Sweet bits of tender-crisp apples are suspended in a silky cheesecake filling, enveloped in a graham cracker cookie dough. Swirls of cinnamon and caramel make these apple cheesecake cookies a celebration of fall!
After posting my Strawberry Swirl Cheesecake Cookies over the summer, I had all the ideas for various cheesecake cookies. Pumpkin Cheesecake Cookies (slated for next year!), Blueberry Swirl Cookies (still a dream), and these Caramel Apple Cheesecake Cookies. Perfect for September's apple season 🍎
Well, I finally got around to making a batch. Carefully testing the apple filling against the graham cracker cookie dough and creamy cheesecake filling. Thoroughly documenting any differences and photographing the results. Only to later realize the apple filling turned out looking a little bit like... bacon?! Who invited you!
I went back and forth on even posting this particular set of photos, but if I'm honest with myself, I'm not going to get to a reshoot of these anytime soon. And more importantly, there's a voice inside my heart that has been growing steadily louder as of late. It's the one that whispers: give yourself permission to be a work in progress. And posting these less-than-perfect looking cookies feels like a good way to heed it.
So here we are! With a recipe for Caramel Apple Cheesecake Cookies that look suspiciously like mini ham quiches 🤨 You get this warmly spiced, silky dream of a cookie recipe made with apples and cinnamon just as fall is really hitting. As for me, I get to exercise my muscles of sharing something before I think it's ready.
Maybe I will reshoot them one day, maybe not! But in the meantime, you'll just have to trust me that these Apple Cheesecake Cookies are way more delicious, and far less bacon-y, than they look.
ingredients for caramel apple cheesecake cookies
caramel apple cheesecake cookies
Sweet bits of tender-crisp apples are suspended in a silky cheesecake filling, enveloped in a graham cracker cookie dough. Swirls of cinnamon and caramel make these apple cheesecake cookies a celebration of fall!
- Total Time: 1 hour 10 minutes
- Yield: 12 cookies 1x
Ingredients
for the caramel apple swirl:
- 1-2 medium whole apples -- enough to yield 1 cup diced
- ¼ cup water (use apple cider for extra flavor!)
- 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
- Pinch of salt
- 1 ½ tablespoons caramel sauce -- my Homemade Honey Caramel is perfect for this!
for the cookie dough:
- 4 tablespoons butter, at room temperature
- ⅔ cup lightly packed brown sugar
- 1 whole egg, at room temperature
- 1 cup graham cracker crumbs (from about 6 whole crackers)
- ¾ cup all-purpose flour
- ½ teaspoon salt
- ¼ teaspoon baking soda
- 1 teaspoon cinnamon
- ½ teaspoon ground nutmeg
- ⅛ teaspoon ground ginger
- Pinch of allspice
- 3 tablespoons granulated sugar, for rolling
for the cheesecake filling:
- 4 ounces (½ block) cream cheese, at room temperature
- 1 egg yolk, at room temperature
- 2 teaspoons milk (any kind you like -- I used oat milk)
- ½ teaspoon vanilla extract
- ½ cup powdered sugar
- 1 teaspoon cornstarch
Instructions
- Peel and chop the apple into small cubes until you have about 1 cup, then combine in a small skillet with the water (or cider or juice), cinnamon, and salt.
- Cook the apple mixture over medium-low heat, stirring often, for about 10 minutes or until the fruit is tender. If they start to seem dry during cooking, just add another splash of water.
- Remove the apples from the heat, and stir in your caramel sauce, then set aside to cool while you work on the cookie dough.
- Combine the room temperature butter and brown sugar in a large mixing bowl. Use an electric mixer to cream the butter and sugar until fluffy. Then beat in the whole egg.
- Add graham cracker crumbs, all-purpose flour, baking soda, cinnamon and salt to the bowl with the butter mixture.
- Stir by hand until a soft dough comes together.
- Scoop and shape the cookie dough into 12 balls, then arrange on a baking sheet or plate. Refrigerate for 10 minutes.
- Combine the cream cheese, egg yolk, milk, and vanilla in a mixing bowl. Whip until smooth using an electric mixer.
- Sift the powdered sugar and cornstarch into the cream cheese mixture. Continue whipping until the sugar is fully incorporated. The texture should be like a sleek frosting: thick and ribbon-y, but too runny to properly ice a cake with.
- Preheat your oven to 325℉. Roll the cookie dough balls in the granulated sugar and arrange them on parchment paper lined baking sheets. These cookies spread out quite a bit, so make sure to leave ample room in between.
- Press each cookie dough ball down using a glass or flat-bottomed bowl. You're aiming for about ½ inch thickness here. Dust with additional granulated sugar if the dough is sticking to the glass.
- Use a broad spoon to form a shallow well in the center of each dough disc. If any cracks form, just press them back together! This dough is really soft and forgiving. Again, if you find the dough is too sticky, sprinkle a bit more granulated sugar.
- Fill each well with your cheesecake filling. The filling will expand a bit as it bakes, so try to slightly underfill each cookie.
- Add a spoonful apple mixture on top of the cheesecake filling. Swirl and blend.
- Bake for 16-20 minutes, until the edges are set and the centers of the cheesecake cookies are slightly jiggly.
- Remove and let the cookies cool completely on a wire rack. Drizzle with more caramel to serve.
- Prep Time: 45 minutes
- Cook Time: 25 minutes
- Category: Dessert
- Method: Baking
- Cuisine: American
Nutrition
- Serving Size: 1 cookie
- Calories: 220
- Sugar: 23.7 g
- Sodium: 403.5 mg
- Fat: 8.4 g
- Carbohydrates: 34.5 g
- Protein: 2.7 g
- Cholesterol: 50.6 mg
dig in!
Enjoy & let me know what you think 🌙 💛
