Let the fall festivities begin!
This past weekend, my family took to a trip to an apple orchard in the area. This is our second time visiting this orchard, and I think it may just become an annual family trip! If you live in central Indiana, McClure’s Apple Orchard is worth a visit. It’s kind of in the middle of nowhere, but it has everything you could want: a café, gift shop, apple orchard, pumpkin patch, animal area, and more!
This was my baby girl’s first visit, and she had a blast. She just turned 6 months old, and it’s so fun to watch her experience fun places like this for the first time. She was in love with the animal barn and even got in on the apple picking!
After it was all said and done, we had more apples than we knew what to do with, and so commenced another one of my favorite fall activities – baking! I made an apple crisp for our church’s potluck and these scrumptious apple bars for the Bible study I host with my youth girls once a month. Believe it or not, I still have apples leftover — so send me all your favorite apple recipes!
This recipe is simple and easy to make. You probably already have all the ingredients on hand. Bake a batch for a family brunch or to share with a few neighbors to let them know you’re thinking of them!
Apple Crisp Bars
Yield: 12 servings
Recipe altered from GarnishwithLemon.com
Ingredients
1 cup old-fashioned oats
1/2 cup + 1/2 tbsp flour, divided
1/2 cup brown sugar
2 tsp cinnamon, divided
1/2 tsp nutmeg, divided
1/2 tsp salt
6 tbsp butter, melted
6 cups sliced apples
1/4 cup sugar
Instructions
Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Line a casserole dish with parchment paper and set aside.
In a small bowl, combine the oats, flour, brown sugar, 1 tsp of cinnamon, 1/4 tsp nutmeg, and salt. Add the melted butter and mix to combine. Press 1/2 of the mixture into the bottom of the baking dish and set the other 1/2 aside.
Combine the sliced apples, sugar, 1/2 tbsp of flour, 1 tsp cinnamon, and 1/2 tsp nutmeg in a large bowl. Stir until the apples are evenly coated in the mixture. Add the apples to the baking dish and spread evenly.
Add the remaining oat mixture to the top. Cover with foil and bake for 30 minutes. Remove the foil and bake for another 30 minutes or until the crumb topping is golden brown. Remove from oven and allow to cool before removing to cut and serve.