Apple Pie Cookies

5 from 2 votes

These Apple Pie Cookies have a soft and chewy apple cinnamon cookie base and a homemade apple pie filling in the middle! With apple, cinnamon and brown sugar dancing on your tongue, these delicious fall cookies have all the flavors of the best apple pie, but take way less time to make! The optional graham cracker crumble topping truly make them taste like you're biting into an apple pie! If that wasn't enough, these autumn treats are gluten free, nut free, eggless and can easily be made vegan! They're a wonderful addition to your Thanksgiving table; perfect for any apple dessert lover!

Prep Time30

Cook Time15

Freeze Time30

Total Time1 15

Course: Dessert

Cuisine: American

Diet: Gluten Free, Vegan

Servings: large cookies

Calories: 349kcal

Author: Lee

Ingredients

For the Apple Pie Filling

¾ teaspoon cornstarch
1 ½ tablespoons water
1 medium apple , diced into tiny pieces
1 tablespoon butter or vegan baking stick
2 tablespoons light brown sugar , packed
¾ teaspoon ground cinnamon

For the Apple Cookies

1 cup plus 2 tablespoons multipurpose gluten free flour (I use a gluten free multipurpose flour with xanthan gum already in it)
1 teaspoon baking powder
½ teaspoon ground cinnamon
¼ teaspoon kosher salt
¼ cup unsalted butter or vegan baking stick, room temperature
½ cup granulated sugar
¼ cup light brown sugar , packed
¼ cup plus 2 tablespoons applesauce
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract

For the Graham Cracker Crumble (optional)

4 sheets (65g) gluten free graham crackers , smashed into small pieces
½ tablespoon confectioners' sugar
½ tablespoon light brown sugar , packed
⅛ teaspoon ground cinnamon
2 tablespoons butter or vegan baking stick, melted
½ teaspoon pure vanilla extract
1 pinch kosher salt

For the Cinnamon Sugar

2 tablespoons granulated sugar
⅛ teaspoon ground cinnamon

US Customary - Metric

Instructions

For the Apple Pie Filling

In a small bowl using a spoon, mix together the ¾ teaspoon of cornstarch and the 1.5 tablespoons water until thin and watery. It will be thick and tacky at first.
Add the 1 diced apple, the 1 tablespoon butter, 2 tablespoons light brown sugar, ¾ teaspoon ground cinnamon and the cornstarch water into a small pan set over medium low heat.
Cook stirring frequently for about 5 minutes until the apples are tender and the sauce is thickened and stringy.
Transfer the apples filling to a heat safe bowl and set aside to cool.

For the Apple Cookies

In a large bowl, whisk together the 1 cup plus 2 tablespoons gluten free flour, 1 teaspoon baking powder, ½ teaspoon ground cinnamon and ¼ teaspoon kosher salt. Set aside.
In the large bowl of an electric mixer or using a hand held mixer, beat the ¼ cup room temperature butter or vegan baking stick and the ½ cup of granulated sugar and ¼ cup light brown sugar until smooth and creamy. About 2 minutes.
Add in the ¼ cup plus 2 tablespoons applesauce and the 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract and beat until combined. It may appear slightly chunky. That's normal.
With the mixer on low speed, slowly add in the gluten free flour mixture. Mix until just combined. Scrape down the sides of the bowl with the spatula and combine again.
The dough will be very sticky. Add it to a freezer safe bowl, cover the top with plastic wrap and pop the entire bowl of dough in the freezer for 30 min.
When the dough is almost done chilling, preheat your oven to 325 degrees Fahrenheit and line a baking sheet with parchment paper. Do not grease.
While the dough is chilling, make the graham cracker crumble if desired.
Place 4 sheets of grahams (65 g) in a ziptop bag and use a rolling pin to smash them into small pieces. You should end up with ½ cup of graham cracker crumbs.
Melt the 2 tablespoons of butter.
Using a small spatula, in a heat safe bowl, mix the crushed grahams, the melted butter, the ½ tablespoon confectioners' sugar, the ½ tablespoon light brown sugar, the ⅛ teaspoon ground cinnamon, the ½ teaspoon pure vanilla extract and the 1 pinch off kosher salt together until crumbs form.
Pour the crumbs on a parchment lined baking sheet and bake for 5 minutes at 325 degrees Fahrenheit. Once done, set aside to cool.
The crumble will be very soft right out of the oven. It will thicken as it cools.
For more detailed instructions, check out the recipe for graham cracker crumble.
Take the bowl of dough out of the freezer. Using a large cookie scoop (I use a 2 ounce scoop), scoop the dough out into 6 scoops. If it is sticking to your hands, get your hands slightly wet.
In a small bowl, whisk together the 2 tablespoons granulated sugar with the ⅛ teaspoon ground cinnamon.
Drop the dough balls one at a time into the cinnamon sugar mixture and coat completely.
Place dough balls about 3-4 inches apart on another parchment lined baking sheet.
Bake the cookies in the center rack of the oven at 325 degrees Fahrenheit for 15 minutes until golden on the bottoms. You can carefully use a cookie spatula to check.
Immediately using the back of a tablespoon, gently press into the center of each cookie to form a dent. Be careful not to burn yourself.
Then reshape the cookies and let completely cool on the baking sheet for 5 min before transferring to a cooling rack.
Transfer cookies to a cooling rack and let them cool completely. If you place the apples onto a hot cookie, a liquid layer will form in-between the cookie and the apple pie filling.
Once cool, fill the dent with a tablespoon of the apple pie filling.
Sprinkle the graham cracker crumbs on top of the apple pie filling, dust with confectioners' sugar and enjoy!

Video

Notes

For smaller cookies: Use a small cookie scoop and bake at same temperature for 13 min. Make sure to keep dough in the fridge in-between baking the batches.

Vegan: Use a dairy-free gluten free flour, vegan sugar, vegan baking sticks and gf/vegan grahams.

All Purpose Flour: I cannot test this due to celiac disease, but use 1 packed cup of AP flour (168 grams) plus 2 tablespoons of flour. Only use ¼ cup of applesauce. Still chill the dough.

Storing: Store extra cookies in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 3 days in a single layer. Do not stack.

Freezing: Wrap dough in plastic wrap and then pop it in a zip top bag. Freeze for up to 30 days. Defrost in the fridge the night before using.

Nutrition: The info below is a generated estimate and is not guaranteed to be accurate.

Nutrition