Apple Pie Bars Recipe | My Baking Addiction (2024)

FAQs

What apples should you avoid when making apple pie and why? ›

There are a few apples that don't make the cut. While great for snacking, Gala, Fuji and Red Delicious are the most common apples that won't hold up in the oven and will give you a watery-mushy pie, tart or cake.

Granny Smith.

Firm and very tart, this variety is the go-to for many when it comes to pie because it keeps its shape extremely well. But it isn't exactly known for its flavor, so Granny Smiths are best used in conjunction with sweeter and/or more flavorful apples.

For the best pies, crisps, and other baked treats, apples need to be firm enough to hold their own during the cooking process. We call these apples “baking apples” and to namedrop, they include Braeburn, Cortland, Honey Gold, Jonathan, Fuji, Gala, Granny Smith, Haralson, and Newtown Pippin.

Honeycrisp. One of the sweetest apples around, this Midwestern favorite is good for anything—including baking. It boasts a distinctive juicy crispness and is firm enough that it won't cook down much. It complements just about any other apple variety to make a stellar pie.

A modest slice of apple pie has more than 400 calories and about 20 grams of fat (five of those come from the less-healthy saturated fats). Add some ice cream or whipped cream, and you're looking at well over 500 calories, which knocks out 25% of the average 2,000-calorie diet.

Since the caramel sauce is ultra-sweet, she likes the fact that Granny Smiths have a bit of tartness. "They're firm and hold their integrity through the baking process. Plus, they're just so darn purty," she says. If you want to mix and match for a balanced flavor, be sure to use both sweet and tart apples.

If the recipe calls for 6 cups of sliced apples, you'll likely need about 8 medium-sized apples, or about 2 pounds of medium-sized apples. Now go fill your home with the scents of the season and bake the day away.

The exact ratio is up to you. If you prioritize a more puckery pie, use mostly Granny Smiths and toss in a Honeycrisp and a Jonagold. If you like your apples to slump and soften, use mostly Golden Delicious with a Braeburn thrown in.

According to this equivalent list, 10 cups of sliced apples requires 10 medium apples. To be on the safe side, buy one additional apple. You don't want to run short—after all, it's always better to have too many ingredients than too few!

Pink Lady^® apples are a perfect accompaniment for pies as they hold their shape and don't disintegrate when baked, creating beautiful layers within your pie. Slightly el dente and naturally sweet when baked make them the perfect pie partner.

Do Sunrise apples make good pies? ›

Sunrise apples are best suited for both raw and cooked applications such as baking or poaching. They can be consumed fresh, out of hand, sliced in a raw salad, or served as a topping for desserts such as ice cream. They can also be baked into pies, tarts, cobblers, cakes, or made into applesauce.

Macintosh or Granny Smith apples are the best choices for apple pie because they are the least mushy apples.

The most serious of these is bitter pit development, both on the tree before harvest and during storage. The variety is also susceptible to the low temperature disorders, soft scald and soggy breakdown.

But Honeycrisps are far from perfect. The university listssome downsides, such as "bitter pit," "soft scald," the fruit's susceptibility to bruising and puncture, and its sensitive growing cycle.

Baking the apple slices first. It's the magic key to a crispy base, superior flavour and perfectly-cooked-and-never-mushy filling. It's also how you get a generous amount of pie filling without the dreaded giant empty cavity under the lid.

Granny Smith apples are considered by many to be the "pie apples." They are known for their snappy tartness and ability to maintain their shape and texture when cooked. These are, no doubt, a terrific choice for apple pie — especially when combined with a sweeter, softer apple like Braeberns or Crispins.

What Makes A Good Apple For Apple Crisp? The best apples for baking keep their structure under heat, which prevents the chunks of fruit from turning into mush after baking. The firm and crisp Granny Smith and Honeycrisp varieties are popular apples to use in apple pies and apple crisps.

Go with Granny Smith apples. Known for its vibrant green color, this apple is tangy and tart and features firm flesh that won't get too mushy when cooked down.