, salt and sugar together. Add cubed butter and pulse again until you have a mixture of coarse crumbs. Slowly add the cold water and process until a dough forms. Remove the dough from the processor and knead a few times on a floured surface to bring the dough together. Divide into two equal parts, and then cover and chill the dough for one hour while you prepare the apple filling.
- In a large bowl mix apples, granulated and brown sugar, flour, and apple pie spice together until well coated.
- Unwrap one piece of dough and roll out into a rectangle shape on a well floured surface, patting the edges together if they crack. Go slowly, and make sure the dough is not sticking to the surface. Add flour as needed. The rectangle needs to be about 2-3 inches larger than the baking pan, so about 12 by 15 inches. Roll the dough around the rolling pin to transfer it into a 9 by 13 inch baking pan, allowing the dough to go up the sides of the pan.
- Spoon the apple mixture evenly on top of the dough, and then roll out the second piece of dough in the same way, laying it on top of the apples.
- Tuck the sides of the dough around the apple mixture, crimping as you go to seal the top and bottom layer of dough together.
- Brush the egg wash over the top crust, and then sprinkle with a thin layer of sanding sugar if desired. This just gives the top crust a nice shiny finish.
- Bake at 350 for 50-60 minutes. Cover the edges of the crust with pieces of foil if they are golden brown before the pie is finished cooking.
- To make the icing, whisk together melted butter, powdered sugar, vanilla extract, and milk until smooth. Spoon the icing into a sealable plastic bag, and cut a very small bit of the bottom corner off the bag.
- Cool at least 1 hour before icing and slicing.
Nutrition
- Serving Size: 1 Bar
- Calories: 433
- Sugar: 35g
- Sodium: 117mg
- Fat: 18g
- Saturated Fat: 11g
- Unsaturated Fat: 6g
- Trans Fat: 0.1g
- Carbohydrates: 63g
- Fiber: 3.2g
- Protein: 4.6g
- Cholesterol: 62mg
This pie looks wonderful. What size baking pan should be used?
Have made your Best Ever Pumpkin Muffins a few times this week, and they truly are
THE BEST EVER. Thanks for the recipe. Angela
Oops, didn’t mean to leave that out! You will use a 9 by 13 inch baking pan. Glad you loved the muffins Angela!
Made this recipe today. It is absolutely delicious! I served it with vanilla ice cream. Family loved it Will make this recipe again. Great use of apples. I used Gala very tasty.
Pray tell, what is the recipe with lard? Is it just instead of the butter, in the same amount? My grandmother used to make something like this, but with powdered sugar on top instead of icing. She called it Apple Cake, though it sounded like “epple” with her thick Hungarian accent. I’m guessing she would have used lard, but none of her recipes were written down.
Hi Laura, here is a link to the recipe featured in the Chicago Tribune. So interesting that your grandmother made something similar too!
http://articles.chicagotribune.com/2012-01-17/features/ct-tribu-daley-question-apple-slices-20120117_1_apple-mixture-apple-slices-baking
This is serendipitous! Only a couple of weeks ago I was thinking of my mother’s apple slices as I was making some apple pies. It was a family favorite and I can remember sneaking into the pantry to grab another slice. I am Polish and lived in a Polish neighborhood, but didn’t realize it was a Polish/Czech thing according to the article in your Tribune recipe link. This would have been in the fifties!
Thank you for affording me this pleasant childhood memory.
Perry, that’s so wonderful. I just love these kinds of connections that food allows us. How fun that you would sneak an extra slice – that sounds like something I would’ve done too. I showed the Tribune article to my mom, and she said the neighbor that originally shared the recipe with my grandma was also Polish. Thank so much for leaving me a note!
Moreover, I only found your blog tonight! I followed a link for a yogurt cookie recipe. I’ve signed up to receive your emails and am looking forward to additional recipes posts.
Thanks for the memory.
How helpful is that spice guide! And how delightful are these iced apple pie bars? I want a big slab!
Yummy! I can’t wait to try it. It looks so delicious and healthy.
Thanks! Hope you love it as much as we do!
Julie, I had a Julie Ley that lived next door to us on Lincoln St. in Mt. Prospect…. could you be that Julie from so long ago? Wow – memories. I will try your recipe for a board meeting next week – looks wonderful! Thanks. If you are that Julie, please email me back.
Hi Barb, I never lived in Mt. Prospect, but my mom did. She said she knows where Lincoln St. is and she lived on Elmhurst Ave. Her name is Nancy Brouwer. I hope you all really enjoy the apple pie bars. Thank you for saying hello.
Hi Julie – If you wanted a more traditional apple pie, could you leave off the icing and still have a wonderful pie?
Sure, that would be good too.
I would love to make these, but where is the complete recipe, not just the ingredients?
The instructions are right below the ingredients at the bottom of the page, just below the pictures. Hope this helps!
Do you have to blind bake the crust ?
Hi Tami, no you do not need to. Enjoy!
Can you use store bought pie crust instead?
I think it could work, though I haven’t tried it myself. I think you would just need to roll the dough out into more of a rectangle shape to fit the pan.
I made these last year and couldn’t believe how good they were! As I recall, I was impressed that this crust rolled out and transferred to the pan so easily. If anyone is interested in trying a crust from scratch, this is the one to use!
Fond memories of apple slices, have a recipe from my Polish mother-in-law. All the bakeries in Illinois still sell them, but not as good as homemade. Thanks for the memory, will compare the recipes and make this soon.
So interesting to hear that! I hope you enjoy it Anna. It really is a family favorite!
Wonderful bars! I don’t usually like working with dough. Once a recipe says “roll out dough” I usually run screaming. But this wasn’t as bad as I thought it was going to be LOL. Totally worth it too. Yum!
Thank you Christine! I know dough can be so frustrating! I can’t tell you how many times I have made a pie crust and watched it shrink down the sides of the pie pan as it bakes. I just keep trying though, mostly because I love to eat baked goods :0) So glad you were brave and gave them a try!
About how many cups would 6 medium apples make??
I’ve just come across your recipe and it sounds delightful. I must add though that when I make apple pie slice I usually add a handful or so of sultanas as that’s what my Oma used to do.
Very interesting Josephine. I’ll have to try that!
Very Good! I didn’t have enough apples, so I added some of my homemade applesauce on top of the apples. Yum!
So glad you made them work! I bet they were delicious with homemade applesauce!
Just made for our fall get together. Hubby said beat dessert I ever made abs I made a lot of desserts! Followed the recipe exactly as printed. I didn’t substitute or change a thing! Love this! Thank you.
Wonderful, thanks Marcia!
can you put a crumb topping on it instead of the 2nd crust just wondering
Doris, I definitely think a crumb topping would be delicious! In fact, I’m testing a Dutch Apple Slab Pie (made in a jelly roll pan) this week!
I received many compliments from family and friends when I made these. Some also asked me for the recipe. I will definitely be making these again sometime soon.
Wondering if a pastry sheet would work? Going to try this either way.
I got a recipe for Apple Pie Bars from my mother-in-law over 50 years ago which is very similar to these. They are made in a jelly roll pan and yes the crust can be tricky to roll out but nobody notices the patched spots. I usually use a combination of sweet and tart apples. My family is gone now so I haven’t made these for awhile, but they were always a favorite.
Yes, they are truly a labor of love. But very special. I’m glad you have good memories of making these for your family. Thank you for leaving me a note!
Hi Julie, I plan to make this tomorrow. If I 2X recipe, do I use the 9 x 13 pan? Or, use a jelly roll pan? Thank you!
Hi Nancy, to double this recipe I would try it in a 9 by 13 inch pan. Hope you enjoy!
This sounds like a recipe my grandmother used to make. She was from Romania and she made this all the time. Unfortunately my mom did not have the recipe and could never seem to duplicate it. I’m going to try this myself. Sure looks delicious!
Back to Mt. Prospect – I grew up there, on Elmhurst Ave., and attended Lincoln School on Lincoln St.! Small world, isn’t it? So, Julie, what was your mom’s address on Elmhurst? And when? I grew up at 506 S. Elmhurst in the ‘50s and 60’s. And if Barb is reading this, where on Lincoln did you live? It’s fun to look back so far and think about all the changes – people, as well as houses, schools, etc.. This has nothing to do with your delicious sounding apple bars, but I may try them next week. Thanks for the memories.
Hi Lynn – Wow, such a small world! I asked my mom (Nancy Brouwer) what her address was. “Our address was 307 N Elmhurst Ave and I went to Fairview for Grade school, central junior high and Prospect HS!” Thanks for saying hello!
Sorry about the “gah” on lard. It’s much more “natural” than the stuff they “make”, as many chefs are finding out now.
This looks so good! What a great way to still enjoy the apple pie taste without making a pie!
Thanks for sharing! Do they keep long?
I tried to make this and the crust recipe is not enough for a cookie sheet sized pan. I was very disappointed. Never got it made because not enough crust. I had to roll it so thin that when I tried to transfer to pan it all fell apart.