This post may include affiliate links; see our disclosure policy.
This apple cookies recipe makes irresistibly soft snickerdoodles, spiced with cinnamon and full of bursts of sweet tart fruit!
If you’re looking for an easy baking project with apples, try my apple cookies recipe! These cookies are essentially apple snickerdoodles: irresistibly soft, with a sweet coating of cinnamon and sugar. Each bite has a burst of sweet tart apple!
I love that these are simple to whip up and don’t require any refrigeration of the dough before baking. This means you can sink your teeth into that soft, spiced cookie as quickly as possible!
Key Ingredients for Apple Cookies
As a professional recipe developer, I still love it when I can make a recipe without a trip to the store. Such is this apple cookies recipe, a simple snickerdoodle that only requires the normal baking cast of characters: flour, sugar, butter, eggs, and of course, cinnamon!
A friend of ours taste tested these and said she couldn’t stop eating them! There’s perfect as a fall dessert, but they work in any season. Here’s what you’ll need:
- Sweet tart apples: I like Pink Lady apples best, but see below for more of my top apples for baking.
- All-purpose flour, cream of tartar, and baking soda: The dry ingredients. Cream of tartar brings in the signature snickerdoodle flavor.
- Unsalted butter: Use vegan butter for dairy-free.
- Granulated sugar: I recommend using sugar and not substituting with a liquid natural sweetener.
- Egg: Binds the cookie together.
- Vanilla extract and cinnamon: Add the cozy flavor notes.
Best Apple Type for Baking
The best variety of fruit for apple cookies is the same as with apple cobbler or apple crisp: select a firm, crisp tart apple. The tangy tartness accents the sweetness of baked goods, and the crisp texture stays together while baking.
Other apple varieties can end up in a mushy, sweeter filling that’s not as satisfying as with a crisp tart apple. Here are some of the best types apples for baking and cooking:
- Pink Lady
- Jonathon or Jonagold
- Granny Smith
- Honeycrisp
- Fuji
Tip for Cutting the Apples
This apple cookies recipe is very simple: the dough comes together quickly and you don’t even have to refrigerate it before baking! The most important part of putting together the recipe is this: dice the apple as finely as possible. If the apple pieces are too large, they can cause the cookies to crack and break when baked.
I like to cut the apples into pieces that were about 3/16-inch wide (between ¼ and 1/8-inch). You don’t have to measure, simply cut them as small as you can.
Troubleshooting Tips for Even Baking
Another tip for this apple cookies recipe is the quality of pans matters! I made half of these cookies on a shiny aluminum pan with parchment paper, and the size and shape were completely off. However, the half of the batch baked on our non-stick cookie sheet worked great.
So, I recommend using two of these non-stick cookie sheets for the most even bake! The entire batch baked on these, rotating the sheets in the middle of baking, came out beautifully consistent.
Storing Leftovers
The final important thing to know about this apple cookies recipe is to store them refrigerated! The cookies are a little delicate because of the apple pieces, which contain moisture. So for best results, store them refrigerated for up to 2 weeks.
Place the cookies in a sealed container with parchment paper between the layers. Make sure to let the cookie stand at room temperature for about 5 minutes before enjoying: it tastes better that way!
Dietary Notes
This apple cookies recipe is vegetarian.
Apple Cookies
This apple cookies recipe makes irresistibly soft snickerdoodles, spiced with cinnamon and full of bursts of sweet tart fruit!
- Prep Time: 20 minutes
- Cook Time: 15 minutes
- Total Time: 35 minutes
- Yield: 20 cookies 1x
- Category: Dessert
- Method: Baked
- Cuisine: American
- Diet: Vegetarian
Ingredients
For the apple cookies
- 1 cup sweet tart apple, peeled and finely diced into 3/8-inch pieces (1 large apple)
- 1 ¾ cups [245 g] all-purpose flour
- 1 teaspoon cream of tartar
- ½ teaspoon baking soda
- ½ teaspoon kosher salt
- ½ cup unsalted butter, at room temperature
- 1 cup granulated sugar
- 1 large egg
- 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
For rolling
- 3 tablespoons granulated sugar
- ½ tablespoons ground cinnamon
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350°F. Finely dice the apple into very small pieces (about 3/8-inch wide; the smaller the better*).
- In a medium bowl, whisk the all-purpose flour, cream of tartar, baking soda, and kosher salt.
- In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, beat the room temperature butter and sugar until light and creamy, about 2 minutes. Scrape down the sides of the bowl with a spatula. Add the egg and vanilla extract and beat until combined, about 1 minute.
- Turn off the mixer and add the dry ingredients. Then mix on low until just combined. Add the chopped apples and mix for about 5 seconds until combined.
- Roll the cookie dough into 20 balls, using about 2 tablespoons of dough per cookie (a cookie dough scoop is helpful).
- In a small bowl, combine the sugar and cinnamon. Roll each of the dough balls into the cinnamon sugar mixture until generously coated.
- Place the dough balls onto two non-stick cookie sheets (we recommend these non-stick cookie sheets for the most even bake**). Bake for 12 to 14 minutes or until they are puffed and the edges are set, reversing the trays in the oven at 7 minutes. Keep in mind the cookies will set after they cool.
- Remove the baking sheet from the oven and let the cookies cool on the sheet for 5 minutes. Transfer to a wire cooling rack and cool completely. Important: Store these cookies refrigerated in a sealed container with parchment between the layers for up to 2 weeks; bring to room temperature before serving.
Notes
*If the apple pieces are too large, they can cause the cookies to crack and bread when baked.
**We found that the bake good on a shiny aluminum baking sheet with parchment paper, so the quality matters! The linked non-stick sheets made an even bake with the entire batch in the oven at once.
More Apple Recipes To Try
When it’s apple season, I love making all things with apples: breakfast, desserts, and more! Here are some of my favorite apple recipes:
- Apple Bread
- Apple Cinnamon Muffins
- Apple Cobbler
- Apple Crisp or Apple Crumble
- Apple Cinnamon Oatmeal
- Crisp Apple Salad
Hi, I’ve loved making your recipes in the past! I love all things snickerdoodle (am making a snickerdoodle cobbler this weekend!) and I can’t wait to try your apple snickerdoodles! One comment though, do you mean to say that the apples should be cut into 3/16″ pieces? Because 3/8″ is NOT between 1/8″ and 1/4″, it is between 1/4″ and 1/2″. Sorry, I’m a draftsperson and have to have it literal.
I love that you caught this! Yes this was an error and I’ve updated it to 3/16″! THANK YOU!
I have really enjoyed your recipes. However, 3/8 is not between 1/4 and and 1/8. Just a heads up!
Brent.
Novice cook
Math teacher.
Thank you so much! I’ve updated this note to 3/16. Thank you!
Is the cream of tartar necessary?
It’s just for fun, to give the essence of snickerdoodles. You can omit it if desired!
These came out great! I call them Apple Cinnamon Tops, because mine come out more with a muffin type texture than cookie. Even my kids ate them, and they don’t ever do cooked apple! I will be making these again!
These sound delicious. Have you tried grating the apples instead of chopping them finely? I need to try these this weekend!
We haven’t tried that but I think they might end up too soffy.
love these, apple cookies paired with cinnamon and housed in snickerdoodles, is wonderful, a perfect Fall twist, thank you!
This cookie is outstanding. I did have to work rather fast getting them in the oven as the apples release moisture and the dough becomes a little sticky. Other than that, they are delicious. They didn’t last very long, they were that good. I made no changes to the recipe, no need to, it’s perfect as is.