Apple Pie Cookies Recipe
Description
These Apple Pie Cookies are the perfect autumn sweet treat. Full of crisp apples, a crumbly streusel topping and flaky pie crust, these have everything you love about a slice of apple pie, but in bite-sized cookie form. They're simple to make and full of warm, cozy fall flavors.
Video
Save This Recipe!
Ingredients
Apple Pie Spice
- 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
- ¼ teaspoon grated fresh nutmeg
- ¼ teaspoon ground ginger
- ⅛ teaspoon ground allspice
- ⅛ teaspoon ground cloves
Filling
- 2 granny smith apples, peeled and finely diced (4 cups)
- 2 tablespoons unsalted butter
- ½ cup (100g) packed light brown sugar
- 1 lemon zested and juiced
- kosher salt
- 2 tablespoons cornstarch
Pie Crusts
- 1 premade pie crust (from a 14-ounce package, such as Pillsbury)
Streusel
- ¾ cup (90g) all-purpose flour
- ⅓ cup (55g) light brown sugar
- 3 tablespoons granulated sugar
- 5 tablespoons unsalted butter, room temperature
Instructions
Apple Pie Spice
- In a small bowl, combine cinnamon, nutmeg, ginger, allspice and cloves; set aside.
Filling
- Heat butter in a saute pan over medium until melted. Add apples, sugar, 1 teaspoon Apple Pie Spice, ½ teaspoon lemon zest and a pinch of salt; cook, stirring occasionally, until apples are tender and juices have thickened into caramel-like sauce, 10 minutes.
- In a small bowl, whisk together 2 tablespoons lemon juice and cornstarch; stir into apples and cook just until thickened, about 1 minute. Remove from heat and let cool.
Pie Crusts
- Heat oven to 400ºF (204ºC) with rack set in middle position. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper.
- Unroll pie crust and using a 2 ½-inch round cookie cutter, cut out 15 rounds (rerolling crust as needed). Transfer to baking sheet, spacing 1 inch apart. Prick each round thrice with a fork.
- Bake until puffed, dry to touch and lightly golden on bottoms, 8–10 minutes. Remove from oven and immediately flip pie crust pieces over; cool completely (can be stored in zipper-lock bags at room temperature for up to 2 days).
Streusel
- In a medium bowl, combine flour, brown sugar, granulated sugar, ⅛ teaspoon salt and remaining Apple Pie Spice. Using your fingers, work butter into dry ingredients by pinching and smearing, until a stiff mixture comes together. Mixture should contain large and small streusel chunks.
Assembly
- Spoon 1 leveled tablespoon of apple filling onto center of each pie crust round. Divide any remaining filling evenly among pie crusts—lightly heap filling so it nearly reaches edges but is still rounded.
- Holding crust round over bowl of streusel, pick up a handful of streusel and shower it over filling. Cookies should be completely coated. Transfer to prepared sheet and repeat with remaining pie crust rounds.
- Pinch any remaining streusel into fairly large chunks and divide among cookies; sticking into filling/streusel to adhere.
- Bake cookies until streusel is golden brown, 12–17 minutes; rotating halfway through.
- Remove and cool slightly on pans before transferring to a wire rack to cool completely.
Notes
Cookie cutter size: Use a 2½ inch round cutter—anything bigger and you’ll have too much crust to filling ratio and you’ll have too thin of a layer of filling.
Make ahead: there are a few ways you can make these ahead of time. First, you can prep each component, separately, up to 3 days ahead of time. Then just assemble and bake. Alternatively, you can bake these and store them at room temperature in resealable zipper-lock bags for up to 4 days. Or freeze them for up to 3 months.
Apple Pie Spice: instead of making your own, feel free to purchase pumpkin pie spice. I like this one. You'll need a total of 1 3/4 teaspoon.
Storage:
- Room Temperature: Store these cookies in an airtight container on the counter for up to 3 days for maximum flavor and freshness.
- Fridge: You can also keep these in the refrigerator in an airtight container for 3–5 days. Bring them to room temperature before serving, if preferred.
- Freezing: Transfer cooled cookies to a freezer bag and freeze for up to 3 months. Allow the cookies to thaw at room temperature before enjoying.
Nutrition
Serving: 1cookieCalories: 189kcalCarbohydrates: 27gProtein: 1gFat: 9gSaturated Fat: 5gCholesterol: 14mgSugar: 16g
Like this? Leave a comment below!I love hearing from you and I want to hear how it went with this recipe! Leave a comment and rating below, then share on social media @zestfulkitchen and #zestfulkitchen!