Made with a shortbread crust, spiced apple filling, streusel topping, and homemade salted caramel, these apple pie bars have all the flavors of classic apple pie in an easy-to-serve bar dessert.
I originally published this recipe in 2014 and have since updated it with new photos and additional success tips. Based on reader feedback, I also increased the flour in the crust to help it hold its shape, extended the baking time, and adjusted the instructions so you make and refrigerate the streusel first, which helps it maintain its crumbly texture as it bakes.
Without a doubt, apple pie is my favorite dessert. I love the combination of sweet-tart spiced apples and buttery, flaky pie crust. But when I’m craving those classic flavors without making an entire pie, I turn to today’s dessert.
These salted caramel apple pie bars are an easier, more approachable version of salted caramel apple pie. There’s no traditional pie crust to prepare, but you still get plenty of tender spiced apples, buttery crust, and irresistible salted caramel in every bite.
That’s why I’ve created bar versions of several popular pies on my site, including pumpkin pie bars, cherry pie bars, and blueberry pie bars. You get all the familiar flavors of a homemade pie in an easier-to-make (and easier-to-serve) dessert.
3 Layers to Love
These apple pie bars have a buttery shortbread crust, tender cinnamon-spiced apples, and a crisp brown sugar oat streusel with a drizzle of salty-sweet caramel. They taste like apple pie, but with a softer, more crumbly bar-cookie texture.
- Shortbread Crust: The buttery shortbread crust is much easier to make than a traditional pie crust. It’s simply perfect as the base layer for all your favorite bar desserts. I actually use the same shortbread crust in my recipe for raspberry streusel bars and double the recipe for my lemon bars. It comes together quickly—no waiting for pie dough to chill.
- Apple Pie Filling: No canned filling here. You only need 5 ingredients to make your own apple pie filling, and it tastes incredible!
- Streusel Topping: Instead of a top layer of pie crust like you see on traditional apple pies, we’re topping these apple pie bars with streusel. It’s a scaled-up version of the topping on our caramel apple cheesecake pie.
Here is everything you’ll need:
Overview: How to Make Salted Caramel Apple Pie Bars
There are just a few steps before you have a delicious fall dessert on your hands!
Make the streusel topping first. I like to make the streusel topping first so it can chill in the refrigerator while I prepare the crust and filling. Keeping the butter cold helps the streusel hold its shape in the oven instead of melting into the bars. I do the same when making chocolate marble pumpkin bread.
The mixture will be crumbly and coarse:
Make the shortbread crust. Melted butter makes the crust especially easy to prepare and press into the pan. I also find that it produces a wonderfully soft yet sturdy base, which is ideal to support all those heavy apples!
An 8-inch square baking pan works best for these bars. Be sure to line it with parchment paper so you can easily lift the entire batch from the pan before slicing. If you need a recommendation, I use and love this baking pan and this baking pan (pictured).
As the crust pre-bakes, prep the apple pie filling. No need to pre-cook the filling on the stove; you can layer it right on top of the warm crust.
Peel the apples and cut into 1/4-inch-thick slices. Toss with flour, sugar, cinnamon, and nutmeg:
What Are the Best Apples for Apple Pie Bars?
Use a firm apple that holds its shape when cooked. Granny Smith, Honeycrisp, Pink Lady, or a combination all work well. If you’re interested in learning more, see my guide to the best apples for baking.
Layer the apple pie filling evenly on top of the crust. It will look like there are too many apple slices, so layer them tightly and press them down to fit. Sprinkle the streusel topping evenly over the apples, and then bake.
Chilling is important: Allow the bars to cool for at least 20 minutes at room temperature, then transfer the bars to the refrigerator. For the cleanest slices, refrigerate the bars for at least 2 hours.
Cut into bars and drizzle with salted caramel sauce. I like to add a little sprinkle of sea salt flakes on top, too, but that’s completely optional.
Salted Caramel Topping
A generous drizzle of salted caramel takes these incredible apple pie bars to a whole new level. Have you ever made salted caramel before? You must. Besides topping these apple pie bars, it’s delicious over ice cream or pancakes, served with apple slices, and so much more. Find 50 ways to eat salted caramel here.
Absolutely. Homemade salted caramel is fantastic, but your favorite store-bought caramel sauce works well here, too. Add the caramel right before or after cutting into bars.
Yes! The recipe can easily be doubled and baked in a 9×13-inch pan. Pre-bake the crust for 18 minutes, then extend the bake time to 45–55 minutes.
You can freeze the bars for up to 3 months. See freezing instructions in the recipe Notes section below.
One bite of these sweet and slightly salty apple pie bars and you’ll wonder why you haven’t made them sooner. They are a forever favorite!
Here is the salted caramel sauce recipe.
Salted Caramel Apple Pie Bars
- Prep Time: 25 minutes
- Cook Time: 45 minutes
- Total Time: 3 hours, 20 minutes
- Yield: 12-16 bars
- Category: Bars
- Method: Baking
- Cuisine: American
Description
Made with a shortbread crust, spiced apple filling, streusel topping, and homemade salted caramel, these apple pie bars have all the flavors of classic apple pie in an easy-to-serve bar dessert.
Ingredients
Streusel
- 1/2 cup (43g) old-fashioned whole rolled oats
- 1/3 cup (67g) packed light or dark brown sugar
- 1/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon
- 1/4 cup (31g) all-purpose flour (spooned & leveled)
- 1/4 cup (4 Tbsp; 56g) unsalted butter, cold and cubed
Shortbread Crust
- 1/2 cup (8 Tbsp; 113g) unsalted butter, melted
- 1/4 cup (50g) granulated sugar
- 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
- 1/4 teaspoon salt
- 1 cup + 1 Tablespoon (133g) all-purpose flour (spooned & leveled)
Apple Filling
- 2 large apples, peeled and thinly sliced (about 2.5 cups or 315g; 1/4-inch-thick slices)
- 2 Tablespoons (16g) all-purpose flour
- 2 Tablespoons (25g) granulated sugar
- 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
- 1/8 teaspoon ground nutmeg
Garnish
- homemade salted caramel or store-bought caramel sauce
- optional: flaky sea salt
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 300°F (149°C). Line the bottom and sides of an 8-inch square baking pan with parchment paper, leaving some overhang on all sides. Set aside.
- Make the streusel first: In a medium bowl, whisk together the oats, brown sugar, cinnamon, and flour. Cut in the chilled butter with a pastry blender or two forks (or even with your hands) until the mixture resembles coarse crumbs. Place in the refrigerator until step 6.
- Make the crust: In a medium bowl, stir together the melted butter, granulated sugar, vanilla, and salt. Add the flour and mix until everything is combined. Press the mixture evenly into the prepared baking pan. Bake for 20 minutes, or until lightly browned around the edges. While the crust bakes, prepare the filling.
- Make the apple filling: In a large bowl, combine the sliced apples, flour, granulated sugar, cinnamon, and nutmeg, stirring until all of the apples are evenly coated. Set aside.
- After you remove the crust from the oven, increase the oven temperature to 350°F (177°C).
- Pour the apple filling on top of the warm crust and spread/press into an even layer. It will look like there are too many apple slices, so layer them tightly and press them down to fit. Sprinkle the cold streusel evenly on top.
- Bake for 30–35 minutes or until the streusel is golden brown.
- Remove from the oven and allow the bars to cool for at least 20 minutes at room temperature, then transfer to the refrigerator and chill for at least 2 hours.
- Lift the bars out of the pan by gripping the parchment paper overhang; transfer to a cutting board and cut into squares. Drizzle caramel sauce on top and sprinkle with flaky sea salt, if using.
- These apple pie bars can be enjoyed warm, cold, or at room temperature. Store covered tightly in the refrigerator for up to 3 days.
Notes
- Freezing Instructions: You can freeze the bars (without the caramel sauce drizzle) for up to 3 months. Layer them in an airtight freezer-safe container or bag with parchment paper between the layers. Thaw overnight in the refrigerator, then warm them up to your liking and drizzle with salted caramel sauce to serve.
- Special Tools (affiliate links): 8-inch Square Baking Pan | Glass Mixing Bowls | Whisk | Apple Peeler | Silicone Spatula or Wooden Spoon | Pastry Blender
- Apples: I like to use two different kinds of apples for the best texture and depth of flavor. I typically use one tart apple variety such as Granny Smith, and one sweet apple variety such as Pink Lady or Honeycrisp.
- Larger Batch: Recipe can easily be doubled and baked in a 9×13-inch pan. Pre-bake the crust for 18 minutes (step 3), then extend the bake time to 45–55 minutes.
Reader Comments and Reviews
Made these for our pumpkin carving party tonight! They were a huge hit and the salted caramel sauce was to die for!! Thanks for a great recipe!
OMG…just made these for work tomorrow and of course I had to try one for quality control. This recipe is a winner – mini apple pie bites!!
These are delicious! I made them a few weeks ago for a family get together and plan on making them again this weekend! Thank you for this amazing recipe!
It is almost midnight CST and I am patiently waiting for two delicious pans of these bars to come out of the oven. Fortunately, I have a coworker that over the last two months has brought me in apples from her trees. I stumbled upon this recipe and shared it at work, now everyone wants her apples and the recipe! I have made over a dozen pans since, it is a huge hit at work but an even bigger hit with my husband and my in-laws…one pan in the oven now for him and one for them. Terrific and tasty recipe, thank you and also for teaching me how to make delicious caramel.
Hi Sally!
I have been making this recipe this morning for an early Canadian Thanksgiving supper, and I used two large apples which were clearly not large enough, as I had enough for one layer and then a few extra slices on top. However, so far, everything is working amazingly well and Quality Control (ie ME tasting everything as I make it) says this is a winner!! Thank you so much!! This will be added to my regular baking repertoire for sure!!
These look amazing! Can you use QUICK cook oats in the streusel? Thanks!
Yes, you can use quick oats in the streusel topping.
Hi Sally! These look absolutely amazing, I can’t wait to try them!! I have a Question that may sound stupid, but:
How do I freeze them? And then what is required to serve them after freezing? Do they keep well?
I wanted to make them ahead and serve later to save time, but am nervous about how to do it correctly and keep them from being soggy or something.
Thanks so much in advance!!
Hi Holly! After they cool, I cut and layer them between sheets of parchment in a large tupperware. They keep well for 3 months- see my make-ahead tip in the recipe.
those are amazing!!! followed the recipe and had great results! thank you Sally!
P.S: i loooove the crust, can i use it in another tart recipe maybe?
Yes, definitely. I use this shortbread crust for my raspberry streusel bars as well.
These are SO good! Love the shortbread crust. I think next time I’ll try and squeeze in a little bit more apple. I will definitely be adding these to my holiday rotation!
absolutely love this recipe! Just made it for the 2nd time, once for a BBQ and this time as a treat to take to work. Love that it combines Apple pie and crumble and the salted caramel is to die for! I actually had enough for both times and still got one portion left in the fridge!
Ps. Thanks for the gram conversions! Saves so much time for me!
Hi Sally! Love your site. I made this yesterday and they are chilling in the fridge. What is your favorite way to serve them- warm or cold? Thinking of warning them up, what would your directions be on oven temp and cook time to reheat?
Thanks! Can’t wait!
I LOVE them warm!
300 degrees, 10 minutes. They’re perfect!
These are amazing. I have made them twice over the past year and brought them to my office. Everyone loves them!
I cooked it in an 8×8 pan and have not had any issues with the instructions provided.
I did skip on the caramel sauce and used store bought (and added in some vanilla ice cream on top). However, I plan on trying that recipe in the future.
Thank you for sharing this recipe! It will be a must around Thanksgiving!
OMG Sally!!!!!!!! I have tried many, many of your recipes and I love them all…BUT…this one tops them all!!!! Personally, I think the salted caramel sauce is a MUST and just makes the dish. SO YUMMY!!!! Thank you so much for adding so much deliciousness to our lives!!! You ROCK!!
is it possible to substitute the rolled oats in the streusel topping with something else?
You can use your favorite chopped nut or simply leave them out.
So I tried your salted caramel yesterday…I was super nervous cause I burned a batch lately. I followed your recipe exactly and I had a perfect jar of salted caramel. I just tried this and this is SO GOOD as well. Thank you Sally for sharing these wonderful and amazing recipes. You’re the best!
These were seriously SOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO good!!! I am totally a perfectionist baker, so I was baking five similar recipes side by side, tasting along (ho hum….) until I got to yours … just PERFECT and EXACTLY what I was looking for. The apple-y cinnamon-y flavors were wonderful. I tried them with and without caramel and it’s delicious either way. This is the second recipe I’ve tried of yours (1st: butterfinger peanut butter cheesecake) and both have been just amazing. I love the gram measurements too! I have one teensy suggestion and that’s to give a visual clue about when things are done, versus just the time – the crust, I wasn’t sure what it was supposed to look like because I divided the recipe by 4. But seriously, thank-you soooooooooo much for another awesome recipe! I’m spoiled from the recipes from cook’s illustrated and cook’s country always coming out as expected, so it’s lovely to have a blogger whose recipes I can also trust 100%! Will definitely be making these bars again!!!!!
Hi Sally!
Just wanted to say thank you for such an amazing recipe!
Myself and my 5 yr old daughter loved making these today
and eating them too! Heavenly! Plus we’ve got lots of sauce left
for ice cream, bonus!
Thanks for putting weight measurement too as we’re in the UK so
it’s much easier than converting cups!
Can’t wait to try some more of your recipes now! X
What a great success it was!! I was looking to make something and didn’t fancy a cake or pudding, but really wanted apple pie but couldn’t justify making it for 2 people! So this recipe hit the spot and I don’t feel like we have to eat the whole thing as I can freeze the rest, so thank you!
What type of salt do you recommend for the Salted Caramel Sauce? Thank you for the recipe!
I use regular table salt.
These babies are chilling in the fridge and looking forward to seeing how they came out! My husband LOVES apple pie so I wanted to try something more compact than a big pie! I just love your blog and have tried so many recipes and every time they do not disappoint! Now to wait another hour! Thanks for sharing!!
Made this recipe for Thanksgiving dessert. Everyone loved it. This will definitely be a keeper!
Do not hesitate to make these – they are absolutely divine! The crust, the apples, the sauce are all amazing! I will be making my second double-batch tonight for the teacher’s at my son’s elementary school tomorrow.
OMG – these are TO DIE FOR!! Honestly one of the best things I’ve ever made!! THANK YOU!!! My whole family went crazy…..either with or without the salted caramel
Oh yes, these bars with the sauce were a hit!! I followed the recipe exactly and both the bars & sauce turned out great. I did press the top layer a bit after reading other reviews. Will be making these again soon. Thank you Sally!
I made these bars for my coworkers yesterday, and they were annihilated by noon that day. Thanks for the fantastic recipe, Sally!
I just made these for Canadian Thanksgiving and AH-MAZING! I’m wondering if you could provide some pointers on how to cook the salted caramel for a Turtle type dessert (drop of chocolate, caramel & pecans) for Christmas. Boil longer?If so, how long? Thank you, as always for your wonderful recipes!
Hi Robyn. This salted caramel sauce is quite thick at room temperature (as opposed to spreading all over the place when warm). So, at room temperature, I feel it would be just fine in making turtle candies.
I’ve tried so many recipes from both your cookbook and your website – all which are lovely and successful – but I have to say that these are hands-down phenomenal. I don’t even like desserts, but these are truly amazing. They make wonderful gifts, and I can’t resist taking a bit for myself, too.
Thanks so much for sharing your genius with the rest of the world! This dessert is incredible. I’d highly recommend it.
I made this last night for a potluck at work, they were a hit! Love that they were easy to make. So yummy. I also made the salted caramel, wow!! Thank you so much for the recipe, I just wish I had taken a picture to share and make other drool! 🙂
This apple pie recipe is absolutely delicious!! As a personal preference, I always use granny smith and honeycrisp apples. The perfect combo of tart and sweet.
Thanks Sally, your photos are stunning!
I made these yesterday. My family raved about them! They are gone already. Thanks for the great recipe! 🙂