Caramel Apple Pie Crust Cookies

These Caramel Apple Pie Crust Cookies are pinwheel cookies made with a cream cheese pie crust, filled with the perfect combination of apple on top of a cinnamon/sugar mixture and drizzled with caramel sauce. They’re the perfect treat for your Fall baking list and a delicious recipe to make during apple season.

A caramel apple pie all rolled into a little cookie. And it’s an original recipe from…

Lori Lange, creator of the fabulous food blog, Recipe Girl. Not only is she an accomplished blogger, but she is also an incredible cookbook author as well! SO exciting!!

I really, really like Lori’s cookbook, The Recipe Girl Cookbook: Dishing Out the Best Recipes for Entertaining and Every Day! The recipes fantastic, and the pictures are great – I just wish she had more. I love that she tells you what essentials you should have not only in your pantry and refrigerator but also in your kitchen (AND liquor cabinet – something I have to work on!).

Lori has included handy dandy icons that accompany each recipe to let you know if it’s gluten-free, dairy-free, vegetarian, or a fan favorite from her blog. She also lets you know if the recipe’s adaptable to a specific diet.

My favorite parts are her story of how she became Recipe Girl and the brief paragraph about each recipe. It’s a great way to get to know her better. It’s a cookbook I know I’ll be using again and again, and I’m sure you will, too. Plus, it will make a great gift for those who love to bake and cook!

What do I need to make this apple cookie recipe?

• Pie Crust –
  All-Purpose Flour
  Granulated Sugar
  Salt
  Unsalted Butter
  Cream Cheese
• Apple Pie Filling –
  Egg White
  Water
  Granulated Sugar
  Cinnamon
  Granny Smith Apple
• Caramel Glaze –
  Butter
  Light Brown Sugar
  Milk
  Vanilla Extract
  Confectioners’ Sugar

How do I make caramel apple cookies?

1. Combine flour, sugar and salt together in a food processor. Add pieces of the butter to the flour mixture and mix until it resembles coarse crumbs.
2. Add pieces of cream cheese and pulse about 25 times until it forms a ball. Turn dough ball out onto waxed paper and knead until completely incorporated.
3. Place pie dough on a lightly floured surface, and roll into a 9 X 12-inch rectangle with the long side closest to you. Whisk the egg white and water together in a small bowl. Brush the egg wash onto the dough, completely covering.
4. In a small bowl, mix the sugar and cinnamon together really well. Sprinkle it onto the dough covering the entire surface.
5. Evenly distribute the small pieces of apple over the cinnamon sugar mixture, leaving a little space at the far long edge.
6. Beginning with the long edge closest to you, gently roll the dough into a log. Seal the edges by brushing it with the egg wash and gently press it together with your fingers.
7. Roll the dough in plastic wrap or parchment paper and place in the freezer for an hour.
8. Heat oven to 325°F. Prepare two baking sheets by lining them with a piece of parchment paper. Remove cookie dough from the plastic wrap and slice into ½-inch pieces using a sharp knife.
9. Place cookie slices onto the baking trays and bake cookies for 25-30 minutes until golden brown. Cool cookies slightly on cookie sheet before you transfer them to a wire rack to cool and glaze.
10. For the caramel glaze, melt the butter in a small saucepan over medium-low heat. Whisk in the sugar and milk. Cook while stirring for 1 minute. Pour into a medium mixing bowl to cool slightly.
11. Mix in the vanilla and powdered sugar. Beat with an electric mixer until completely blended.
12. Drizzle the glaze onto the cookies using a spoon and as it cools, the caramel will harden.

Tips to get that perfect cookie crunch! 

• The dough can be refrigerated, wrapped in plastic wrap for up to 2 days.
• I suggest leaving about 1/2 – 3/4-inch of egg-washed dough without cinnamon/sugar. This will allow for easier adhesion when it is rolled.
• Depending on the consistency of the glaze it may be necessary to add either more milk or more powdered sugar.
• For easy clean-up, place some aluminum foil or parchment under the wire rack to catch the extra drizzles from the cookies and just throw away!

Can I make my own pie crust if I don’t have a food processor?

Yes, you can!

Here are the directions:
In a large bowl, whisk together flour, sugar, and salt. Using a pastry cutter, cut butter into dry mixture until it resembles coarse meal.

Add the cream cheese pieces and blend together using the pastry cutter. When most of the dough comes together, knead the dough with your hands in the bowl until there are hardly any crumbs left.

Turn the dough out onto a piece of waxed paper. Add the remaining crumbs, If there are any, to the dough. Knead a few times until all the dough is incorporated.

Form the dough into a flattened 7-inch square. Wrap the dough in plastic wrap and refrigerate for at least 30 minutes.

Apple Recipes

There is absolutely no shortage of delicious apple recipes here on 365 Days of Baking and More.

From Baked Caramel Apple French Toast, Baked Apple Cinnamon Pancake and Apple Streusel Muffins at breakfast to Bacon Caramel Apple Crisp, Apple Cinnamon Oatmeal Cookies, and my MOST FAVORiTE pie in the world, this Apple Cream Pie for dessert, you’ll love how the apple flavor is front and center in each of these recipes.

We’ve got apples for snacks, too!

How about these Fried Apple Rings, Baked Applesauce, and Caramel Apples and even these Inside Out Caramel Apples!

When I made this Apple Crumb Cake, I literally fell in love with it at first bite, and it is a recipe you MUST try. I don’t think you’ll be disappointed. These Caramel Apple Cheesecake Bars are another favorite, and I can pretty much guarantee that they aren’t going to last long!

Like sangria? This Apple Cider Sangria is a delicious drink and perfect for Fall entertaining.

Favorite Recipes for Cookies

If we’re talking cookies, there’s absolutely no shortage of those either!

Some of my favorites are my grandmother’s Cream Cheese Cookies, Peanut Butter Cookies, French Butter Cookies, Chocolate Chip Oreo Cookies, and these No Bake Peanut Butter Cornflake Cookies.

You’ll also enjoy these colorful Funfetti Cookies, Lemon Cake Mix Cookies, Chocolate Cherry Crinkles, and Lace Cookies.

But I think the piéce de resistance are these Root Beer Float Cookies because they really do taste like a root beer float!

Enjoy mini apple pies in the form of a cookie. You’ll enjoy the taste of the cinnamon apple pie filling, flaky crust, and sweet caramel drizzle in each and every bite.