Pear Apple Pie Bars Recipes

Steps:

• Prepare recipe for double crust pie. Roll out dough for bottom crust. Place in 9-inch pie plate. Press to fit without stretching dough. Trim even with pie plate. Heat oven to 400 degrees F.
• Heat oven to 400 degrees F. Combine pears, apples, sugar, flour, cinnamon, ginger, salt and lemon juice in large bowl. Spoon into prepared pie crust.
• Roll out dough for top crust. Place onto filled pie or cut into strips creating a lattice top. Trim 1/2-inch beyond edge. Fold under bottom crust edge to seal. Crimp and flute edges. Cut slits in top crust or prick with fork to allow steam to escape. Brush crust with milk and sprinkle with cinnamon sugar.
• Bake 30 to 40 minutes or until apples are tender and crust is golden brown.

Steps:

• Peel the apples and pears; slice 1/2 inch thick. Melt the butter in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Add the apples, pears, granulated sugar, brown sugar, ginger and salt. Cook, stirring occasionally, until mostly tender, 20 to 25 minutes (reduce the heat if the skillet looks dry). Remove from the heat and stir in the lemon juice, flour and cinnamon. Let cool to room temperature.
• Meanwhile, place a baking sheet in the lower third of the oven; preheat to 450 degrees F. Cut 1 dough round into nine 1/4-inch-wide strips; cut the rest of that round into strips of varying thickness. Weave the 1/4-inch strips into 3 thin braids, 3 strips per braid (these will be for the edges). Make braids with some of the remaining strips; leave some as is. Refrigerate the braids and strips until firm, 30 minutes.
• Line a 9-inch pie plate with the other dough round; add the filling. Arrange the dough strips and braids (except for the 3 for the edges) parallel to one another on top of the filling. Trim any excess dough around the edges. Brush the edges with beaten egg and line with the 3 thin braids; trim the excess. Brush all of the dough with egg and sprinkle with turbinado sugar.
• Bake the pie on the hot baking sheet, 20 minutes. Reduce the oven temperature to 375 degrees F and bake until the filling is bubbling and the crust is browned, about 1 more hour. (Cover the crust with foil if it darkens too quickly.) Transfer to a rack to cool completely.

Steps:

• Preheat the oven to 375 degrees.
• For the crust, place the butter, granulated sugar, brown sugar, and vanilla in the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment and beat on medium speed for 2 minutes, until light and creamy. Sift the flour and salt together and, with the mixer on low, slowly add to the butter-sugar mixture, beating until combined. Scatter two-thirds of the dough in clumps in a 9 x 13-inch baking pan and press it lightly with floured hands on the bottom and 1/2 inch up the sides. Refrigerate for 20 minutes. Bake for 18 to 20 minutes, until the crust is golden brown, and set aside to cool.
• Meanwhile, put the mixing bowl with the remaining dough back on the mixer, add the walnuts and cinnamon, and mix on low speed to combine. Set aside.
• Reduce the oven to 350 degrees.
• For the filling, combine the Granny Smith and Golden Delicious apples and lemon juice in a very large bowl. Add the granulated sugar, cinnamon, and nutmeg and mix well. Melt the butter in a large (10-inch-diameter) pot, add the apples, and simmer over medium to medium-low heat, stirring often, for 12 to 15 minutes, until the apples are tender and the liquid has mostly evaporated. Spread the apples evenly over the crust, leaving a 1/2-inch border.
• Pinch medium pieces of the remaining dough with your fingers and drop them evenly on top of the apples (they will not be covered). Bake for 25 to 30 minutes, until the topping is browned. Cool completely and cut into bars.

Steps:

• In a large bowl, combine flour, salt and baking powder. Cut in shortening until mixture resembles coarse crumbs. In a small bowl, whisk the egg yolks, lemon juice and water; gradually add to flour mixture, tossing with a fork until dough forms a ball. Divide in half. Chill for 30 minutes. , Roll out one portion of dough between two large sheets of waxed paper into a 17x12-in. rectangle. Transfer to an ungreased 15x10x1-in. baking pan. Press pastry onto bottom and up sides of pan; trim even with top edge. , In a large bowl, toss the apples, sugar, flour, cinnamon and nutmeg; spread into crust. Roll out remaining pastry to fit top of pan; place over filling. Brush edges with water or milk; pinch to seal. Cut slits in top. , Bake at 375° for 45-50 minutes or until golden brown. Cool on a wire rack. Combine glaze ingredients until smooth; drizzle over bars.

Steps:

• Line a 9-in. pie plate with bottom pastry; trim to 1 in. beyond edge of plate. In a large bowl, combine the pears, apples, 1 cup sugar, lemon juice, cinnamon and nutmeg. Transfer mixture to crust; dot with butter. , Roll out remaining pastry to fit top of pie; cut slits or decorative cutouts in pastry. Place over filling; trim, seal and flute edges. Add decorative cutouts if desired. Brush with milk; sprinkle with remaining sugar. Cover edges loosely with foil. , Bake at 350° for 30 minutes. Remove foil; bake 30-35 minutes longer or until crust is golden brown. Cool on a wire rack.

Steps:

• Make the crust and topping: Heat oven to 350 degrees. Line a 9-by-13-inch cake pan with foil with overhang on all sides. Lightly grease pan with softened butter.
• Pulse flour, sugar and salt in a food processor with the blade attachment to mix. Add butter and pulse until mixture resembles coarse sand. Put 1 1/2 cups in a medium bowl and mix in walnuts, cinnamon and cardamom. Squeeze with your hands to form a solid mass of dough. It's O.K. if a few bits fall off. Cover and refrigerate.
• Pour remaining mixture into prepared pan and spread in an even layer, then press into bottom of pan and 1/2 inch up the sides.
• Bake until golden brown and dry to the touch, 20 to 25 minutes. Cool on a wire rack. Raise oven temperature to 375 degrees.
• While crust bakes, make the filling: Toss all of the apples with the lemon juice in a large bowl. Melt butter in a large sauté pan set over medium-high heat. Stir in cinnamon, nutmeg and cardamom and sizzle for 15 seconds. Add apples and cook, stirring often, until just starting to soften, about 5 minutes. Add sugar and stir well. Cook, stirring occasionally, until all liquid releases from the apples then evaporates, 10 to 15 minutes. The mixture should be quite dry and the apples tender, but not sticking to the pan. Remove from heat and cool. (Tip: If you want your apples to cool quickly, spread them on a parchment-lined sheet pan and pop in the freezer for 5 to 7 minutes.)
• Spread apple filling evenly over crust and press down gently to get rid of any gaps between the apple slices. Uncover the reserved walnut mixture and break off pebble-sized pieces. Arrange pieces in a lattice or striped pattern over filling or scatter evenly on top.
• Bake until the topping is golden brown, 45 to 50 minutes. Cool completely in pan on a rack. To serve, lift apple pie bars out of pan and onto a large cutting board. Slide bars off foil, then cut into 6 even strips crosswise and 4 even strips lengthwise.

Steps:

• Dough:
• Whisk the flour, sugar, and salt together in a medium bowl. Rub 1/4 cup of the butter into the dry ingredients with your fingers until completely absorbed. Then rub in the remaining butter until it resembles cornmeal mixed with pea-size bits of butter. (If it gets warm and sticky, refrigerate it to chill.)
• Beat the egg with 3 tablespoons of the water; then drizzle it evenly over the dough. Lightly stir the dough together with a fork. (The dough should just hold together when you squeeze it together, with some dry crumbly bits.) If the dough is really dry, sprinkle it with the final tablespoon of water. (To make the dough in food processor, see below.)
• Divide the dough in half and wrap each half in plastic wrap and shape into disks. Refrigerate at least 1 hour or up to 2 days. (The dough can be frozen for 2 months. Defrost dough in the fridge overnight.)
• Filling:
• Finely grate the lemon zest and set aside. Peel, core and then slice both the apple and pear into 1/2-inch slices. Squeeze the lemon juice over the fruit, then toss fruit with the sugar, cinnamon, ginger, salt and nutmeg.
• Melt the butter in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Add the fruit and cook, stirring until the sugar dissolves and juices simmer, about 2 minutes. Reduce heat to medium, and cook, uncovered, until the fruit softens and the juices evaporate some, about 10 minutes. Evenly mix the flour into the fruit; then cook about a minute more to thicken the juices slightly. Stir in the vanilla and lemon zest; and remove from the heat. (The filling should resemble a tight compote.) Cool completely.
• Form the pie:
• Lightly dust the work surface with flour. Roll a disk of dough into an 11 to 12-inch circle. Transfer the dough to 9-inch glass pie pan (see photo), trimming so it hangs about 1/2-inch over the edge of the pan. Fill the crust with the prepared fruit so it mounds slightly in the center. Roll the remaining dough into a 12-inch circle. Brush the rim of the crust with some of the egg.
• Roll the dough onto the rolling pin and unroll it over the fruit so it hangs over the edge of the pie pan by about 1/2-inch. Trim crust if needed, reserving the scraps for decorations or for patching, if needed. Fold the top crust edge under the bottom one, then press the edges together to seal. Cut trimmed scraps into designs if desired and set aside. Flute the crust by pressing a finger into the crust against the other hand's index finger and thumb to make an even impression. Repeat every 1/2 inch around the pie to create a ruffled edge (see photo). Refrigerate the pie for at least 20 minutes.
• Meanwhile, place a rack in the lower third of the oven and heat to 425 degrees F.
• Brush pie with egg and place cut dough designs on top if desired. Brush again and sprinkle with sugar. Cut 6 to 8 small steam vents into the top of the dough. Place pie on a baking sheet and cook for 15 minutes, then reduce the temperature to 375 degrees F. Bake until the crust (both top and bottom) is golden brown, about 50 minutes more. If the edges begin to brown too quickly, cut a pie shield out of a piece of aluminum foil and cover the edges (see photo). Cool on a rack.
• Serve pie warm or at room temperature with whipped or ice cream. Keep pie, covered, at room temperature for a day, or refrigerate for up to four.