First day of October means embracing those fall time flavors! These delectable treats taste like a slice of hot apple pie (but are kinda sorta healthy).
It’s the first of October, which means things are finally feeling like fall. One, it’s October which means countdown to Halloween (yay!). Two, the mornings are crisp and cool. The sun is setting earlier. Leaves are changing. Three, the autumnal harvest is filling the produce aisles. My family definitely succumbs to buying all the fruit goodies: apples, pears, cranberries. Okay, well not so much of the latter yet, but we do love em.
To bring on more of that lovely fall feeling me and my little one whipped up a batch of healthy-ish apple pie thumbprint cookies. These sweets treats are made with a combination of almond and coconut flours, fresh apple jam, and just enough butter to make things flaky and delicious. Your own pie in cookie form.
ingredients
Cookies
- ½ cup unsalted room temperature butter
- ¼ cup sugar
- 1-2 tsp vanilla (I always add on the higher end because you know, vanilla)
- 2 tbsp molasses
- 1 egg
- ¼ tsp salt
- 1 ¼ cup almond flour
- ⅓ cup coconut flour
Apple Jam
- 4-5 peeled apples of your choice, chopped into cubes
- ¾ cups water
- ¼ cup sugar
- 2 tsp lemon juice
- Cinnamon to taste
Recipe
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Put on some music to jam to. Preferably something folksy and Americana. You want to feel like you are in an Indie music video or Instagram ad for a wool sweater while you make these. They taste that much like fall.
- Start making your jam filling by placing apples and water into a saucepan. Heat over medium/low heat until at least half of the water has evaporated, fruit has cooked through, and some of that good pectin has been released.
- Apples should be soft and start to mush. Kinda like apple sauce, but not quite. We don’t want baby food. Definitely still want some texture. Add in sugar, lemon juice, and cinnamon and reduce some more. Once you’ve got a thick, jam like mixture, take off the heat and set aside.
- Cream butter, vanilla, and sugar together until fluffy. You can use a stand mixer or just a whisk.
- Add egg, molasses, and salt into the mixture and beat until thoroughly combined.
- Slowly add in flours until dough consistency is formed.
- Scoop with one of those fancy dough scoops or a spoon (I used a spoon because I have yet to invest in one) and roll into a ball. Use your thumb (thumbprint cookies means thumb?!?!) or back of spoon (my tot used the back of a rounded tablespoon).
- Get your jam on! Fill generously with your homemade apple jam or crack open your favorite fall time jam to fill these buttery cookies. Are you still listening to some of that folksy music? Seriously hope you are embracing that almost ethereal autumnal bliss that comes with making these babies.
- Bake for 13-15 minutes.
- COOL!
- Take pics, tell your toddler we have to wait until after dinner, make dinner early so you can eat the sweets ASAP because you are an adult who totally has self-control.
Step 4 
Step 6 
Basically Step 3 
Step 10
There you have it! Yummy cookies that taste like a slice of apple pie. Bonus points: You’ll very likely have extra jam for the week. Put it in a mason jar/container and save for toast, bagels, ice cream, or to eat by the spoonful.
Make these delicious cookies today, tomorrow, or the next day! Did you enjoy them or mix them up? Share it on Instagram and tag me @abqexpert. Want to connect and talk about food, sweets, writing, sci-fi, drinks, motherhood, lack of sleep, or real estate? Reach out today!
ABQExpert 