With just 6 simple ingredients, you won’t believe how amazing these dairy-free apple butter bars taste! The recipe has a double dose of buttery goodness (thanks to this genius ingredient), but you an see my notes below for options.
Special Diet Notes & Options: Apple Butter Bars
This little oatmeal snack is naturally dairy-free / non-dairy, egg-free, nut-free, peanut-free, and vegan / vegetarian. To make it soy-free, be sure to use a dairy-free, soy-free margarine. Earth Balance offers a couple.
Homemade Apple Butter Option: Why not make your own? I have a super easy and delicious Crockpot Cinnamon Apple Butter recipe that you will love.
Unrefined Option: You can use coconut sugar (it will be a bit less sweet), ground in a spice grinder, in place of the brown sugar. If the mixture seems a little dry, add a touch of maple syrup to bring both the flavor and consistency together.
Gluten-Free Option: We have not tested this, but you can make your apple butter bars gluten-free by substituting your favorite all-purpose gluten-free flour blend, but for best results, I would use one that contains a little xanthan or guar gum. Results may vary.
Coconut Oil Option: If you aren’t a fan of margarine, you can substitute coconut oil, but I would reduce the amount by about 2 tablespoons to start. If the mixture is too dry, add in a little apple butter to get it to that crumbly, but press-able consistency.
- 1 cup all-purpose or white-wheat flour (love this flour!)
- 1 cup old-fashioned / rolled oats
- ¾ cup packed light brown sugar (see post above for lower glycemic alternative)
- ¼ teaspoon salt
- ½ cup dairy-free margarine, melted (see post above for alternative)
- 1 cup apple butter or organic apple butter (if within budget)
- Preheat your oven to 350°F and grease an 8x8-inch baking pan. Line with heavy-duty foil or parchment paper, leaving an overhang on two sides to facilitate removal of bars from pan. Grease foil or parchment.
- In a medium-size or large bowl, mix the flour, oats, sugar and salt until all ingredients are well-distributed. Stir in the margarine with a fork until well mixed and clumps form.
- Press half of the oatmeal mixture into the bottom of your prepared pan to make a thin crust.
- Evenly spread the apple butter atop the crust, then sprinkle the remaining oatmeal mixture on top.
- Bake until crisp and golden brown, about 30 to 40 minutes.
- Let cool completely before using the parchment or foil to remove the bars from the pan in one big piece. Cut into squares.
4 Comments
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These were really fabulous! I was doing a last-minute frenzy of cooking for an out of town event and wanted to use up some baking supplies, including a bunch of Apple Butter. I used what I had on hand, which was oat flour instead of wheat flour, dark brown sugar instead of light, and Smart Balance light for the butter replacement. I doubled the recipe, but did not double the butter. I added a tiny bit of water to the mixture before pressing out, and made sure to wet my hands while pressing down the bottom layer. I didn’t have enough for the top to fully cover the whole thing, but I was using a 9×13 glass baking dish. Hopefully my friends and colleagues will love them!
That’s great! Thank you for sharing your modifications Stephanie and I hope everyone loved the bars!
I agree about white wheat flour! I find a great brand at Walmart now! 🙂