Cinnamon-Apple Almond Streusel Squares

Yield: one 8-inch square pan, about 20 squares
Recipe: 85/200
“Back to Baking”, pp. 72

     Surplus of both apples and free time has led me to make these cinnamon-apple almond streusel squares. As Anna writes in her cookbook, this dessert does indeed smell like apple pie in the making, but it takes considerable less effort to make! The taste is as expected: the deliciousness of apples merged with cinnamon and butter. The format of these squares makes them easy to eat and to share!

Ingredients for base:

• ¾ cup ground almonds
• ⅔ cup all-purpose flour
• ¼ cup icing sugar, sifted
• ½ cup cold unsalted butter, cut in pieces

Ingredients for streusel:

• 1 ½ cups all-purpose flour
• ⅓ cup packed light brown sugar
• 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
• ¼ teaspoon ground nutmeg
• ¼ teaspoon baking powder
• 6 tablespoons (90 mL) cold unsalted butter, cut in pieces
• 1 ½ cups peeled ad coarsely grated tart apple such as Granny Smith
• Icing sugar, for dusting

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 350°F. Grease and line an 8-inch square pan with parchment paper so that the paper comes up the sides.
2. For the base, mix together in a food processor the ground almonds, flour and icing sugar. Add the cold butter and pulse until the mixture is a rough and crumbly texture. Alternatively, you can mix all the ingredients but the butter in a bowl, then cut in the butter using your hands or a fork. Press this mixture into the prepared pan and chill it while preparing the streusel.
3. For the streusel, stir together the flour, brown sugar, cinnamon, nutmeg and baking powder. Cut in the butter by hand until a rough and crumbly mixture is obtained.
4. Stir in the grated apple until it is coated with the flour and sugar mixture. Gently press this onto the chilled base.
5. Bake for about 35 minutes, until it just begins to turn golden. Cool completely before slicing, and dust with icing sugar to garnish.

Valerie