Sure, it snowed this weekend. Yes, Chris and I drove to our friends’ Halloween party in the suburbs and had to get out of our car and remove branches from the middle of the road so we could get home. And yes, a giant branch fell off a tree and landed on the roof of our car, leaving a huge dent in it. And of course, many people (like my poor parents) didn’t have power for days. Yup, it was quite the October snow storm.
But the snow has all melted already. I think it even reached 50 degrees today. And it’s still fall, and thus, prime time for apples. No, snow, you cannot force me to drink eggnog and sing yuletide carols just yet. I will not eat gingerbread or sip on Sugar Cookie Sleigh Ride tea (though I admit I’m getting a bit giddy just thinking about it!). I’m still eating apples and drinking apple cider. And cooking with them, too. These Apple Cider Caramel Cookies just scream fall from the cider used to bake them to the luscious caramel hiding instead them to the cinnamon baked inside and sprinkled on top. Please snow, stay away for just a little while longer.
Apple Cider Caramel Cookies (makes about a dozen cookies):
Print this recipe!
- 1 1/2 C flour
- 1 t baking powder
- 1/4 t salt
- 1 t cinnamon, plus more for sprinkling
- 6 T butter
- 1/2 C brown sugar
- 1/4 C granulated sugar
- 1 egg
- 1/2 C apple cider
- 12-15 caramels
(pre-heat oven to 350 degrees)
In a medium bowl, whisk together the flour, baking soda, salt, and cinnamon together. Set aside.
In the bowl of your stand mixer (or in a bowl, using a hand mixer), cream the butter together with the brown sugar and granulated sugar.
Add the egg and combine. Then add the cider and combine.
Now, add the flour mixture to the wet mixture and beat until just combined, taking care not to over-mix.
Take about 1 T of batter and form a ball with it. Place a caramel inside and round the dough around it. It gets a bit messy, but this really works best if you’re using your hands.
Place the dough balls on a parchment-lined baking sheet.
Bake at 350 degrees for about 10-13 minutes. Let cool in pan for a few minutes before removing to rack.
I call cookies like these surprise cookies because you can’t even tell there’s a lovely oozy-gooey surprise in them, until you take a bite. But then it’s pretty amazing when you do.
See? No snow here. I don’t even know what you’re talking about. I mean, come on, it’s only November 1 for goodness sake!
I went yet another year without making it to an orchard to go apple picking. But that doesn’t mean I’m not taking plenty of advantage of the abundance of macintosh apples. And apple cider. I will never get my fill of apple cider.
And if it does happen to get ridiculously cold and snowy during the fall, there’s always hot apple cider with a cinnamon stick… And one of these cookies. I can handle that.
But for now, these cookies were incredibly soft (my favorite kind!), with all the flavors of fall. No snow included.
Did you see snow where you live? How do you feel about it?
[Sues]
Those look tasty. I love the idea of using apple cider in a cookie. You’re making me think it would be tasty to reduce it down for an even stronger cider flavor.
Oh my gosh- what a yummy creation! I am an apple fanatic. My sister was without power for a few days-it finally came back mid day today
These cookies sound delicious! Perfect for fall… even though it felt more like winter this past weekend
. I’m sorry to hear about your car – hopefully the damage isn’t too severe!
Oh YUM! I’m definitely making these next week! Sorry your car got squished, Sues! Brookline got let off the hook, I thought.
I love the idea of the caramel in the middle – yum!
Laura
i don’t have the same christmas willpower that you do, but i appreciate the apple-y goodness that’s happening in these cookies!
Love the caramel topper! Such a good surprise
yes, please! you can mail these to me
maybe they’ll make my cold go away.
the little hidden caramel makes these cookies perfect! Wow.
Love the little caramel surprise in the middle!
Ohhh–these are going directly onto my TO MAKE list!
I can relate to your parents as I didn’t have power for a few days in Andover either!
I just made these. They’re TO DIE FOR.
I used baking powder (it says baking powder in the ingredient list and baking soda in the directions). Turned out lovely.
As luck would have it there were bags of leftover Halloween caramels at the drugstore checkout and I have everything else at home. Can’t wait to try these.
i would eat that whole plate! For I am a caramel & apple junkie. Love these girls!
Aaah, sorry about your car! Also, those cookies look amazing.
Well, I just made these. They’re… okay. I don’t think I missed anything… but they’re very cake-y. They taste more like muffins than cookies. And for me, the caramel sunk to the bottom, and when I took the cookies off the sheet, it fell out. I had to flip them upside down on the plate or I never would have got them off again.
I probably wouldn’t make them again, but I’m sure they’ll disappear fast enough into my boyfriend’s belly.
I’m the Anna who made the cookies above.
My boyfriend and I tried something different with the idea. We made the batter, but didn’t put the caramel IN the cookie. Instead, we added butter to the caramels and melted them in a double boiler, then drizzled that over the baked cookies. Much better
I am making these right now and I think I used baking soda instead of powder bc I was reading the directions and not the ingredients list. Sarah I had the same problem with the caramels sinking to the bottom. I will say, they do taste yummy! Timer going off….