Apple Cookies

These Apple Cookies might just be my favorite. They are perfect for this time of year! It is still Autumn right? It's hard to tell with all the Christmas music and decorations already in full swing. I went to the store to get the apples needed for my cookies and was shocked to be greeted by the Salvation Army bell ringer. It made me quite grumpy and for the first time in my life I think I know what if feels like to be a SCROOGE. I don't like being rushed onto the next thing and don't want to be pressured into thinking about Christmas already. I still want to enjoy the bounty of Autumn and Thanksgiving. It's like there isn't even a Thanksgiving anymore and that makes me very sad. Our society wastes so much time rushing around and worrying about the next thing and how we're going to enjoy it through purchasing much needed decorations and gifts. Instead we need to slow down and enjoy the moment we're living or before we know it the "season" will have rushed by us and we won't have any lasting memories.

I hope you'll take the time to slow down and bake these perfectly Autumn Apple Cookies with or for someone you love. They are so chewy good I know you will have a hard time eating just one.

The not so secret ingredient is molasses. Isn't this bottle fun?

Apple Cookies (click here for printable recipe)

Ingredients
1 1/2 sticks butter, room temperature
1 cup brown sugar
1/4 cup molasses
1 egg, room temperature
2 cups flour
2 teaspoons baking soda
1 teaspoon cinnamon
1 teaspoon salt
1 small apple, peeled and finely diced (honey crisp work great)
cinnamon and sugar for rolling





Directions  
Preheat oven to 375 degrees. 

In a large bowl cream the butter and brown sugar. Add the molasses and the egg and mix until combined. 

In another bowl mix together the flour, baking soda, cinnamon and salt. Add to the creamed butter and sugar in small batches and mix until combined.

Stir in the diced apple. The dough will be soft so chill it for 20-30 minutes to make it easier to work with. 

Roll dough into 1 inch balls (a small cookie scoop will make this go much faster).  Roll the dough balls in the cinnamon and sugar then place on a parchment lined pan and bake for 10 minutes. Let them sit on the pan for 1 minute before moving them to a cooling rack.


*This recipe makes about 32 cookies