Apple Snickerdoodles are a snickerdoodle recipe with a delicious twist- fresh apples and a secret ingredient! A childhood favorite, these are some of the most flavorful, delicious cookies I’ve ever tasted. And they are definitely a cookie with the taste of fall.
We are big snickerdoodle lovers around here. If you are a fan of snickerdoodles too, be sure to check out our recipes for pumpkin snickerdoodles, maple snickerdoodles, brown butter snickerdoodles and snickerdoodle blondies.
These are some delicious cookies. If you’ve always loved traditional snickerdoodle cookies, you will most definitely enjoy this apple cider snickerdoodle variation. Apple cider syrup is the secret ingredient that really intensifies the apple flavor. These cookies have that wonderful tang of a snickerdoodle with plenty of apple-cinnamon flavor and chunks of fresh apple throughout. They have slightly crisp edges with tender, soft cookie inside.
Ingredients Needed:
- Apple Cider: Just regular apple cider is fine. Nothing fancy is needed!
- Flour: Use all purpose flour.
- Cream of Tartar: Don’t skip it! You can find cream of tartar in your market’s spice section. This is what gives classic snickerdoodles their unique flavor.
- Baking Soda, Kosher or Sea Salt, Ground Cinnamon and Apple Pie Spice
- Unsalted Butter: Use salted in a pinch.
- White Sugar and Brown Sugar
- Eggs: Use large eggs.
- Apple: I like to use honeycrisp, but any apple will work.
How to make Apple Snickerdoodles:
The complete, printable recipe is in the recipe card at the end of this post.
- The first step is turning your apple cider into apple cider syrup. It’s really easy to do. Just add it to a small saucepan and heat it until bubbling. Continue to heat over medium-low for about 20 minutes or so until it has reduced into about 1/4 cup of liquid. It will turn into a consistency similar to maple syrup.
- Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F.
- Combine the dry ingredients in one bowl. In another bowl, combine the butter and sugars. Then add eggs and apple cider syrup. Then stir in chopped apple.
- Scoop the dough into balls. Roll the balls of dough in a mixture of sugar and apple pie spice. Bake on a parchment-lined baking sheet for 10 or 11 minutes.
Recipe Tips:
- Make sure your butter and eggs are at room temperature.
- If you have accidentally reduced the apple cider too long and you don’t have 1/4 cup… it’s okay to add in a little bit of apple cider to compensate for what is missing.
- Don’t over mix the batter. Stir in the flour (don’t use the mixer).
- You can refrigerate the dough if you’d like (but it’s not necessary).
- Don’t over bake the cookies. Bake for 10 minutes, and then check them. They should be light in color.
Storage Instructions:
Apple snickerdoodles may be stored in a sealed container at room temperature for up to 3 days. They also freeze well. Freeze in a sealed container or freezer bag for up to 3 months.
Can you use apple juice in place of apple cider?
Yes! If you are not able to locate apple cider, it’s okay to use apple juice to make these apple cider snickerdoodles. It will reduce in the same way that you’re reducing the apple cider- boiling down to a syrup consistency.
What You’ll Love About This Recipe:
- These cookies taste amazing. I’m not even kidding. They’re so good!
- They are an easy cookie recipe to make. Don’t let the step of making the apple cider syrup scare you- it’s super easy to do.
- Apple snickerdoodles would be an excellent choice for a Christmas cookie or a holiday cookie exchange.
Apple Snickerdoodles
Ingredients
COOKIE DOUGH:
- 2½ cups apple cider
- 3 cups all purpose flour
- 2 teaspoons cream of tartar
- 1 teaspoon baking soda
- 1 teaspoon kosher or sea salt
- 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
- 1 cup (2 sticks) unsalted butter, at room temperature
- ½ cup granulated white sugar
- ½ cup packed brown sugar
- 2 large eggs, at room temperature
- ½ cup very finely diced peeled apple
ROLLING SUGAR:
- ½ cup granulated white sugar
- 3 teaspoons apple pie spice
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 400℉. Line baking sheets with parchment paper.
PREPARE THE COOKIE DOUGH:
- The first step is reducing the cider into a syrup. Be patient, this will take about 15 minutes or longer. Heat the cider in a nonstick saucepan over medium-high heat until it comes to a boil. Continue to cook until it's syrupy and reduced to about ¼ cup. Set aside to cool slightly.
- In a medium bowl, whisk the flour, cream of tartar, baking soda, salt and cinnamon until smooth. In a separate bowl, use an electric mixer to beat the butter with the white sugar and the brown sugar on medium-high speed until fluffy and smooth, 2 to 3 minutes. Beat in the reduced cider and eggs (the mixture may look slightly curdled). Stir in the flour mixture and the apples, just until combined.
- In a small bowl, stir together the ½ cup white sugar and the apple pie spice. Roll heaping tablespoons of dough into balls, using lightly moistened hands if the dough is too sticky, and then roll generously in the spiced sugar mixture. Place the dough balls 3-inches apart on the prepared baking sheets. Bake until the edges are just set but centers are still soft, 10 to 12 minutes. Cool 2 to 3 minutes on the baking sheet, and then transfer to a wire rack to cool completely.
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
