This Is the Very First Thing I Bake After Apple Picking
Because, in my case, the apple fell far from the tree.
I am an extremely patient person. So patient, in fact, that a colleague once suggested I be canonized Saint Kristie of Forbearance (but that’s a story for another time). My family, on the other hand, is less so — especially when it comes to food. The minute they see a pile of ingredients on the kitchen island they start pacing back and forth, clearly monitoring the progress of whatever I am cooking up.
That’s why I’ve gotten into the habit of making Ina’s Apple Pie Bars as soon as we get home from the apple orchard. I would be perfectly happy to wait the 3+ hours that are required to make a good, flaky-crusted, apple-packed pie from scratch (especially since I’ve been known to eat a few cider doughnuts on the ride home home!) but my husband and daughter can only think of one thing: apple pie.
The genius of Ina’s recipe is that it has all the flavor of a traditional apple pie — but is ready in just a fraction of the time. There’s less waiting for the crust to chill (the base layer needs 20 minutes in the refrigerator before baking, as compared to the 30-60 minutes that most pie doughs spend chilling) and, because this sweet treat is filled with a thinner layer of apples than a pie would be, it bakes to perfection in less than half the time. Talk about a win-win!
Best of all, the sturdy cookie crust on the bottom of these bars means they’re easier to eat warm than slices of pie — in case you know someone who absolutely can’t wait!
