Soft Apple & Cinnamon Cookies are the perfect Autumnal sweet treat. Slightly crisp on the outside with a super soft middle and loaded with apple and cinnamon; they really are delicious.
Soft Apple & Cinnamon Cookies are The perfect Autumnal sweet treat
I was inspired by the M&S Chunked N’ Loaded sticky apple cookies and wanted to make my own version. Inspired by being the key term here – I wasn’t trying to do a replica recipe like with my Gingerbread & White Chocolate Cookies.
I loved the apple and cinnamon flavours in the M&S cookies but personally could do without the toffee element. I also wanted to really amplify the cinnamon flavour to make it more prominent. And a cinnamon drizzle made more sense to me than white chocolate.
But one thing I did keep the same was how generous and delicious these cookies are. They have a crisp edge but a super soft, almost cake like centre. If you’re looking for a chewy cookie, these aren’t for you. They are all about the soft, cosy comforting flavours of Autumn.
Which apple is recommended to use for these cookies?
I like to use dried apple in my baking recipes as it doesn’t add unwanted moisture to your bakes. Unless that is wanted like in my Apple Traybake.
Dried apple is really simple to make yourself, you just need to allow a bit of time. It’s a great way to preserve apples – especially if you have an apple glut. You don’t need any fancy equipment for my recipe either which is helpful because I don’t think most of us have dehydrators!
I realise that not everyone will want to make their own dried apple so you can buy it in most large supermarkets. There are two types I have seen – dried and freeze dried apple. Both would work well for these cookies but my preference is the dried apple.
These apple pieces have been dried, but still have a soft texture and some moisture. The freeze dried slices have all the moisture removed and are crisp and brittle.
Do you have to freeze the cookies before baking?
Yes. I’m sorry but you do need to. I had so many attempts at trying to make cookies like this without freezing them before baking and it just didn’t work.
Freezing the cookie dough isn’t a hardship, its a very easy step – you just need to have room in your freezer which is the hard part for me!
Make sure you line the baking tray you use to freeze the cookie dough. You can put the dough balls quite close together at this stage, just make sure they’re not touching.
Leave them in the freezer for at least two hours but you can absolutely leave them longer. But make sure you bake them straight from the freezer.
After not wanting to initially freeze the cookie dough, I now see it as a helpful step. These cookies are so big that unless you are sharing them or have a large family, you may not want to bake them all at once.
By freezing the dough, you can just leave the rest of the dough there for a later date.
How big are these soft apple & Cinnamon cookies?
Big. These are big boy cookies and they are amazing.
I use my largest ice cream scoop to measure out the cookies which is 6cm in diameter. This made balls roughly 90g. You don’t have to worry about getting them exactly the same, but roughly the same is the goal so they bake at the same time.
If you want to make the cookies smaller you absolutely can. You will just need to adjust the baking time accordingly. I do however love how big and decadent they are.
Cookie baking tips
Cookies are wonderfully simple to bake, but there are a few things to remember to bake the perfect cookie!
Do not put them close together on the baking tray – although we’re freezing the dough to stop them spreading like crazy, they will still spread. You don’t want to put the cookie balls close together and end up with one massive cookie. If you want that make cookie bars instead.
If in doubt, leave more space than you think is needed. Four cookies on a large baking tray is perfect.
Use baking parchment/paper instead of silicon liners – when I began testing these recipes I was using silicon liners as they are typically my preference. However they seemed to allow the dough to spread more.
I’m sure there is some scientific, fancy explanation for this but I don’t have that for you.
Don’t over bake your cookies – probably the most important point to remember. You want them to have a golden edge but still look pale in the middle and have you questioning whether they are fully baked.
Do not let them fool you – they are! They firm up further as they cool so you definitely don’t want to over bake them. Because then your soft kinder cookies won’t be soft.
Leave them to cool on the baking tray – if you try and move them too soon after they have come out of the oven they will fall apart dramatically. If they are too hot the soft melty goodness cannot support itself and you will have broken cookies.
Leave them for 10 minutes or so to pull themselves together and then you can top them. Don’t worry they will still be deliciously warm and gooey inside.
How long will the cookies keep for?
I think these cookies are best eaten on the day you have baked them or the next day if you must. If you’re eating them the next day, treat yourself and give them 10 minutes in the microwave to revive themselves to their former glory.
As the cookies are already frozen, I would only bake as many as you know you’re going to eat that day. If someone surprises you and wants another, just get it straight out of the freezer and whack it in the oven and they’ll have a freshly baked cookie in no time!
Other recipes you might like
- Soft Kinder Cookies
- Apple & Sultana Fruit Bread
- Apple & Sultana Teacakes
- Cinnamon Swirl Loaf with Cake with Vanilla Icing
- Cinnamon Cookies
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Soft Apple & Cinnamon Cookies
Soft Apple & Cinnamon Cookies are the perfect Autumnal sweet treat. Slightly crisp on the outside with a super soft middle and loaded with apple and cinnamon; they really are delicious.
Ingredients
- 200 g unsalted butter
- 150 g light brown sugar
- 100 g caster sugar
- 2 large eggs
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
- 400 g self raising flour
- 1½ tsp cinnamon heaped
- 1 tsp salt
- 100 g dried apple broken up
For the drizzle
- 60 g icing sugar
- ⅛ tsp cinnamon
- 2½ tsp milk (you might not need it all)
Instructions
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Add 200g unsalted butter, 150g light brown sugar and 100g caster sugar to a bowl and beat until pale
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Add 2 eggs and 1 tsp vanilla extract and mix again. Don't panic this will look unappealing
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Add 400g self raising flour, 1½ tsp cinnamon and 1 tsp salt and mix until just combined
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Break or cut up 100g dried apple and add it to the mix before mixing briefly again
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Make 11 balls of cookie dough. I use a large ice cream scoop to make this easier. Each ball should be approximately 90g. Place the balls onto a lined baking tray making sure they don't touch
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Put the cookie balls in the freezer for at least 2 hours
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Preheat the oven to 180°C and line 2-3 baking trays with parchment paper
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Bake for 17 mins or until the edges are golden brown but the middle is still pale
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Leave to cool on the baking tray for 10 minutes for them to firm up slightly after this point you can transfer them to a baking rack to cool
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Once the cookies have cooled, add 60g icing sugar and ⅛ tsp cinnamon to a bowl. Add up to 2 ½ tsp milk until you get a thick but pourable consistency. You might not need all the milk so add a little at a time
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Drizzle or pipe the icing sugar mix over each of the cookies
Recipe Notes
If you want to use salted butter, half the amount of salt you add to the cookies.
You can use dried or freeze dried apples.
If you like a strong cinnamon flavour, add heaped teaspoon(s) to the dough.
You don’t have to add the drizzle if you don’t want to, they’ll still be delicious.
You can make the cookies smaller but you will need to adjust the baking time.
Nutritional information is given as a guide only and can vary.
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