Applesauce Cookies with Brown Butter Cream Cheese Frosting
These perfect moist, spiced Applesauce Cookies come together in just minutes and make an excellent after school snack or sweet treat. Made with applesauce, these cookies are lower in sugar but full of flavor!
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Servings: 15
Calories: 448kcal
Equipment
- Electric Mixer
- Cookie scoop
- Cookie sheet or baking sheet
- Cooling wire rack
Ingredients
Cookie Ingredients
- 3 cups flour
- 1 tsp baking powder
- 1 tsp cinnamon
- ½ tsp baking soda
- ½ tsp Salt
- ½ tsp Nutmeg
- ⅔ cup butter, softened to room temperature
- ½ cup granulated sugar, plus more for topping
- ½ cup brown sugar
- 2 eggs
- 1 tsp Vanilla
- ½ cup applesauce
Brown Butter Cream Cheese Frosting Ingredients
- ½ cup unsalted butter
- 8 oz cream cheese, softened to room temperature
- 1 ½ tsp vanilla
- ¼ tsp salt
- 3 ½ cups powdered sugar
Instructions
Cookie Instructions
- Preheat your oven to 375 degrees Fahrenheit.
- Sift together 3 cups flour, 1 tsp baking powder, 1 tsp cinnamon, 1/2 tsp baking soda, 1/2 tsp salt, and 1/2 tsp nutmeg. Set aside.
- Using an electric hand mixer, cream together 2/3 cup butter and 1/2 cup of each sugar until light and fluffy.
- Add the 2 eggs and 1 tsp vanilla and beat again until combined. Then add 1/2 cup applesauce and mix well again.
- Add the sifted ingredients into the applesauce mixture and mix well with a wooden spoon or rubber spatula. The dough will be sticky.
- Using a #24 cookie scoop (2.5 - 3 Tbsp), drop the cookie dough onto parchment paper-lined cookie sheets. Use your hand to press the dough ball down to about ½” thick.
- Bake for 9-11 minutes or until the bottoms have browned slightly and the edges have set.
- Move immediately to a cooling rack. While the cookies are cooling, make the frosting.
Brown Butter Cream Cheese Frosting Instructions
- Place the 1/2 cup unsalted butter in a small pot over low-medium heat. Heat the butter until it melts and begins to bubble and foam. Keep heating over low heat, stirring frequently, until the bubbles stop and the butter has turned a brown color and is emitting a nutty smell.
- Place the butter in a bowl and place in the fridge for about 60 minutes. Remove the butter from the fridge and use a spoon to stir it. Allow it to spend the next 10 minutes or so coming to room temperature (your butter should be about 68 degrees Fahrenheit internally before you begin the next steps of the frosting).
- In a large mixing bowl, use an electric hand mixer to beat together the butter and 8 oz softened cream cheese until smooth. Add the 1 1/2 tsp vanilla and the 1/4 tsp salt and beat again until combined.
- Add 3 1/2 cups powdered sugar about 1 cup at a time, beating between each addition.
- Pipe the frosting on top of the cooled applesauce cookies. Sprinkle each cookie with a pinch of extra cinnamon.
- Serve and enjoy!
Notes
Recipe Copyright The Domestic Spoon. For educational or personal use only.
- Flour: All purpose flour is just fine for these cookies.
- Cinnamon: Cinnamon and applesauce just go perfectly together.
- Nutmeg: Adds even more depth of flavor to these cookies
- Butter: I always recommend using unsalted butter for baking so you can control exactly how much salt goes into your recipe.
- Granulated Sugar and Brown Sugar: Some Applesauce Cookies call for less sugar or no sugar at all but I've found the combo of white sugar and light-brown sugar gives these cookies a light caramelized flavor that is so delicious.
- Applesauce: You can use store-bought applesauce or make your own. Fresh, homemade applesauce will be more fragrant and flavorful but it also may have more moisture so just be aware when using it. Any store-bought applesauce will work. I use sweetened applesauce!
- Brown Butter Cream Cheese Frosting Ingredients
- Unsalted Butter: You will be browning this, so no need to soften it!
- Cream Cheese: Use full fat for the creamiest texture and flavor
- These cinnamon Applesauce Cookies have a cakey texture, thanks to the added moisture from the applesauce. That means the dough is also sticky and wet.
- You can enjoy these cookies without any frosting but the addition of the frosting makes them extra sweet and delicious.
- These cookies are even better the next day after the spices have had time to settle into the dough. Store them in an airtight container. They make a great addition to a kid's lunch box!
Nutrition
Serving: 1serving | Calories: 448kcal | Carbohydrates: 63g | Protein: 5g | Fat: 20g | Saturated Fat: 12g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 1g | Monounsaturated Fat: 5g | Trans Fat: 1g | Cholesterol: 75mg | Sodium: 207mg | Potassium: 81mg | Fiber: 1g | Sugar: 43g | Vitamin A: 679IU | Vitamin C: 0.1mg | Calcium: 50mg | Iron: 1mg
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