Salted Caramel Apple Pie Bars
Recipe: https://recipestripper.com/recipes/c39ffc3f-a7a4-46ea-b540-ef767b9b2633
Original source: https://thesaltedsweets.com/salted-caramel-apple-pie-bars/
Recipe image: https://thesaltedsweets.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/10/Caramel-Apple-Pie-Bars-Square-2.jpg

These salted caramel apple pie bars are a chewy oat bar with a caramel apple pie filling and an oat crumb topping. They're sweet, gooey and loaded with warm spices, salty caramel and tart apples.
Yield: 12
Prep time: PT15M
Cook time: PT30M
Total time: PT45M

Ingredients
- 1 lb thinly sliced apples (about 2 large apples)
- 1 tablespoon lemon juice
- 2 tablespoons flour
- 2 tablespoons granulated sugar
- ½ teaspoon cinnamon
- ⅕ teaspoon nutmeg
- pinch of salt
- ¾ cup salted butter
- ¾ cup brown sugar
- 1 teaspoon vanilla
- ¾ teaspoon salt
- ½ teaspoon baking soda
- ¼ teaspoon cinnamon
- 1 cup all-purpose flour
- 1 cup old fashioned oats
- 3 ounces caramel (kraft bits, homemade or from the jar)
- 1 tablespoons heavy whipping cream (Use this if melting caramels vs. jarred)
- flaked sea salt for topping

Instructions
1. Preheat the oven to 350 F. Grease a 8x8 pan with cooking spray, and line with parchment.
2. Peel and slice apples into very thin pieces. In a small bowl add apple slices, lemon juice, flour, sugar, cinnamon, salt and nutmeg. Set aside.
3. In a large mixing bowl fitted with the paddle attachment, cream together butter, brown sugar and vanilla until light and fluffy.
4. Add salt, baking soda, flour and oats, mixing until combined.
5. Press half the dough onto the bottom of the 8x8 pan. Bake for 8 minutes.
6. While bars bake, melt caramel and cream together in the microwave, if using caramel sauce you don't need to add cream. Cook in 30 second increments, stirring in between until mixed and melted.
7. Top the baked, warm bottom layer of the bars with apple slices, followed by warm caramel sauce.
8. Place dollops of remaining dough on top, don’t worry about it spreading evenly over the top.
9. Bake an additional 28-33 minutes, or until the edges are a golden brown and the caramel is bubbling. Remove from oven and sprinkle with flaked salt.
10. Allow to cool completely. Serve room temperature, or cold from the fridge with an extra drizzle of caramel sauce.