apples Archives - Spice Up Your Life

*Apple crisp breakfast bars are not overly sweet. The warm cinnamon flavor, along with the nuttiness of oats, makes these a fabulous morning treat with a hot cup of tea.*

Recently, I had the chance to meet one of our readers from Hesston.

We had a fairly short (but very pleasant) conversation, and before I left, he gestured to a bag on his kitchen counter.

“Do you like apples?” he asked me.

And that’s how I became the excited owner of four huge, beautiful golden delicious apples. He said he bought an entire case of them recently and had been working through them, little by little. I was happy to take these off his hands.

I was very tempted to just eat all of them, but instead, I felt like the gift deserved a spot in a new recipe, and after searching for an apple recipe that used sweet apples instead of tart, I landed on the one I’m sharing with you this week.

The recipe I tried comes from the blog “Healthy Family Project” by Amanda Keefer. You can find the original post at https://healthyfamilyproject.com/recipes/apple-crisp-breakfast-bars/. I added extra maple syrup and cinnamon in my version.

Apple Crisp Breakfast Bars

Apple crisp breakfast bars are not overly sweet. The warm cinnamon flavor, along with the nuttiness of oats, makes these a fabulous morning treat with a hot cup of tea.

Course Breakfast, Dessert

Keyword apples, breakfast bars, cinnamon, Golden delicious apples, maple syrup, quick oats, sweet apples

Ingredients

1 cup quick oats
1 cup flour
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/4 cup and 4 tablespoons maple syrup divided
4 tablespoons butter room temperature
4 teaspoons cinnamon divided
1 egg
2 sweet apples I used golden delicious, diced
1 teaspoon cornstarch

Instructions

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Prepare an eight-by-eight-inch baking pan by lining it with parchment paper, and set it aside.
In a bowl, mix the oats, flour, salt, one-fourth cup maple syrup, butter and two teaspoons cinnamon, and mix until everything is well combined and the texture resembles coarse crumbs.
Set aside one-half cup of the mixture.
In a small bowl, lightly beat the egg with a fork, and then pour it into the remaining crumb mixture, stirring to incorporate it completely. Spread the dough into the prepared baking dish into an even layer.
In another bowl, mix the apples, remaining maple syrup, remaining cinnamon and cornstarch until the apples are well-coated.
Spread the apple mixture evenly over the dough in the pan, and then top it with the oat mixture you set aside, crumbling it evenly over the top. (It won’t completely cover it; just get it evenly over the entire thing.)
Bake for 40 to 50 minutes or until the topping is golden brown and the apples are fork tender.
Let the bars cool completely before slicing them into squares.
Store the bars in an airtight container.

These are not overtly sweet, even with the extra maple syrup I added in my version. They truly are a great breakfast bar, even though you could totally get away with sharing them as a dessert, too.

I ended up doubling my batch of these bars and sharing them as part of a brunch with friends. It’s an incredibly easy recipe to double.

It was nice to be able to take a simple gift and turn it into another gift for others. (I’m sure there’s a small-town metaphor in there somewhere.)

And it was a doubly sweet experience to have a nice conversation on a cold afternoon. Thanks again, Harvey; I hope we will chat again one day.

This piece first appeared in print on Nov. 9, 2023.

Spice Up Your Life is a weekly newspaper column written by Lindsey Young in south central Kansas. If you are interested in sponsoring this column, please contact us through the “Contact Lindsey” link at the top of the page.

Handheld apple pies are a little more labor intensive than making a whole pie, but they’re perfect for a summer get together when utensils are optional. They feature warm spices and a buttery, flaky crust.

When I was growing up, my mom’s specialty, which was required at every family get together, was her deviled eggs.

I remember my uncle jokingly blocking the door, looking for her tell-tale Tupperware box before we were allowed to come inside. I also remember one fateful day when I accidentally dropped the box, creating havoc as everyone had to scoop the filling, which was splattered all over inside the plastic container, back into the eggs. (Sorry, Mom.)

It’s funny how people can sort of become known for their potluck specialties. Over the past couple of years, we have been blessed to be included in some friends’ family get togethers—such as their most recent on July 4—and I’m pretty sure I’ve become the dessert person.

Their family creates an enviable spread of amazing dishes. You literally can’t fit a taste of everything on your plate in the first pass. And there are also always all kinds of cakes and cookies and other great desserts on the table. After introducing them to pineapple tarts last year and handheld apple pies this year, though, I’m pretty sure my spot is cemented in that dessert section.

This recipe is by Katie Ferrier and is featured on the Taste of Home website. You can find the original post at https://www.tasteofhome.com/recipes/hand-held-apple-pies/. I went completely rogue on the filling in my version.

Handheld Apple Pies

Handheld apple pies are a little more labor intensive than making a whole pie, but they're perfect for a summer get together when utensils are optional. They feature warm spices and a buttery, flaky crust.

Course Dessert

Keyword allspice, apple pie, apples, cinnamon, cream cheese, Granny Smith apples, hand pie, summer dessert, vanilla

Ingredients

Crust Ingredients

8 ounces cream cheese softened
1 cup butter softened
2 cups flour
1/4 teaspoon salt

Filling Ingredients

2 to 3 cups tart apples peeled and diced
1/3 cup sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla
1 teaspoon cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon allspice
2 to 3 tablespoons butter cold

Topping Ingredients

1 egg yolk
2 tablespoons water
about 2 tablespoons sugar mixed with a teaspoon cinnamon

Instructions

Beat the cream cheese and butter in a large mixing bowl until the mixture is smooth. Beat in the flour and salt until everything is well combined. Form the dough into a rough ball (It might be sticky. Floured hands is a good idea.), and divide it into two pieces. Form each half into a disk, wrap them in plastic wrap, and refrigerate for at least one hour.
When you’re ready to start assembling, preheat the oven to 425 degrees.
In a bowl, combine all of the filling ingredients except the butter and stir well to evenly coat the apples.
Remove the dough disks from the fridge and cut each into 12 pieces. Keep any pieces you’re not currently working with in the fridge to keep them from getting sticky.
To assemble the pies, roll out each ball of dough on a floured surface into about a four-inch circle.
Add about one tablespoon of apples on one side of the circle and add just a bit of butter. (I cut mine into roughly tablespoon-sized squares and then diced it. Each pie got two to three tiny dots of butter.)
Fold the dough over into a half-circle shape, and either fold the edges up to seal them or crimp them firmly with a fork.
Place the prepared pies one to two inches apart on a baking sheet.
Once your baking sheet is full, whisk the egg yolk and water in a small bowl. Brush the tops and edges of each pie with a thin layer of the egg mixture, and then sprinkle them liberally with the cinnamon/sugar mix. Finish the pies off by cutting two or three small slits in the top to let the steam vent while they cook.
Bake for 12 to 15 minutes or until the tops of your pies are golden brown. Remove the pies from the oven and let cool before storing in an air-tight container or serving.

These were buttery and full of great spices and were so, so good. They were a huge hit at the Fourth of July party, and I was glad I doubled the recipe for the whole crew to enjoy.

They are also fantastic for breakfast, if you’re into sweets in the morning.

It’s fun to bake for a whole different crowd—especially one that is so sure to tell you when they really enjoy something you make. And I think, as long as I keep my oven going for these get-togethers, we’ll continue to have a standing invitation. (As long as I don’t drop my creations before they get to the table.)

This piece first appeared in print on July 7, 2022.