Apple Crumble Bars with Salted Pecan Caramel

By Sophie Bourdon at The Green LIfe

Apple crisp meets apple pie in this delicious vegan apple crumble bar recipe! A generous spiced apple layer is tucked in between a pecan and oat crumble that serves both as the crust and topping. The pecan maple caramel sauce drizzled on top is so addicting and brings this dessert to a whole new level!

Prep time 30 min
Cook time 35 min
Serves 8
Skill Advanced

Ingredients

Apple Filling

  • 3 SweeTango apples
  • The juice of ½ lemon
  • 3 tbsp coconut sugar (or substitute brown sugar)
  • 1/2 tsp ground cinnamon
  • 1/4 tsp ground nutmeg

Crumble Mixture

  • 3/4 cup raw unsalted pecan halves
  • 1 cup spelt or all-purpose flour
  • 1/2 cup rolled oats
  • 1/3 cup coconut sugar (or substitute brown sugar)
  • 1 tsp ground cinnamon
  • 1/4 tsp ground nutmeg
  • 1/4 tsp sea salt
  • 1/2 cup melted coconut oil

Salted Pecan Caramel

  • 1/3 cup pecan butter*
  • 3 tbsp maple syrup
  • 1/2 tsp vanilla extract
  • Pinch of sea salt

Directions

  1. Preheat the oven to 350F. Line 8" square baking pan with parchment paper and set aside.
  2. Slice the apples thinly with a mandolin and place in a bowl. Add the lemon juice, sugar, cinnamon and nutmeg and mix. Set aside.
  3. Place the pecan halves in a food processor and pulse a few times until you get a coarse meal.
  4. Transfer to a large bowl and add the flour, oats, sugar, cinnamon, nutmeg and sea salt. Mix to combine. Pour the melted coconut oil onto the dry ingredients and stir well to combine.
  5. Reserve about one cup of mixture and pour the remainder into your prepared baking pan. Press firmly into the bottom of the pan so that the crust is quite compact. Spread the apples evenly onto the crust. Sprinkle the reserved crumble mixture on top.
  6. Bake for 35 to 40 minutes, until the topping is golden brown.
  7. While the bars are baking, prepare the caramel. Place the pecan butter, maple syrup, vanilla and sea salt into a small bowl and whisk. Add one or two tablespoons of warm water as needed to thin out, until you get a caramel-like texture.
  8. Remove the pan from the oven and let cool completely.
  9. Slice into squares and serve with a generous drizzle of the pecan caramel.
  10. Note: *To make your own pecan butter, toast pecans in the oven until golden brown. Let cool and blend in a food processor for a couple minutes, until it forms a creamy butter.
  11. Yields: 16 bars