Monday, October 5, 2009

Apple Butter Bars

I love getting mail. I am almost obsessed with it, especially packages. So when adozeneggs mentioned the Fall Foodie Swap, my eyes lit up.  I had a whole month to pull together a package for my swap partner, then I would mail it, and wait in anticipation for my surprise to come!

Between signing up for the swap and the send-off date, life got busy for us.  Hubby was offered a job in a new city, and all of a sudden, we were packing up and moving. As the end of the month neared, I gathered some little surprises and sent them off.

I was thrilled when my package arrived from Lanie. Full of great surprises, including some awesome Ohio Apple Butter.  Included in the package was a recipe for Apple Butter Bars, which I knew I had to try.

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We didn’t have raisins around the house, nor do I care much for them, so I substituted 1/2 cup craisins.

Also, instead of apple pie spice, I utilized my spice rack to make up a mock apple pie spice.

Apple Pie Spice:

1 tbsp ground cinnamon
1/4 tbsp ground allspice
1/2 tsp ground nutmeg
1/2 tsp ground ginger
pinch of ground cardamom

Recipe for Apple Butter Bars

Ingredients
1/2 cup butter, unsalted, softened
1 1/2 cup all-purpose flour
1/2 cup brown sugar, packed
1/4 cup granulated sugar
1 egg
3/4 cup apple butter
1/2 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp apple pie spice mixture
1/2 cup craisins
1 cup confectioner's sugar
1/4 tsp vanilla extract
2 tbsp milk

  1. Preheat oven to 350° and grease 13x9” baking pan.
  2. Cream butter in the bowl of a standing mixer with paddle attachment.  Add 3/4 cup flour, brown and granulated sugars, egg, apple butter, baking soda and apple pie spice.  Beat together until well blended.
  3. Bake for 20-25 minutes or until toothpick in center comes out clean. Cool in pan on wire rack.
  4. For icing, mix confectioner’s sugar, vanilla, and 1-2 tbsp milk together.  Mix to drizzling consistency, add milk as needed.
  5. Drizzle icing over cooled bars. Cut and serve.

1 comment:

  1. My, oh my, how you make me miss home! Ohio apple butter is one of my all-time favorites, but now so very far away. Now I'm yearning for next Saturday's farmers market to purchase some Chilean apples (the only available apples) to make my own apple butter. Yummy.

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