One of my current favorite internet phenomenon’s is Matt Bellassai’s “Wine About It.”
Matt works for Buzzfeed. Fun, right??
That means he gets to do research for things like this (Boiler up!) and create things as sweet as this.
And, in his newest project, Matt sits at his desk, drinks loads of wine, complains about things like going out, shopping for clothes, and being an adult… you know, everything that you think is the worst too, and he records it for the internet’s viewing pleasure.
You guys. He get’s paid for this.
And, his getting kind of “internet” famous. So basically, he is going to be set for life with appearances, hosting gigs, wine labels, a bar franchise, action figures, etc… Uh, Hello?!… #dreamjob.
He posts his videos every Wednesday and this past week he shared why fall is the worst.
Full disclosure: He cusses quite a bit a lot, so tell the kids to put on their headphones.
But, it’s funny… because it’s true. Everyone is always so stoked for fall. And, everyone can’t ever get over how great fall is even when it’s here. So, I got to thinking, why are we so fall obsessed?
Sure. I love feeling the first chill in the air, throwing on a big cozy sweater and the first fire in my fireplace. But, I also get a little sad when fall comes around because that means that it’s all down hill from here to winter.
… Evidently, I am a little glass half empty about fall… So, maybe I am not the best person to ask why we all fall in love with fall year after year.
Instead, I referenced the past couple weeks of my Facebook and Instagram newsfeed and it hit me.
We all love fall because of the food.
No other season has such quintessential flavors. Pumpkin. Chai Tea. Caramel. Spice. Apples. Butternut squash. Sage.
All classically fall.
Now, I know I may gain a few haters, but I have to side with Matt on his views on pumpkin. It’s just not my favorite. I have tried. I have purchased a PSL. I can appreciate a pumpkin donut. But… Ehh.
Apples on the other hand? We don’t really see eye to eye.
I am a big fan of apples in the fall. I enjoy going to the local orchard. I enjoy trying all the different varieties. And, I love making fun treats with them.
I also think hot apple pie with cool, melty vanilla ice cream is so iconic and so good. But, it’s also kind of predictable.
Instead, this fall, I tried something new but used apple pie with ice cream as inspiration.
And, instead of vanilla I went with another one of my favorite ice cream flavors: Salty caramel. I was introduced to the salty caramel flavor at Jeni’s Ice Cream as a young girl in Columbus, Ohio and the flavor also pairs really well with apples. Not to mention, it’s delicious.
It served as a perfect accompanist to these buttery, gooey, and fall spiced apple bars.
These bars were super simple to make so don’t get intimidated by the ingredient list. It looks like a lot; but, really, most of the items were already in my pantry and there are items that are repeated in the different layers of the bar.
And, it’s a good thing that these bars are so easy to make because they didn’t last long and they have been requested twice since the last one disappeared last week.
… maybe it was a squirrel!
- 1/2 cup unsalted butter
- 1/4 cup sugar
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 1/4 teaspoon salt
- 1 cup flour
- 2 apples, peeled and thinly sliced
- 2 tablespoons flour
- 1 tablespoons sugar
- 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
- 1/8 teaspoon ground nutmeg
- 1/2 cup old-fashioned oats
- 1/3 cup packed brown sugar
- 1/4 teaspoon cinnamon
- 1/4 cup all purpose flour
- 1/4 cup unsalted butter, cold and cubed
- Salty Caramel in notes
- Preheat the oven to 300 degrees.
- Line the bottom of an 8x8 baking pan with parchment or aluminum foil leaving enough to hang over the sides.
- For the Crust: Combine melted butter, sugar, vanilla and salt in a medium bowl. Add the flour until just combined. Press the mixture evenly into the prepared pan. Bake for 15 minutes while you make the rest.
- For the Filling: Combine the sliced apples, flour, sugar, cinnamon and nutmeg in a large bowl. Toss until the apples are well coated.
- For the Topping: Combine the oats, sugar, cinnamon and flour in a medium bowl. Add the chilled butter and cut into the mixture with two forks or your fingers until mixture forms coarse crumbs.
- Remove the crust from the oven and turn the heat up to 350 degrees.
- Layer the apples on the warm crust. Make sure they are tight and even. You may need to press down to make them fit.
- Sprinkle the apples with the oat topping and bake for 30-35 minutes.
- Let cool for at least 20 minutes once removed from the oven and then chill in refrigerator for a few hours or overnight.
- Lift the parchment or foil to remove from the baking pan and cut into even bars.
- Drizzle the salty caramel over the top. Enjoy warm or cool!
- 1 cup sugar
- 6 tablespoons salted butter, cut into 6 pieces
- 1/2 cup heavy cream
- 1 teaspoon salt
- Heat sugar in a medium saucepan while constantly stirring with a heat resistant rubber spatula or wooden spoon. Sugar takes on clumps and then melts into a thick brown liquid. Keep stirring so that the sugar does not burn.
- When sugar is completely melted, add the butter, but use caution as the mixture will bubble up when the butter is added. Stir until completely melted.
- Slowly, drizzle in the heavy cream. The cream is cooler than the caramel and will bubble up.
- Allow the mixture to boil and rise for one minute then remove from the heat and stir in the salt.
- Let cool a bit before using.
- This is great on ice cream or as a gift! It keeps about two weeks.
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