Apple Butter Bars
These amazing Apple Butter Bars are easy to whip up! Full of warm cinnamon, sweet brown sugar, and tart apples, this is the BEST dessert for fall.
Apple Cinnamon Bars
If “cozy” was a food, it would be these Apple Butter Bars! Warm cinnamon, hearty oats, and a creamy homemade apple butter are key to this delicious fall dessert. It’s all your favorite flavors of an apple crisp without all the work and mess. You won’t be able to get enough of the sweet filling and crumbly cinnamon sugar topping!
Why you’ll love this recipe:
- Easy – For this recipe, all you have to do is mix together your buttery, oat-filled crust which also becomes your tasty crumble topping! Homemade apple butter is the perfect spread, but store-bought will work fine and is super convenient.
- Major fall flavors – Everyone loves super warm flavors during Autumn, and this bar combines cinnamon, brown sugar, oats, and apples! It will immediately put you into that cozy fall vibe.
- Perfect “make ahead” dessert – These bars stay nice and moist on the counter up to 3 days, or you can individually wrap and freeze them up to 2 months. These won’t take up space in the fridge when the busy holiday cooking gets started.
Apple Butter Bar Ingredients
Here’s a quick overview of what you’ll need for this recipe. You can find exact measurements down in the printable recipe card at the bottom of the page.
- Rolled (or old fashioned) oats, All-purpose flour, Baking powder, Salt, and Cinnamon – These are the dry ingredients that will form your crust and crumbly topping. To keep it gluten-free, use cup4cup or GF Bisquick.
- Brown sugar, Granulated sugar, Butter, and Egg – These combine with your dry ingredients to create a deliciously buttery crust that crumbles just right. I’ve not tried any butter substitutes or egg alternatives. If you’re watching your sugar, feel free to swap out the sugars with low-carb alternatives like monk fruit.
- Apple butter and Cinnamon sugar mix – I used this homemade recipe (it makes enough for 2 pans of these bars). You can use store-bought apple butter if you prefer. The cinnamon sugar mix is often found with the spices, or you can make some yourself with 1/2 cup of sugar and 2 tablespoons of cinnamon.
You’ll also need a mixing bowl, a fork, an 8×8 pan, some parchment paper, and an oven.
How to Make Apple Butter Bars
These easy apple bars are perfect for beginner cooks! Here’s a step-by-step guide to making our favorite fall dessert recipe.
Make dough
Preheat your oven to 350 degrees F and line an 8×8 baking pan with parchment paper. In a mixing bowl, combine the oats, flour, sugars, baking powder, salt, and cinnamon.
Stir in the melted butter and work it into the dry ingredients with a fork until well combined. Add in eggs until mixture is crumbly but easy to press together.
Press half of this dough into the lined baking pan.
Add apple butter
Spread the apple butter onto the dough in the pan, making sure to leave a smooth, even layer. The more even you can get your layer, the cleaner your bars will look and more evenly it will cook.
Top and Bake
Sprinkle the remaining dough over the apple butter, then carefully top with the cinnamon sugar mix. Bake for 38-40 minutes until the top of the bars and a nice golden brown. Allow bars to cool completely before lifting from the pan and slicing.
How to serve apple butter bars
Lift the cooled dessert out of the pan using the parchment paper and sit it on a cutting board. Carefully slice into 16 2″ square bars. These are best served at room temperature, topped with ice cream or a simple whipped cream. If you want to put them over the top, consider adding a drizzle of caramel sauce!
Store
Place the bars in an airtight container and leave them on the counter. They’ll stay moist and fresh for 3 days. You could store them in the fridge for longer, but we prefer the room temperature texture.
Can you freeze apple cinnamon bars?
Yes, these freeze very well! Simply allow the dessert to cool, then slice into bars. Wrap each bar multiple times in plastic wrap, then store in an airtight container. Allow the bar to defrost in the fridge overnight or in about an hour on the countertop. This makes a great lunchbox dessert as it can thaw before lunch!
If you like these apple bars, you’ll love these great fall desserts!
- Pecan Pie Cheesecake Bars – You no longer have to wrestle with the choice between the two best Thanksgiving day desserts! This easy (keto!) recipe combines them both.
- Slow Cooker Pumpkin Spiced Apples – Another mix of two favorite falls flavors, this time pumpkin and apples! Top with a little granola and add some yogurt for a sweet breakfast.
- Cranberry Bars – If you like your desserts a bit more tart, this is perfect for you! These are especially perfect around the holidays.
- Pumpkin Snickerdoodles – All the warmth you love from these classic cinnamon cookies but with the creamy, delicious addition of pumpkin! Perfectly complementary flavors.
- Want more? Check out this list of 50+ Easy Fall Desserts!
Apple Bar FAQs
These have all the flavor of a classic apple crumble! The crumbly oats, brown sugar, cinnamon, and sweet apple butter work perfectly together.
Yes, these apple crumble bars work great with gluten-free flour options like cup4cup or GF Bisquick!
Get the Recipe: Apple Butter Bars
Ingredients
- 1 ½ cups rolled oats
- 1 cup all-purpose flour, cup4cup or GF Bisquick for gluten-free
- ¾ cup brown sugar, packed
- ½ cup granulated sugar
- ½ tsp baking powder
- ½ tsp salt
- 1 tsp cinnamon
- ½ cup butter, melted
- 1 large egg
- 1 ½ cups apple butter
- 2 tsp cinnamon sugar mix
Equipment
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees and line an 8×8 baking pan with parchment paper.
- Stir together the oats, flour, sugars, baking powder, salt, and cinnamon.
- Add the melted butter to the flour mixture, and work it into the dry ingredients with a fork until combined. Add the eggs and mix to combine. The mixture should be crumbly but easy to press together.
- Press half the dough into the baking pan, then top with the apple butter. Sprinkle the remaining dough over the apple butter and press down gently. Sprinkle with the cinnamon sugar mix and bake for 38-40 minutes, until the top of the bars are browned.
- Allow the bars to cool completely, then remove from the pan, slice and serve!
Notes
- Allow to cool completely before cutting (otherwise it's a huge mess!). Top with ice cream or whipped cream for a super special dessert!
- This uses half of a batch of this homemade apple butter recipe. Make two pans of these with your apple butter and freeze the second set of bars!
- If using a 9×9 pan, bake about 35 minutes. The bars are thinner but still delicious!
