Baking Monday 2 - Cinnamon Apple Streusel Bars

I ususally try to plan Baking Monday in advance so I can pick up any special ingredients on grocery day. Since I had parties to shop for, I didn't get the chance to think ahead for this week. I was also short on time ... I had exactly one hour to put something together before picking the kids up from school. So, I had to find something that I could make quickly with whatever ingredients I had on hand.

When I get a new cookbook, I like to look through it right away and mark all the recipes that sound good. So, I flipped through a few cookie books, looking for tagged recipes that fit the bill. I decided to make Cinnamon Apple Streusel Bars, which allowed me to use up the extra apple slices from Theo's school birthday snack earlier in the day.

Another time saver? Every dry ingredient in the recipe is in 1/4 cup quantities, which means only one measuring cup got dirty. Yee-hah!



These were really easy to make. (By the way, 1.25 c graham cracker crumbs is equivalent to one of the plastic-wrapped bricks of crackers.) The butter + graham cracker + sugar bottom crust got all carmalized and crunchy. I used 2.5 apples and would probably use even more next time.

Are you ready for the good news? These were voted Best. Dessert. Ever. I'm in shock. Especially because there was no chocolate involved!

Best Desserts so far (as declared by my panel of tasters):

Cinnamon Apple Streusel Bars
Peanut Butter Fudge
Better Than Pop Tarts
Chocolate Caramel Cookies