Apples and cinnamon are a match made in heaven, and these applesauce cookies with cream cheese frosting are the perfect treat for when the weather starts to cool down.
They’re soft, tender, and spiced just enough, plus the applesauce brings in plenty of moisture and natural sweetness.
The cream cheese frosting takes the whole thing to another level with its sweet and tangy flavor combo.
Whether you want to bake them for a holiday gathering this season or just need a delicious fall treat, these cookies are bound to become a seasonal favorite.
What You’ll Need
This recipe is made with simple pantry staples and a few seasonal ingredients:
For the cookies, you’ll need wholemeal flour, cinnamon, pumpkin spice, applesauce, and a bit of butter and sugar.
The frosting is made with cream cheese, powdered sugar, vanilla, and lemon juice, plus you’ll need a few crushed walnuts for decoration.
How to Make These Applesauce Cookies With Cream Cheese Frosting
Start by mixing together the dry ingredients:
Sift flour, baking powder, baking soda, cinnamon, salt, and pumpkin spice into a medium-sized bowl. This step is necessary because sifting helps keep the cookies soft and airy.
Next, mix together the wet ingredients:
In a large bowl, cream the butter with the sugars until the mix becomes light and fluffy. Then, add the egg and vanilla extract, mixing well again. Finally, stir in the applesauce and whisk until completely smooth.
Add the dry ingredients to the wet mixture, stirring with a spoon until everything is fully combined. The dough will be thick and sticky, which is exactly how it should be.
Scoop heaping tablespoon-sized balls of dough and place them onto a parchment-lined baking tray, spacing them about an inch apart to give them space to expand. You can flatten them slightly with the back of a spoon if you prefer thinner cookies, but leaving them rounded gives them a nice domed shape.
Bake at 375°F for 12–15 minutes, until the edges are golden brown. Allow cookies to cool completely before frosting.
While the cookies are baking, beat together softened cream cheese, powdered sugar, vanilla, and lemon juice until the frosting becomes smooth. Because we’re not using butter in this frosting, you need to chill it in the fridge for about 30 minutes so it can firm up a bit.
When the frosting has thickened, spread about a teaspoon of icing onto each cooled cookie, then sprinkle with crushed walnuts. Store the cookies in the fridge in an airtight container until ready to serve, since the frosting will soften again at room temperature.
Why You’ll Love This Recipe
- The cookies come out perfectly moist and tender. Although we’re using wholemeal flour in the recipe, the applesauce makes the cookies soft and moist without needing much butter.
- Full of fall flavors: Cinnamon, pumpkin spice, and applesauce work perfectly together to create a delicious autumn treat.
- It’s really easy to make: The ingredients are super easy to put together, and this recipe doesn’t require any fancy or complicated steps – just mix, bake, and frost.
- It comes with a lighter twist: Because I’ve chosen to use a pure cream cheese frosting here, the recipe includes a lot less fat than classic frosted cookies while keeping them just as delicious.
- The cookies come out really beautiful, so they’re perfect for bringing to a party. Because we’re using wholemeal flour, the cookies come out a bit darker than usual, and the white frosting contrasts perfectly with the dark base. Plus, the crushed walnuts make them look totally bakery-worthy.
Tips for Success
- Cool cookies completely before frosting to avoid melting the cream cheese topping.
- Chill frosting for the required 30 minutes before spreading, so it sets better.
- Use unsweetened applesauce if you’re trying to keep your sugar intake under control.
- Don’t overbake – the cookies should stay soft and are ready when the edges have just started to brown.
- Store in the fridge in an airtight container to keep the cookies fresh and the frosting firm.
📌 Applesauce Cookies With Cream Cheese Frosting (Recipe Card)
Ingredients (Makes 12 cookies)
Cookies
- 1 1/2 cups wholemeal flour
- 1/2 teaspoon baking powder
- 1/4 teaspoon baking soda
- 1 teaspoon cinnamon
- Pinch of salt
- Pinch of pumpkin spice
- 1/3 cup butter, softened to room temperature
- 1/4 cup coconut sugar
- 1/4 cup white sugar
- 1 egg
- 1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 1/2 cup applesauce
Frosting
- 4 oz cream cheese, softened to room temperature
- 1 1/4 cups powdered sugar
- 1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
- Splash lemon juice
Topping
- A few walnuts, crushed
Equipment
- Mixing bowls
- Hand or stand mixer
- Baking tray
- Parchment paper
- Spatula
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 375°F. Line a baking tray with parchment paper.
- Sift together flour, baking powder, baking soda, cinnamon, salt, and pumpkin spice. Set aside.
- In a large bowl, cream butter with sugars until it becomes light and fluffy. Add the egg and vanilla and mix again until smooth. Finally, mix in the applesauce and whisk again until the mixture is completely smooth and silky.
- Stir the dry ingredients into the wet mixture until well combined. The dough will be thick and sticky.
- Scoop heaping tablespoon-sized balls onto your baking tray, spacing them about 1 inch apart to give them some room to expand. Bake for 12–15 minutes, until the edges turn golden. Cool completely before frosting.
- To make the frosting, beat cream cheese, powdered sugar, vanilla, and lemon juice until smooth. Chill for 30 minutes.
- Spread about 1 teaspoon of frosting over each cooled cookie and sprinkle with crushed walnuts.
- Store in the fridge in an airtight container until serving to keep the frosting firm.
