These Apple Cider Cookies are the perfect fall cookie. With melt-in-your-mouth browned butter, cinnamon sugar, and a reduced apple cider glaze, they're the perfect treat that's bursting with fall flavor. Top them off with some homemade salted caramel sauce for a truly decadent bite. They taste like apple cider donuts but in the form of chewy and soft cookies!
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This apple cider cookie recipe is the perfect cookie for the fall season! If you have leftover apple cider from a trip to the apple orchard, you'll absolutely love these chewy cookies bursting with apple cider flavor and warm spices. They're full of delicious flavor from brown butter, and an apple cider reduction.
Need more fall recipes packed with apple flavor? Try this apple crisp cheesecake, this apple cider slushie, our instant pot apple butter, or our apple almond cake.
Looking for more browned butter recipes? Try our monster cookie bars, these chocolate chip pecan cookies, or these muesli cookies.
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❤️Why we love this recipe
- Delicious fall flavor. The reduced apple cider offers a concentrated burst of apple goodness, making each bite a true taste of autumn. Add in rich browned butter, warm spices, and a drizzle of salted caramel and you have a cookie with truly incredible flavor.
- Perfect texture. With a slightly underbaked center and crisp edges, these cookies strike the right balance between chewy and soft.
- Crowd pleaser. If you're on dessert duty this fall, these showstopping cookies are sure to satisfy! Our word of advice is to make a double batch - everyone will be asking for seconds!
🍎Ingredients
Here are the ingredients we used for this recipe. You can find more information for substitutions below.
- Brown butter. Make the brown butter using unsalted butter. It can be warm, just not hot, to make the cookies. If you choose to skip the brown butter in this recipe, use unsalted butter. It's worth the extra effort! Here's our guide on how to make brown butter.
- Fresh apple cider.
- Dark brown sugar. This creates a super chewy cookie with a molasses-like flavor. You can also use light brown sugar.
Visit the recipe card for the full quantities and nutritional information.
✨Substitutions & variations
Here are a few suggestions on additional flavors to try, or simple variations to this recipe.
- No apple cider. If you don't have apple cider on hand, you can use apple juice. Keep in mind that apple juice may be sweeter and less tart than cider, so the flavor definitely won't be quite the same.
- Make a spiced brown butter glaze. Add a pinch of cinnamon, nutmeg, and/or cloves to the apple cider butter glaze for an extra kick of warm flavor. Add in a dash of maple syrup for extra sweetness and flavor!
- Regular butter for browned butter. While browning the butter gives a uniquely rich and nutty flavor, if you're in a hurry, you can use regular melted butter.
- No dark brown sugar. If you don't have dark brown sugar, you can use light brown sugar, or, in a pinch, white sugar. The resulting cookies might be less molasses-rich in flavor and lighter in color.
- Spices. If you don't have cinnamon, you can use apple pie spice or a combination of nutmeg, cloves, and allspice to add depth.
- Add-ins. Add chopped walnuts, pecans, or dried apples for added texture and flavor.
- Gluten-free. Swap the all purpose flour with a 1:1 gluten free flour blend. (affiliate link)
- Dairy-free. Feel free to swap out the butter for vegan butter to make this recipe dairy free.
*This recipe hasn't been tested with other substitutions or variations. If you change or add any ingredients, please let us know how it turned out in the comments below.
🔪Prep work
- Allow eggs to sit out at room temperature for an hour or two.
- Make the brown butter in advance if you'd like. Ideally, the butter should be a bit warm, but not hot when making the cookies.
- Measure out the rest of the ingredients using a food scale.
📋Instructions
Start by making the apple cider reduction. Add the apple cider to a large stockpot or Dutch oven. (Image 1)
Bring the apple cider to a boil. Use a fine mesh skimmer to remove any sediment that occurs when boiling. (Image 2)
Boil the apple cider for 45 minutes to an hour until the apple cider has reduced to about ¾ of a cup. It will have a thicker consistency, like syrup. (Image 3)
Allow the apple cider reduction to cool off until it's room temperature before using. This can be made up to 1 week in advance and stored in the fridge.
✨Pro Tip: Keep a close eye on the apple cider reduction to make sure it doesn't burn.
Optional step. Skip if not browning the butter, but be aware that using brown butter will yield the best results! In a small saucepan, brown the butter.
When the butter is a golden amber color and gives off a nutty aroma, remove it from the heat (Image 4) and weigh it using a food scale. It should weigh about 277 grams (or the equivalent of 20 tablespoons). This is because some of it will evaporate when cooking.
Place the butter in the fridge to cool for about 10-15 minutes before moving on. The butter can be warm, just not hot. If you’re not browning the butter, you can use 26 tablespoons of melted and slightly cooled unsalted butter instead.
✨Pro Tip: If the final volume isn't close to 277 grams, you can add tablespoons of cold butter to melt in with the brown butter until the correct volume is reached.
Now for the cookie dough wet ingredients.
In a large mixing bowl, cream together some of the melted and cooled brown butter (reserving the rest for the apple cider glaze) and dark brown sugar (Image 5) for 8-10 minutes until very light in fluffy in color, then add in some of the cooled apple cider reduction (reserving the rest for later), along with the vanilla extract. (Image 6)
Cream together for another 1-2 minutes until smooth, then add the egg and the egg yolk (Image 7) and cream together until just combined. (Image 8)
Sift in the flour, cinnamon, baking soda, and kosher salt. (Image 9) Use a hand mixer on medium speed to combine the ingredients.
Then, switch to a rubber spatula to finish to avoid over-mixing. (Image 10)
Continue mixing very gently until the dough doesn't contain any more streaks of flour. (Image 11)
Allow the cookie dough to chill in the fridge (covered) for at least two hours but up to overnight.
✨Pro Tip: Use a digital food scale for precise results when measuring ingredients. This ensures you don't end up with a cookie dough that is too dry.
When it's time to bake and the cookies have chilled, preheat the oven to 350°F and line a large baking sheet with parchment paper. In a small bowl, mix together white sugar with ground cinnamon to make the cinnamon sugar. Set aside.
Roll the cookie dough into 12 to 16 large balls of dough using a large cookie scoop. (Image 12) Scoop the cookie dough using the cookie scoop then use your hands to form a round shape and roll the cookie dough in the cinnamon sugar mixture until very well coated. (Image 13)
✨Pro Tip: It's very important for the dough to chill because of all of the warm and wet ingredients used to make the cookies. This allows the dough to firm up so it can hold its shape in the oven.
Place the cookie dough on the prepared baking sheet. Make sure you leave plenty of room on the baking sheet for the cookies to spread. We recommend adding only about 4 to 5 cookies per baking sheet. (Image 14)
Bake for 12 to 15 minutes until the edges are set and the cookie looks slightly underdone in the middle. Allow the cookies to cool on the cookie sheet for a few minutes. (Image 15)
Once the cookies have cooled for a couple of minutes and are cool enough to move, transfer them to a cooling rack to finish cooling completely.
In a separate small bowl, combine the remaining reduced apple cider with the remaining brown butter. You may need to heat it up slightly in the microwave to get it to a pourable consistency. Mix together to form the apple cider butter.
Using a pastry brush, brush the tops of the cookies with the apple cider butter (Image 16) and then sprinkle with more cinnamon sugar. (Image 17)
Drizzle with salted caramel if desired for an extra touch, and enjoy!
✨Tips & tricks
- *Browned butter. Brown butter can be made in advance and stored in the fridge. On the day of baking, make sure it is at room temperature or warmed slightly before baking. Please check out our extensive guide of how to make brown butter for guidance!
- Always use a food scale. Always use a food scale when measuring dry ingredients especially! This is crucial to ensure you have the correct amount of each ingredient. Too much flour can make cookies dense and dry. Digital scales are much more accurate and much less messy than using cups. Cups can vary in size depending on the manufacturer.
- Reducing apple cider. When reducing the apple cider, it's important to keep an eye on it, especially as it nears its final volume. You don't want it to reduce too much and become too thick or, even worse, burn. Stir occasionally to prevent sticking.
- Creaming the butter and sugar. The process of creaming butter and sugar is vital for the correct cookie texture and cookie spread. Ensure you cream for the full 8-10 minutes.
- Browned butter can be warm, just not hot. We want to dissolve the sugar slightly but not melt it, or the structure of the dough will be far too greasy.
- Use fresh baking soda. Baking soda should be replaced every 1-2 months, or when it no longer fizzes when mixed with an acid. To test if it's fresh, pour a few tablespoons of vinegar or fresh lemon juice into the bowl or cup. Add in a half teaspoon of baking soda. If it's fresh, it will bubble and fizz. If it doesn't, toss it and get a new one!
- Use room temperature eggs. This is essential as it ensures even mixing. Cold eggs can also cause the browned butter to solidify in the batter.
- Avoid overmixing the cookie dough. Once you add the flour, be cautious not to overmix. Overmixing can lead to tougher cookies. Mix just until you can't see streaks of flour.
- Chilling the dough. This step is crucial. Chilled dough will spread less during baking, ensuring thick cookies. If the dough isn't adequately chilled, your cookies might spread too much. In the case of this recipe, the dough is a bit wet, so it really needs time to firm up in the fridge!
- Spread out the dough while baking. Give your cookies enough space, because they will spread during baking. If they're too close, they might bake into each other. We recommend about 5 - 6 cookies on a large baking sheet (8x13 inch size) at a time.
- Underbake the cookies slightly. Slightly underbaking ensures a softer center. They will continue to cook a bit once out of the oven due to the residual heat.
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🍎More Apple Recipes To Try
- Apple and blueberry crumble
- Apple cinnamon oatmeal
- Bourbon apple cider cocktail
- Unsweetened apple sauce
- Pork sausage stuffed apples
- Apple whiskey sour
💭Frequently Asked Questions
Store in the fridge in an airtight container for up to five days.
It is preferable to freeze the cookie dough before being baked and then continue on with the rest of the steps to make the apple cider butter and bake as normal to freeze fully baked cookies.
To freeze, allow them to cool off a room temperature completely before transferring them to a parchment lined baking sheet and freezing them solid, and an even layer in the freezer. Once frozen transfer to a freezer bag, where they will keep for up to three months in the freezer.
Yes, you can. Cookie dough can be stored in the fridge before baking for a few days if covered in plastic wrap.
You can also get started on this recipe a bit early, by making the brown butter in advance and storing it in the fridge, along with the apple cider reduction which can be made up to 1 week in advance.
🍎More Recipes To Consider
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📖 Recipe
Apple Cider Cookies
Equipment
- hand mixer (or stand mixer with the paddle attachment)
- mixing bowls
- stockpot
- Rubber Spatula
- metal sieve (or sifter)
- large baking sheets (18x13-inch)
Ingredients
Butter (will be made into brown butter)
- 3 & ¼ sticks unsalted butter (This is 1.5 cups + 2 tablespoons, or 26 tablespoons. When browning butter, the amount reduces by about 20-25% due to water evaporating, so we start with more than we will actually need. Please see notes.*)
Apple cider reduciton
- 6 cups apple cider (this gives us the delicious apple flavor, we know it seems like a lot, but we need a very concentrated apple flavor!)
Cookies
- 1 cup brown butter, melted and slighly cooled (can sub melted, unsalted butter)
- 1 & ¼ cups dark brown sugar
- ½ cup apple cider reduction, cooled (from above)
- 1 tablespoon vanilla extract
- 1 large egg, room temperature
- 1 large egg yolk, room temperature
- 3 and ¼ cups all-purpose flour
- 1 teaspoon baking soda
- 1 teaspoon kosher salt
- 1 tablespoon ground cinnamon
Cinnamon sugar
- ½ cup white sugar
- 2 teaspoons ground cinnamon (to taste)
Apple cider brown butter glaze
- ¼ cup brown butter (can swap melted, unsalted butter)
- ¼ cup apple cider reduction (from above)
Optional garnishes
- salted caramel sauce (optional, and to taste!)
Instructions
Apple cider reduction
- Start by reducing the apple cider. In a large stockpot bring 6 cups of apple cider to a boil. Boil for 45 minutes to an hour until the apple cider has reduced to about ¾ of a cup and will have a thicker consistency, like syrup. Use a fine mesh skimmer to remove any sediment that occurs when boiling. Allow it to cool off until it's room temperature before using. This can be made up to 1 week in advance and stored in the fridge.
Brown butter (optional step)
- In a small saucepan, melt 3 and ¼ sticks of unsalted butter over medium heat. Stir constantly. The butter will begin to bubble up and get foamy, and then it will stop making so much noise. Keep a very close eye on it now, as it will brown very quickly.
- When the butter is a golden amber color and gives off a nutty aroma, remove it from the heat and weigh it using a food scale. It should weigh about 277 grams (or the equivalent of about 20 tablespoons). This is because some of it will evaporate when cooking. Place in the fridge to cool for about 10-15 minutes before moving on. It can be warm, just not hot.** See notes on brown butter for more tips.
Cookie dough
- We start with the wet ingredients and sugar. In a large mixing bowl, cream together 1 cup of melted and cooled brown butter (reserving the rest for the apple cider glaze) and 1 & ¼ cups of dark brown sugar for 8 to 10 minutes until very light in fluffy in color.
- Add in ½ cup of the cooled apple cider reduction (reserving the rest for later), along with 1 tablespoon of vanilla extract, and cream together for another 1-2 minutes until smooth, then add the egg and the egg yolk and cream together until just combined.
- Now for the dry ingredients. Sift in 3.5 cups of flour, 1 tablespoon of cinnamon, 1 teaspoon of baking soda, and 1 teaspoon of kosher salt. Use a hand mixer on medium speed to combine the ingredients. Then, switch to a rubber spatula to finish to avoid over-mixing.
- Allow the cookie dough to chill in the fridge (covered) for at least two hours but up to overnight. When it's time to bake and the cookies have chilled, preheat the oven to 350°F and line a large baking sheet with parchment paper.
- In a small bowl, mix together ½ cup of white sugar with 2-3 teaspoons (to taste) of ground cinnamon to make the cinnamon sugar. Set aside.
- Roll the cookie dough 12 to 16 large balls of dough using a number 20 cookie scoop. Scoop the cookie dough using the cookie scoop then use your hands to form a round shape and roll the cookie dough in the cinnamon sugar mixture until very well coated. Place the cookie dough on the prepared baking sheet. Pro tip. Make sure you leave plenty of room on the baking sheet for the cookies to spread. We recommend adding only about 4 to 5 cookies per baking sheet.
- Bake for 12 to 15 minutes until the edges are set and the cookie looks slightly underdone in the middle. Allow the cookies to cool on the cookie sheet for a few minutes then transfer them to a cooling rack to cool completely.
Brown butter apple cider glaze
- In a separate small bowl, combine the remaining ¼ cup of reduced apple cider with the remaining ¼ cup of brown butter. Mix together to form the apple cider butter.
Assembly
- Using a pastry brush, brush the tops of the cookies with the apple cider butter and then sprinkle with more cinnamon sugar. Drizzle with salted caramel, if desired, and enjoy!
- Store in the fridge in an airtight container for up to five days. See notes for freezing.
Save This Recipe! 💌
We'll email this post to you, so you can come back to it later!
Notes
- *Browned butter. Brown butter can be made in advance and stored in the fridge. On the day of baking, make sure it is at room temperature or warmed slightly before baking. Please check out our extensive guide of how to make brown butter for guidance! If the final volume isn't close to 277 grams, you can add tablespoons of cold butter to melt in with the brown butter until the correct volume is reached.
- Always use a food scale. Always use a food scale when measuring dry ingredients especially! This is crucial to ensure you have the correct amount of each ingredient. Too much flour can make cookies dense and dry. Digital scales are much more accurate and much less messy than using cups. Cups can vary in size depending on the manufacturer.
- Reducing apple cider. When reducing the apple cider, it's important to keep an eye on it, especially as it nears its final volume. You don't want it to reduce too much and become too thick or, even worse, burn. Stir occasionally to prevent sticking.
- Creaming the butter and sugar. The process of creaming butter and sugar is vital for the correct cookie texture and cookie spread. Ensure you cream for the full 8-10 minutes.
- Browned butter can be warm, just not hot. We want to dissolve the sugar slightly but not melt it, or the structure of the dough will be far too greasy.
- Use fresh baking soda. Baking soda should be replaced every 1-2 months, or when it no longer fizzes when mixed with an acid. To test if it's fresh, pour a few tablespoons of vinegar or fresh lemon juice into the bowl or cup. Add in a half teaspoon of baking soda. If it's fresh, it will bubble and fizz. If it doesn't, toss it and get a new one!
- Use room temperature eggs. This is essential as it ensures even mixing. Cold eggs can also cause the browned butter to solidify in the batter.
- Avoid overmixing the cookie dough. Once you add the flour, be cautious not to overmix. Overmixing can lead to tougher cookies. Mix just until you can't see streaks of flour.
- Chilling the dough. This step is crucial. Chilled dough will spread less during baking, ensuring thick cookies. If the dough isn't adequately chilled, your cookies might spread too much. In the case of this recipe, the dough is a bit wet, so it really needs time to firm up in the fridge!
- Spread out the dough while baking. Give your cookies enough space, because they will spread during baking. If they're too close, they might bake into each other. We recommend about 5 - 6 cookies on a large baking sheet (8x13 inch size) at a time.
- Underbake the cookies slightly. Slightly underbaking ensures a softer center. They will continue to cook a bit once out of the oven due to the residual heat.
- To freeze. It is preferable to freeze the cookie dough before being baked and then continue on with the rest of the steps to make the apple cider butter and bake as normal to freeze fully baked cookies. Allow them to cool off a room temperature completely before transferring them to a parchment lined baking sheet and freezing them solid, and an even layer in the freezer. Once frozen transfer to a freezer bag, where they will keep for up to three months in the freezer.
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