"Wormy" Cider Spiced Apple Pie Bars

     Nobody loves me, everybody hates me, guess I'll go eat worms. Do you remember that song? It came to mind as I scattered the topping over these wormy apple pie bars. Well not real worms anyway. I have an aversion to the real ones. What you see here is just a batch of squiggly cinnamon sugar covered wrigglers decking out a tender apple filling with an apple cider spiced cookie crust underneath. Throw a couple of cute little gummy worms on top and you've got a spook-tacular Halloween treat that's just gruesome enough. (But not too gruesome.)

     I spiced mine up with some instant cider mix, but plain cinnamon and sugar would work just as well. I know some people have issues with the ready made refrigerated pie crusts, but they really work here. (And I have issues with making pie crust.) Make your own crust if you wish, but the rolled dough makes it really easy to produce many worms in short order. And those wormy things on top? They bake up nice and crispy and add a cinnamon-sugar crunch to each bite. And trust me, it's the only way I'll be eating worms. :)


Wormy Cider Spiced Apple Pie Bars (Printable recipe here)
adapted from this Betty Crocker Recipe

Ingredients:
Cookie Crust
1 1/4 cups all purpose flour
1/3 cup brown sugar, packed
1/2 cup butter, softened
1 packet instant apple cider or 1 tsp. ground cinnamon
Filling
7-8 medium apples, peeled, cored and thinly sliced
1/2 cup light brown sugar (or to taste, depending on the sweetness of your apples)
1/4 cup all purpose flour
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1 packet instant apple cider (optional)
pinch of salt
1 Tablespoon lemon juice
Wormy Topping
1 box refrigerated rolled pie crusts (or your favorite homemade pie crust)
1/3 cup granulated sugar
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1 packet instant apple cider

Instructions:

• Heat oven to 425 degrees Fahrenheit. (400 for dark or nonstick pan) 
• Cream together 1/2 cup softened butter and 1/3 cup brown sugar. Stir in 1 1/4 cups flour and packet of cider mix or cinnamon until mixed. 
• Press mixture into the bottom of an ungreased 9x13 baking pan. 
• Mix together all filling ingredients and pour into the crust. Bake for 10 minutes. While this bakes, prepare the wormy topping.
• Mix together 1/3 cup of granulated sugar, cinnamon and apple cider mix. Cut one cold pie crust (still rolled) lengthwise in half, and then into thin (1/4 inch or less) slices. 
• Separate the pieces and toss to coat in the cinnamon sugar mixture. Repeat with the remaining pie crust.
• Sprinkle the cinnamon sugar coated "worms" over the partially baked filling and bake 18-22 minutes more until crust is golden brown. Cool completely before cutting into bars. For a spookier effect, try using colored sugar (red for earthworms?) for the topping.