Apple Crumb Cookies
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These Apple Crumb Cookies are topped with apple pie filling, covered in a buttery cinnamon crumb topping and drizzled with vanilla icing!
These Apple Crumb Cookies are a cozy fall spin on my Classic Crumb Cake Cookies! They’re flavored with warm spices like cinnamon and nutmeg, topped with homemade apple pie filling and a buttery crumb topping and drizzled with vanilla icing. They’re soft, thick, fun to make and the perfect cookie to enjoy during apple season!
Looking for more Crumb Cake Cookie recipes? Try my Pumpkin Crumb Cookies, Blueberry Crumb Cookies or Gingerbread Crumb Cookies!
Ingredient Breakdown
All-purpose flour – this gives the cookies structure.
Baking soda & baking powder – both leaveners are needed to help the cookies spread.
Cinnamon and nutmeg – provides flavor.
Butter – provides flavor and structure. I always recommend using unsalted butter but salted butter works if that’s all you have on hand, just be sure to omit the 1/2 teaspoon of salt. Do not use cold or melted butter.
Brown sugar and granulated sugar – both sugars are necessary for sweetness and texture.
Eggs – helps bind the ingredients.
Vanilla extract and salt – enhances flavor. Always use pure vanilla extract instead of imitation for best flavor.
Apples – Granny Smith is my go-to but you can whatever kind of apple you prefer. See below for more apple suggestions.
How To Make Apple Crumb Cookies
1. Make the Apple Filling: place apples, sugar, butter, lemon juice, cinnamon and nutmeg in a small pot. Cook on medium stirring occasionally until bubbling and apples are tender.
2. Combine the cornstarch and water in a small bowl to create a slurry. Add the slurry and stir until thickened. Allow to cool.
3. Make the Crumb Topping: in a medium bowl combine the all-purpose flour, brown sugar, cinnamon and salt. Add melted butter and mix until well combined. Use clean hands to break into crumbs. Set aside.
4. Make the Apple Crumb Cookies: In a small bowl whisk all-purpose flour, baking powder, cinnamon, nutmeg, baking soda and salt. Set aside.
5. Use a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment to cream softened butter, brown sugar and granulated sugar until light and fluffy.
6. Add eggs one at a time and vanilla until just combined. Scrape the sides of the bowl.
7. Add the dry ingredients all at once then mix on low speed until just combined. The dough will be soft but not sticky.
8. Using a 3 tablespoon cookie scoop, scoop dough onto lined baking sheets. Make a slight indent onto each dough ball with the back of the cookie scoop then press about 1 tbsp of apple filling into the center of each ball. Top with about 1 tbsp of crumb topping.
9. Bake cookies at 350°F for 11 minutes then cool on the baking sheet.
10. Make the Vanilla Icing: In a small bowl mix the confectioners’ sugar, water and vanilla extract. The icing is thick but you can add a little bit of water at a time until you reach your desired consistency. Drizzle over cooled cookies. Store Apple Crumb Cookies in an airtight container for up to 3 days at room temperature.
Pro Tips For Apple Crumb Cookies
- Weigh your ingredients using a kitchen scale! Measuring ingredients by volume is not accurate.
- Don’t over mix the dough! Only mix until the dry ingredients are just combined. Over mixing = more gluten development which means tough cookies. We don’t want any tough cookies here!
- Bake one tray at a time on the middle oven rack. This ensures that there is even heat circulation.
What Kind of Apples Should I Use?
Granny Smith apples are my go-to for baking because they hold up well in the oven. I also like the contrast between the tart apples and the sweet blondies.
Some other great apples for baking are Braeburn, Honeycrisp, or Cortland. It’s important not to use soft apples like McIntosh because they get really mushy when baked.
If you try this recipe then please leave a rating/comment below to let me know how you liked it and feel free to ask any recipe questions you may have! 🙂
Apple Crumb Cookies
Equipment
- Stand mixer or hand mixer
- Baking sheets
- Cookie scoop (I use a 3 tablespoon scoop)
Ingredients
Apple Filling
- 2 apples peeled and diced small
- 1 tbsp granulated sugar
- 14 g (1 tbsp) unsalted butter, cubed
- 8 g (2 tsp) lemon juice
- ½ tsp cinnamon
- ⅛ tsp nutmeg
- 2 tsp cornstarch
- 2 tsp water
Crumb Topping
- 120 g (1 cup) all-purpose flour
- 66 g (1/3 cup) brown sugar
- ½ tsp cinnamon
- ⅛ tsp salt
- 70 g (5 tbsp) unsalted butter, melted
Apple Crumb Cookies
- 390 g (3 1/4 cups) all-purpose flour
- 1 tsp baking powder
- 1 tsp cinnamon
- ½ tsp baking soda
- ½ tsp salt
- 226 g (1 cup) unsalted butter, softened
- 200 g (1 cup) brown sugar
- 50 g (1/4 cup) granulated sugar
- 2 eggs
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
Vanilla Icing
- 60 g (1/2 cup) confectioners’ sugar
- 2 tsp water
- ¼ tsp vanilla extract
Instructions
Apple Filling
- Place apples, sugar, butter, lemon juice, cinnamon and nutmeg in a small pot. Cook on medium stirring occasionally until bubbling and apples are tender.
- Combine the cornstarch and water in a small bowl to create a slurry. Add the slurry and stir until thickened. Allow to cool.
Crumb Topping
- In a medium bowl combine the all-purpose flour, brown sugar, cinnamon and salt. Add melted butter and mix until well combined. Use clean hands to break into crumbs. Set aside.
Apple Crumb Cookies
- Preheat oven to 350°F and line baking sheets with parchment paper.
- In a small bowl whisk all-purpose flour, baking powder, cinnamon, nutmeg, baking soda and salt. Set aside.
- Use a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment to cream softened butter, brown sugar and granulated sugar until light and fluffy.
- Add eggs one at a time and vanilla until just combined. Scrape the sides of the bowl.
- Add the dry ingredients all at once then mix on low speed until just combined. The dough will be soft but not sticky.
- Using a 3 tablespoon cookie scoop, scoop dough onto lined baking sheets. Make a slight indent onto each dough ball with the back of the cookie scoop then press about 1 tbsp of apple filling into the center of each ball. Top with about 1 tbsp of crumb topping.
- Bake cookies at 350°F for 11 minutes then cool on the baking sheet.
Vanilla Icing
- In a small bowl mix the confectioners’ sugar, water and vanilla extract. The icing is thick but you can add a little bit of water at a time until you reach your desired consistency. Drizzle over cooled cookies.
Notes
- Weigh your ingredients using a kitchen scale! Measuring ingredients by volume is not accurate.
- Butter: I recommend using unsalted butter. You can use salted butter, just be sure to omit the 1/2 tsp salt.
- Store Apple Crumb Cookies in an airtight container for up to 3 days at room temperature.
- Nutrition: the provided nutritional information is an estimate per serving. Please read my Nutrition Disclaimer for more information.
