Preparation Time: 20 minutes
Cooking Time: 20-25 minutes
Total Time: 40-45 minutes
Recipe Intensity: Moderate
Ingredients:
For the Crust and Topping:
- 1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
- 1/2 cup granulated sugar
- 1/2 teaspoon baking powder
- 1/4 teaspoon salt
- 1/2 cup unsalted butter, cold and cut into cubes
- 1 large egg, beaten
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
For the Apple Filling:
- 3 medium-sized apples (such as Granny Smith or Honeycrisp), peeled, cored, and thinly sliced
- 1/4 cup granulated sugar
- 1 tablespoon all-purpose flour
- 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
- 1/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg
- 1 tablespoon lemon juice
Instructions:
- Preheat your air fryer to 350°F (175°C) for about 5 minutes.
- In a mixing bowl, combine the flour, sugar, baking powder, and salt for the crust and topping.
- Add the cold cubed butter to the dry ingredients. Use a pastry cutter or fork to cut the butter into the flour mixture until it resembles coarse crumbs.
- In a separate bowl, mix the beaten egg and vanilla extract. Pour this mixture into the flour-butter mixture and stir until a dough forms. The dough should be crumbly but hold together when pressed.
- Reserve about 1/2 cup of the dough for the topping. Press the remaining dough into the bottom of a greased or lined square baking dish that fits inside your air fryer.
- In another bowl, combine the sliced apples, sugar, flour, cinnamon, nutmeg, and lemon juice for the filling. Toss until the apples are evenly coated.
- Spread the apple filling over the crust in the baking dish.
- Crumble the reserved dough evenly over the apple filling to create the topping.
- Place the baking dish with the apple pie bars into the preheated air fryer basket.
- Air fry the apple pie bars at 350°F (175°C) for about 20-25 minutes, or until the crust is golden brown and the apple filling is bubbly.
- Once done, carefully remove the baking dish from the air fryer using oven mitts.
- Let the apple pie bars cool slightly before slicing into squares.
- Serve the flaky apple pie bars warm or at room temperature, optionally with a scoop of vanilla ice cream or a dollop of whipped cream.
Note: Cooking times may vary slightly depending on the size and type of your air fryer. Keep an eye on the bars towards the end of cooking to prevent over-browning.
Enjoy these delicious flaky apple pie bars made right in your air fryer!
