Apple Almond Bars

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Apple Almond Bars Ingredients

-- Crust --	2 tablespoons unbleached all purpose flour
1 1/4 cup unbleached all purpose flour	2 tablespoons granulated sugar
1/2 teaspoon kosher salt (or 1/4 teaspoon table salt)	2 tablespoons light brown sugar
3 ounces cream cheese - softened, at room temperature	1/4 cup almonds, coarsely chopped
2 ounces (4 tbsp) unsalted butter - softened, at room temperature	-- Filling --
1/4 teaspoon pure almond extract	5 ounces cream cheese - softened, at room temperature
1/4 teaspoon pure vanilla extract	1/2 cup granulated sugar, as required
1/4 cup granulated sugar	1 large egg
1/4 cup light brown sugar	1 tablespoon lemon juice, freshly squeezed, plus 1 tbsp to mix with apples
1/3 cup almonds, finely chopped	1 pinch of salt
-- Topping --	1 pound (2-3 medium) Granny Smith apples peeled, cored & cut into thin slices
2/3 cup reserved crust mixture

Instructions for Apple Almond Bars

Peel, core and thinly slice apples. In a medium bowl, mix sliced apples with 1 tablespoon lemon juice and 1-2 tablespoons sugar, tossing to coat. Cover and set aside until needed.

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Butter a 9x9-inch square baking pan, line with parchment, and butter the parchment.

To make the crust: Sift together the flour and salt, and set aside.

In the bowl of a stand mixer, beat the cream cheese and butter on medium speed until smooth, about 1-2 minutes. Add the almond and vanilla extracts and beat on medium until smooth, about 1 minute. Add the granulated and brown sugars and beat on medium speed until blended, scraping down the sides of the bowl once or twice.

On low speed, mix in the flour-salt mixture and the 1/3 cup of finely chopped almonds just until the dough comes together. It should be crumbly.

Reserve about 2/3 cup of the crust mixture (for the topping). Press the remaining dough evenly into the bottom of the prepared pan. Prick the dough all over with a fork. Blind bake until light golden, about 16-18 minutes. Remove crust from the oven.

To make the topping: While the crust bakes, make the topping by adding the flour, granulated and brown sugars to the reserved dough. Mix until well combined. It should be crumbly. Set aside topping and 1/4 cup coarsely chopped almonds while you make the filling.

To make the filling: In a large mixing bowl, beat the cream cheese and sugar until smooth. Beat in the egg, lemon juice and salt until well mixed.

To assemble: Arrange the apple slices over your baked crust. Pour the cream cheese filling over the apples and gently spread the filling to cover. Crumble the topping over the filling. Sprinkle with the almonds.

Bake until light golden brown, about 45-50 minutes. Let the bars cool in the pan for about 30 minutes. Remove from pan and cool completely on a cooling rack before cutting.

Makes one 9x9-inch square pan, or twelve 2 1/4 - by 3-inch bars.

Main Ingredient: ApplesCuisine: Eastern European

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