These caramel apple snickerdoodles are to die for! The perfect cookie recipe for apple pie and cookie lovers.
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Pin ItHow to Make Caramel Apple Snickerdoodles
- Make Dough & Bake Cookies. Mix butter, sugar, egg, and vanilla. Add dry ingredients to form a soft dough; chill 30 minutes. Roll into balls, coat in cinnamon-sugar, and bake at 350°F for 8–10 minutes. Press the centers while warm to make little wells.
- Cook Apple Filling. Simmer diced apples with sugars, cornstarch, cinnamon, nutmeg, water, and salt until thick and glossy. Let cool.
- Fill & Drizzle. Spoon apple filling into each cookie. Drizzle with a simple powdered-sugar glaze and a swirl of caramel on top.
Make-Ahead and Freezing Instructions
To Make-Ahead: Prepare the cookie dough and chill it for up to 24 hours before baking. You can also make the apple filling a day ahead and keep it refrigerated until ready to assemble.
To Store: Keep filled cookies in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 3 days. Let them sit at room temperature for a few minutes before serving, or warm lightly if you prefer them soft.
To Freeze: Freeze unbaked cookie dough balls (before coating in cinnamon-sugar) for up to 2 months. Bake from frozen, adding 1–2 extra minutes. You can also freeze the baked cookies without the apple filling and glaze; thaw and fill when ready to serve.
Caramel Apple Snickerdoodles
Ingredients
For the snickerdoodle cookies:
- ½ cup unsalted butter, softened
- ¾ cups granulated sugar
- 1 large eggs
- 1 tsp vanilla
- 1 ½ cups all-purpose flour
- 1 tsp baking powder
- ½ tsp baking soda
- pinch salt
- 4 tbsp granulated sugar
- 1 tbsp cinnamon
For the apple pie filling:
- 2 apples, peeled and diced
- 1/3 cup granulated sugar
- 1 tbsp brown sugar
- 1 tbsp cornstarch
- 1 tsp ground cinnamon
- ¼ tsp ground nutmeg
- ¼ cup water
- salt
For the decoration:
- ½ cup powdered sugar
- 1 ½ tsp milk
- ¼ cup homemade or store-bought caramel
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350°F.
- In a bowl, beat butter and sugar until creamy.
- Add egg and vanilla, mix until smooth.
- In another bowl, whisk flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt.
- Gradually add to the wet ingredients and mix until a soft dough forms.
- Cover and refrigerate for 30 minutes.
- For the apple filling, combine apples, granulated sugar, brown sugar, cornstarch, cinnamon, nutmeg, water, and a pinch of salt in a small saucepan.
- Cook over medium heat until thickened, then let cool.
- In a small bowl, mix 4 tbsp sugar with 1 tbsp cinnamon.
- Roll dough into balls, then coat each in the cinnamon-sugar mixture.
- Place on a parchment-lined baking sheet and bake 8–10 minutes, until lightly golden.
- Right after removing from the oven, gently press the center of each cookie with the back of a spoon or the bottom of a small glass to make an indentation for the filling.
- Let cookies cool slightly.
- Once cooled, top each cookie with a spoonful of the apple filling.
- For the glaze, whisk powdered sugar and milk until smooth and drizzle over cookies.
- Finish with a drizzle of caramel on top.
Video
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
