There are some Caramel Apple Pie Cookies that probably work perfectly the first time.
Mine weren’t those cookies.
I created these Caramel Apple Pie Cookies because I wanted a cookie for fall that tasted like apple pie. I had the whole thing pictured in my head: a big, soft and chewy cookie flavored with apple pie spice, apple pie filling in the middle, streusel on top, and caramel drizzled over everything.
And when they were warm, they were delicious.
Then they cooled.
That’s when I discovered the problem.
The caramel apple pie filling that tasted so good inside the warm cookie slowly made the cookie around it soggy. I could store the cookies in the freezer and reheat them, which helped, but I didn’t love having a cookie that needed special treatment just to maintain the texture I wanted.
So I went back to the drawing board.
And I think the simpler version may actually be the better cookie..
My original name for these was Apple Pie Bombs because I wrapped the cookie dough around a frozen spoonful of apple pie filling.
They were definitely a fun cookie.
They were also a lot of work.
You had to portion the filling, freeze it, wrap a giant amount of cookie dough around it, make sure the filling was completely sealed inside, freeze the cookies, and then bake them.
After all that work, I still had the soggy-cookie problem.
I started thinking about ways I could keep the filling from touching the cookie dough. One idea was freezing little portions of filling, dipping them in melted white chocolate, freezing them again, and then stuffing them inside the cookie.
I still think that could be delicious.
But then I started counting the steps.
Sometimes I have to remind myself that just because I can make a cookie more complicated doesn’t mean I should.
I want people to look at one of my recipes and think, “I can make that.”
So instead of figuring out a more complicated way to keep the wet apple filling inside the cookie, I decided to get rid of the wet filling altogether.
The Secret to Apple Flavor Without Soggy Cookies
The answer was freeze-dried apples.
Instead of putting canned apple pie filling inside the cookie, I’m using roughly chopped freeze-dried apples right in the cookie dough.
This gives the cookies real apple flavor and little pieces of apple throughout without adding all the moisture from canned pie filling.
Freeze-drying removes most of the water from food while helping preserve its flavor and texture, which is exactly what I needed for these cookies. Utah State University Extension has a helpful guide explaining how freeze-drying works and why it works so well for preserving foods.
The freeze-dried apples also make this recipe so much easier.
No portioning apple filling.
No freezing little mounds of filling.
No trying to wrap almost five ounces of cookie dough around a slippery apple center.
And, hopefully, no soggy cookies the next morning.
Sometimes Plan B really is better than Plan A.
That kind of experimenting is how many of my bakery-style cookie recipes have come together.
What Makes These Caramel Apple Pie Cookies Taste Like Pie?
Getting rid of the pie filling didn’t mean I wanted to get rid of the apple pie experience.
I just needed to create it differently.
These cookies have several layers of fall flavor:
- A brown sugar cookie dough flavored with apple pie spice
- Pieces of freeze-dried apple throughout the cookie
- A buttery brown sugar and oat streusel baked on top
- Caramel sauce drizzled over the finished cookie
The streusel is especially important to me.
I wanted the top to remind me of one of those apple pies with a crumbly brown sugar topping. It gives the cookie another texture and makes it feel a little more like an apple dessert instead of simply a spiced cookie with apples thrown into it.
Then there’s the caramel.
Apple and caramel just belong together in the fall.
Ingredients for Caramel Apple Pie Cookies
For the Caramel Apple Pie Cookie Dough
- 3 cups packed brown sugar
- 3/4 cup granulated sugar
- 1 cup melted butter
- 1 cup melted margarine
- 5 large eggs
- 1 tablespoon vanilla extract
- 1 tablespoon caramel extract
- 4 teaspoons baking soda
- 2 teaspoons salt
- 3 tablespoons apple pie spice
- 7 to 8 cups all-purpose flour, leveled, plus more if needed
- 2 1/2 cups roughly chopped freeze-dried apples
- White Chocolate Chips (Optional) Measure with your heart
- Caramel sauce for drizzling
For the Apple Pie Streusel
- 3/4 cup packed brown sugar
- 3/4 cup all-purpose flour
- 1/2 cup old-fashioned oats
- 1/2 cup softened butter
- 1 to 2 teaspoons apple pie spice
A Note About the Freeze-Dried Apples
Make sure you’re buying freeze-dried apples, rather than the soft, chewy dried apple rings or slices.
They’re different.
Freeze-dried apples are very light and crisp because their water has been removed.
I like to roughly chop them before putting them into the dough.
Don’t turn them all into apple powder. I want actual little pieces of apple in these cookies so you can taste them when you take a bite.
A few crumbs and smaller pieces are perfectly fine, though. They’ll help distribute that apple flavor throughout the dough.
How to Make Caramel Apple Pie Cookies
1. Make the Dough
In a large mixing bowl, combine the melted butter, melted margarine, brown sugar, and granulated sugar until smooth and well combined.
Add the eggs, vanilla extract, and caramel extract. Mix until incorporated.
Add the baking soda, salt, apple pie spice, and 7 cups of flour.
Mix just until everything comes together.
Add more flour gradually if needed. I wouldn’t automatically add the entire eighth cup.
The dough should be soft and pliable while still being sturdy enough to hold its shape.
2. Add the Apples
Roughly chop the freeze-dried apples and gently fold them into the cookie dough.
You want apple pieces distributed throughout the dough without crushing all of them.
This is one of the things I like most about the new version of these Caramel Apple Pie Cookies.
Instead of having one big pocket of apple filling in the center, you can get little bits of apple throughout the cookie.
3. Make the Streusel
Combine the brown sugar, flour, oats, softened butter, and apple pie spice in a bowl.
Use a fork, pastry cutter, or your fingers to work everything together until it’s crumbly.
Don’t make the pieces perfectly uniform.
I actually want some little crumbs and some bigger chunks because those larger pieces look and taste wonderful on top of the cookies.
4. Make Them BIG
These aren’t little cookies.
Using my large 4-tablespoon cookie scoop, I portion enough dough to make cookies that weigh approximately 4 1/2 to 5 ounces each.
Gently form the dough into balls.
Then take several pieces of streusel and press them lightly into the tops.
You don’t need to completely cover the cookie. I like being able to see some of the apple cookie underneath.
Bake One Test Cookie First
If you’ve made some of my other giant cookie recipes, you probably already know how I feel about this.
Bake one cookie before you bake the whole pan.
There are too many little things that can affect cookie dough.
The amount of flour you scoop into a measuring cup, humidity, ingredient temperatures, your oven, and even where you live can change the way a cookie spreads.
This recipe gives a range of 7 to 8 cups of flour for that reason.
Start with 7 cups.
Make one Caramel Apple Pie Cookie, add the streusel, and bake it.
Then look at it.
Did it spread into a pancake?
Add a little more flour to the dough.
Did it hold its shape while developing a slightly crisp outside and a soft, chewy middle?
Leave it alone.
One cookie can tell you more than I can from my kitchen.
Baking Giant Caramel Apple Pie Cookies at High Altitude
At lower elevations, I recommend starting at 350°F. I bake at just over 4,000 feet, where I’ve found that 325°F works well for my extra-large cookies.
For the 5-ounce cookies, I start checking them around 15 to 18 minutes.
If you’re making smaller cookies of approximately 2 ounces each, start checking them around 12 to 14 minutes.
The most important thing is not to keep baking until the center looks completely firm.
These cookies should have a set exterior with a soft, chewy center. They’ll continue setting as they cool.
Don’t Add the Caramel Yet
When the cookies come out of the oven, resist the temptation to immediately cover every one of them in caramel.
Let them cool first.
If you’re serving them right away, drizzle caramel over the top shortly before eating.
If you’re storing or freezing them, leave the caramel off completely.
This was one of the lessons I learned from the original version. When I’m trying to keep a cookie from becoming soggy, it doesn’t make much sense to put a wet topping on it and then store it that way.
The caramel is a finishing touch.
Add it when you’re ready to enjoy the cookie.
What If I Can’t Find Caramel Extract?
Don’t let that stop you from making the cookies.
If you don’t have caramel extract, use an additional tablespoon of vanilla extract instead.
You’ll still have plenty of caramel flavor from the drizzle on top.
Can I Use Canned Apple Pie Filling Instead?
This is one substitution I wouldn’t recommend.
I know that sounds funny considering canned apple pie filling was part of the original recipe.
It tastes delicious. That was never the problem.
The problem was moisture.
The apple filling eventually softened the cookie surrounding it, and I lost that texture I wanted.
That’s the whole reason this recipe now uses freeze-dried apples.
If you want extra apple pie filling with your cookie, I’d rather warm a little separately and spoon it onto a cookie immediately before eating than put it into the dough.
Can I Use Regular Dried Apples?
You can experiment with them, but they won’t behave exactly like freeze-dried apples.
Regular dried apples retain more moisture and have a softer, chewier texture. Freeze-dried apples are the better choice for this particular recipe because I’m specifically trying to add apple flavor without bringing a lot of additional moisture back into the cookie.
That’s one change I wouldn’t make unless you don’t mind experimenting with the texture.
How to Store Caramel Apple Pie Cookies
Allow the cookies to cool completely before putting them into an airtight container.
Don’t add the caramel drizzle before storing them.
If you know you won’t eat them within the next few days, I’d freeze them.
I love being able to pull one of my giant cookies from the freezer and warm it when we want one rather than feeling like an entire batch needs to be eaten immediately.
Once the cookie is warm, then add the caramel.
That’s when these are at their best.
For more of the things I’ve learned from years of baking big cookies, read my Tips for the Perfect Cookie for help with flour, spreading, texture, baking times, and troubleshooting.
Another Fall Cookie to Try
If you love big fall cookies, try my Brownie Stuffed Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Cookies next. They start with soft pumpkin chocolate chip cookie dough and hide a fudgy brownie right in the center.
Explore More Bakery-Style Cookie Recipes
These Caramel Apple Pie Cookies are one of those recipes that changed quite a bit before I finally landed on the version I wanted. You can browse all of my bakery-style cookie recipes for more giant cookies, stuffed cookies, seasonal favorites, family recipes, and plenty of kitchen experiments that turned into something worth making again.
Sometimes the Recipe That Didn’t Work Leads to a Better One
I could have kept trying to save my original Apple Pie Bombs.
I probably could have found a way.
But the more I thought about dipping frozen apple filling in white chocolate, freezing it again, wrapping it in cookie dough, sealing everything and hoping it didn’t leak, the more I wondered why I was working so hard to save an idea that didn’t need saving.
The reason I made these cookies in the first place wasn’t because I wanted to stuff something inside a cookie.
I wanted to make a cookie that tasted like apple pie.
That’s the part that mattered.
And I think these Caramel Apple Pie Cookies get me there in a much simpler way.
There’s apple in the cookie itself, warm apple pie spices, buttery brown sugar streusel on top, and that caramel drizzle running over everything when it’s time to eat.
They still feel special enough for fall.
They’re just a whole lot easier to make.
And if there’s one thing I’ve learned from spending a lot of time in the kitchen, it’s that sometimes a recipe going wrong is exactly what you need to figure out how to make it better.
Making every house feel a little more like home.
