Have you discovered Joy the Baker yet? She’s fantastic, especially for desserts! In her most recent magazine publication, this recipe jumped out at me. With my husband’s boisterous affinity for anything apple cinnamon, I knew we had to try them!

These taste like an oatmeal cookie and a snickerdoodle had a baby, loaded up with chewy apple bits! The secret? Nutty, delicious brown butter! The original recipe called for the addition of butterscotch chips, but I thought those would overpower the delicate flavor of the fruit, which I wanted to be more prominent. So instead, my version replaces the chips with additional apples.

TIP: These would work well as breakfast cookies, though maybe consider skipping the additional sugar of the coating mixture. They’re still delicious without it!

TIP: I would highly recommend the chewy version of dried apples, as opposed to freeze dried apples. Those are very dry and can cause a moisture problem in your cookies. If you’re unsure where to find chewy dried apples, try Trader Joes or the Good and Gather brand at Target.

Apple Cinnamon Oatmeal Cookies
(Original recipe: Joy the Baker)

1/2 C (113g) butter, melted to browned then cooled to room temperature
1/2 C (113g) butter, room temperature
1 C (200g) granulated sugar
1/2 C (100g) packed light brown sugar
2 tsp vanilla extract
2 large eggs, room temperature
2-1/2 C (250g) old-fashioned rolled oats
2 C (256g) all-purpose flour
2 tsp cream of tartar
1 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp kosher salt (increase to 1 tsp if using unsalted butter)
1/2 tsp ground cinnamon
2-1/2 C diced dried apples
3/4 C diced pecans

Coating mixture
1/2 C (100g) granulated sugar
2 tsp ground cinnamon
A big pinch of kosher salt

In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with a paddle attachment or a medium bowl with electric hand beaters, cream both butters and both sugars on medium speed until aerated and fluffy, about 5 minutes. Add the eggs, one at a time, beating for 1 minute between each addition. Add the vanilla extract. Scrape down the bowl as necessary.

In a large bowl, whisk together the oats, flour, cream of tartar, baking soda, salt, and cinnamon. Add the combined dry ingredients all at once to the butter mixture and beat on low speed.

Remove the bowl from the mixing stand and stir in the dried apples and pecans. Cover the bowl with plastic wrap and refrigerate for 1 hour or overnight.

Preheat oven to 350F. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper.

In a small bowl, whisk together sugar, cinnamon, and salt.

Form the dough into 2 tablespoon balls. Roll each ball in the cinnamon sugar mixture. Place each ball about 2 inches apart on the prepared baking sheet. Bake until golden and puffed, about 12-14 minutes, rotating the pan once during baking. Allow cookies to cool on the pan for 5 minutes before transferring to a wire rack.

Store cookies in an airtight container for up to 4 days.

Uncooked dough can be portioned (not rolled in sugar) and frozen in balls first on a baking sheet, then in a freezer safe bag. Bake cookies from frozen for 14 or so minutes.