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These Apple Pie Cookies are fall in a cookie. These delicious thick and gooey cookies have lots of cinnamon flavor, and are topped with cinnamon apples and salted caramel. They have perfect crispy edges and a delicious gooey center, plus you only need a hand whisk and a spatula to make these, making them so easy.
These Apple Pie Cookies are so delicious and will be your new favorite fall cookies. These amazing cookies are thick and gooey and has lots of cinnamon flavor, and are topped with cinnamon apples and salted caramel! What also makes them amazing is the texture of these cookies as they have a soft gooey center and perfectly crispy edges.
These apple pie cookie recipe is full of flavor and delicious, that you'll want to make them over and over again!
For more cookies recipes, try Lemon Blueberry Cookies, Tiramisu Cookies and Coffee Cake Cookies.
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WHY THIS RECIPE WORKS
- Cinnamon Cookies: These cookies are full of delicious cinnamon flavor.
- Crispy edges and soft center: These cookies have perfectly crispy edges with the best chewy and soft center!
- Apples and Caramel: These cookies are topped with cinnamon apples and salted caramel.
INGREDIENT NOTES
These are some of the key ingredients for this recipe. For a full list of ingredients, check out the recipe card below.
- Butter: The butter is melted over medium heat and then cooled.
- Dark brown sugar: The brown sugar gives more moister to the cookie dough, which makes for a more soft and chewy texture.
- Apples: I recommend red gala apples. Rinse and peel them and cut them into thin slices.
- Cinnamon: Cinnamon is used throughout the recipe. Cinnamon and apples are a perfect match and taste like fall.
STEP BY STEP INSTRUCTIONS - APPLES AND CARAMEL
Here is how to make and bake these Apple Pie Cookies. This recipe doesn't need an electric mixer. Just two large bowls and a spatula.
The full recipe is down below in the recipe card.
STEP 1: Add thinly cut apple slices to a large pan together with the butter, cinnamon, brown sugar, lemon juice, vanilla extract and a pinch of salt. Let it cook for 8-9 minutes on medium heat, until the apples are tender and the liquid has evaporated so it has a thick sugar coating left. Transfer the filling to a bowl and let it cool down to room temperature.
STEP 2: In a small saucepan, slowly melt the granulated sugar and water over medium heat until golden brown. Then stir in the butter until it has melted into the caramel. Then add the heavy cream, a little at a time while stirring. It will bubble up strongly so be careful of your fingers. Stir constantly until it has gathered. Once gathered, continue stirring for 1 minute.
STEP 3: Turn off the heat and add a pinch of salt and stir it in. Transfer it to a bowl, and let it cool down to room temperature.
STEP BY STEP INSTRUCTIONS - COOKIES
STEP 1: Melt the butter and pour the melted butter into a large mixing bowl and let it cool down to room temperature in the fridge. Then add the granulated sugar and brown sugar and with spatula whisk it together for 1 minute. Then add the egg, vanilla extract and mix it in until combined.
STEP 2: In a separate bowl, stir together flour, baking powder, baking soda, ground cinnamon and salt. Add the dry ingredients and with spatula mix it together until just combined.
STEP 3: Use a medium 2 ounce cookie scoop / ¼ cup (55 g), scoop out 11 cookies. Then roll them between your hands into a ball. Roll each cookie dough ball in cinnamon sugar. Place them on a tray lined with baking paper. Place the cookies in the fridge to set for 30 minutes.
Meanwhile, preheat the oven at 180ºC / 355ºF and prepare a baking sheet with baking paper.
STEP 4: Place respectively 6 and 5 cookies per baking tray and bake one tray at a time for 10-11 minutes. Keep the 5 remaining cookies in the fridge until ready to be baked.
STEP 5: Once baked, immediately out of the oven, use a ¼ cup measurement or tablespoon measurement, and press it into the middle of the cookies. Press it down to make an indent in the cookies for the apple filling .
STEP 6: Let the cookies cool down. Once completely cooled, fill the cookies with the apples and drizzle with the caramel.
EXPERT BAKING TIPS
- Use a kitchen scale: My default setting for my recipes is grams. It is the most precise way of measuring out your ingredients, I therefore highly recommend using a kitchen scale.
- Don't over mix your batter: I always use a spatula after everything has mixed together, to give it one final gentle fold together. This makes sure everything in the bottom of the mixing bowl has been mixed into the batter.
- Light vs. dark baking pans: For the best result, use an aluminum baking pan, greased with butter and lined with baking paper in the bottom. Aluminum pans are light in color and therefore attract less heat. That means it bakes more gently which results in a softer cake. If you use a black baking pan it'll attract a lot more heat. That will then give a darker crust, which can result in a dryer cake.
FAQ
Yes, use a large cookie scoop (2,5-3 oz) and bake them for 12-13 minutes.
Yes, scoop the cookie dough into balls and place them in an airtight container or cover them with plastic wrap, then store the cookie balls in the fridge overnight. Bake the cookies as instructed in the recipe. Homemade caramel can be store in the fridge in an airtight container for up to 3 weeks in the fridge. Make the apple filling on the day.
Scoop the cookie dough into balls and store them in an airtight container. You can store them in the freezer for up to 30 days. Let the cookie ball thaw for 1 hour before baking them as instructed in the recipe.
STORAGE
Store the apple pie cookies an airtight container at room temperature. They are best enjoyed within a few days.
Other Cookie Recipes To Try
Make sure leave a STAR REVIEW if you loved this recipe! Make sure to tag me on Instagram @juliemarieeats. To get more ideas by following me on Pinterest.
Apple Pie Cookies
Equipment
Ingredients
APPLE PIE FILLING
- 1 (150 g) large gala apple peeled, cored and cut into thin slices
- 15 g butter
- 25 g dark brown sugar
- 1 teaspoon lemon
- ½ teaspoon cinnamon
- ½ teaspoon vanilla extract
- A small pinch of salt
SALTED CARAMEL (OPTIONAL - CAN BE REPLACED WITH STORE-BOUGHT CARAMEL)
- 45 gram granulated sugar
- 1 ½ teaspoon water
- 10 gram butter
- 50 gram heavy cream
- Pinch of salt
CINNAMON COOKIES
- 110 g butter melted and cooled
- 100 g granulated sugar
- 100 g dark brown sugar
- 1 large egg around 56 g with shell
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 230 g all-purpose flour
- ½ teaspoon baking powder
- ½ teaspoon baking soda
- 1 ½ teaspoon ground cinnamon
- ½ teaspoon salt
CINNAMON SUGAR COATING
- 50 g sugar
- 1 teaspoon cinnamon
The US customary cup measurement serves as a rough estimate, as it can have uncertainties, so for precise results, it's recommended to weigh your ingredients using a digital scale in grams. Baking is both an art and a science, which most often requires precision and accuracy.
Instructions
APPLE PIE FILLING
- Rinse, peel and core the apple. Then cut the apple into thin slices.
- Add the apples to a large pan together with the remaining ingredients. Let it cook for 8-9 minutes on medium heat, until the apples are tender and the liquid has evaporated so it has a thick sugar coating left.1 (150 g) large gala apple, 15 g butter, 25 g dark brown sugar, 1 teaspoon lemon, ½ teaspoon cinnamon, ½ teaspoon vanilla extract, A small pinch of salt
- Transfer the filling to a bowl and let it cool down to room temperature on the kitchen counter or in the fridge until ready to be used.
SALTED CARAMEL
- In a small saucepan, slowly melt the granulated sugar and water over medium heat until golden brown.45 gram granulated sugar, 1 ½ teaspoon water
- Once the caramel is golden brown, stir in the butter until it has melted into the caramel. Then add the heavy cream, a little at a time while stirring. It will bubble up strongly so be careful of your fingers. Stir constantly until it has gathered. Once gathered, continue stirring for 1 minute.10 gram butter, 50 gram heavy cream
- Turn off the heat and add a pinch of salt and stir it in. Transfer it to a shallow bowl, so it can cool down faster, and let it cool down to room temperature on the kitchen counter or in the fridge.Pinch of salt
COOKIES
- Melt the butter in the microwave or in a small saucepan over low-medium heat. You don’t want it to bubble, so as to not lose any of the liquid in the butter. Pour the melted butter into a large mixing bowl and let it cool down to room temperature in the fridge. Takes about 20 minutes.110 g butter
- Once the butter has reached room temperature add the granulated sugar and brown sugar and with spatula whisk it together for 1 minute. Alternatively, mix it together in a stand mixer using the paddle attachment.100 g granulated sugar, 100 g dark brown sugar
- Add the egg, vanilla extract and mix it in until combined.1 large egg, 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- In a separate bowl, stir together flour, baking powder, baking soda, ground cinnamon and salt. Add the dry ingredients and with spatula mix it together until just combined.230 g all-purpose flour, ½ teaspoon baking powder, ½ teaspoon baking soda, 1 ½ teaspoon ground cinnamon, ½ teaspoon salt
- Use a medium 2 ounce cookie scoop / ¼ cup (55 g), scoop out 11 cookies. Then roll them between your hands into a ball.
- Mix together cinnamon and sugar in a small bowl and roll each cookie dough ball in the cinnamon sugar. Place them on a tray lined with baking paper. Place the cookies in the fridge to set for 30 minutes.50 g sugar, 1 teaspoon cinnamon
- Meanwhile, preheat the oven at 180ºC / 355ºF and prepare a baking sheet with baking paper. Place respectively 6 and 5 cookies per baking tray and bake one tray at a time for 10-11 minutes.
- Once baked, immediately out of the oven, use a ¼ cup measurement or tablespoon measurement, and press it into the middle of the cookies. Press it down to make an indent in the cookies (see photos above in the blog post).
- Let the cookies cool down on the baking tray for 5 minutes as they still will be soft when they are done. Then use a spatula to lift them onto a cooling rack and let them cool down completely.
- Once completely cooled, fill the cookies with the apples and drizzle with the caramel. Save any leftover caramel in an airtight jar for up to 3 weeks in the fridge.
Rachel
These cookies are amazing! Thank you for the recipe!