A swirled, buttery cookie, with a center of cinnamon, sugar, caramel bits, and diced apples, topped with a sweet glaze.
These Caramel Apple Cinnamon Roll Cookies with Mascarpone Glaze are perfect for your holiday cookie trays. They are so pretty and taste delicious.
Think mini cinnamon rolls and caramel apples all in one cookie.
Ingredients
- COOKIE DOUGH:
- 2 1/2 cups all-purpose flour, plus 3-4 Tablespoons for rolling dough
- 2 teaspoons baking powder
- 2 sticks (1 cup) butter, softened
- 1 cup granulated sugar
- 1/2 cup packed light brown sugar
- 1 large egg
- 1 tablespoon pure vanilla
- FILLING:
- 4 Tablespoons butter, very soft but not melted
- 1 cup apple, finely diced
- 1/4 cup granulated sugar
- 1 Tablespoon ground cinnamon
- 1 cup caramel bits
- TOPPING:
- 1 Tablespoon mascarpone cheese, softened
- 1 cup confectioner sugar
- 1-4 Tablespoons milk, divided
- 1 cup caramel bits
- 1/2 cup - 1 cup honey roasted chopped pecans
Instructions
- Whisk together 2 1/2 cups of the flour and the baking powder in a medium size mixing bowl, set aside.
- In a large mixing bowl, using an electric mixer, cream together the butter, and both sugars sugars for 3 minutes, until light and fluffy. Scrape the sides of the bowl.
- Add in the egg and vanilla and mix for 1 minute longer.
- Add in the flour mixture, in 3 parts, with mixer on low speed. Beat just until the dough is well combined. Shape dough into a ball, then flatted into a 2 inch thick disc. Wrap in cling wrap and refrigerate for 30 minutes.
- Roll the dough out on a lightly floured, hard surface, into a 14 x 9 inch rectangle, 1/4 inch thickness. Spread the butter evenly over the dough. Arrange the diced apple over the butter. Stir together the sugar and cinnamon and sprinkle evenly over the dough. Add the caramel bits evenly over the sugar-cinnamon.
- Roll the dough, tightly, beginning at the long edge, like doing cinnamon rolls. Cut roll in half and wrap each piece in cling wrap. Place on a tray, and chill in refrigerator for 1 hour.
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Line baking sheets with parchment paper.
- Place rolls on cutting board or hard surface, cut into 1/2 inch slices and place on baking sheets, about 2 inches apart. Bake until edges start to get light golden brown, about 12 minutes. Remove from the oven and allow to set on baking sheet for 5 minutes. Transfer cookies to a cooling rack. Place the cookies on large baking sheets after cool.
- In a medium size bowl, stir together the mascarpone cheese, confectioner sugar and 2 Tablespoons of milk. If mixture is too thick to drizzle, carefully add small amounts of milk to get desired consistency. Drizzle the glaze lightly over the cookies.
- In a small saucepan, combine 1 Tablespoon of the milk and the caramel bits. Heat over a low heat, stirring constantly, until mixture is smooth and the caramel bits are melted. May add small amount additional milk if necessary. Drizzle the caramel mixture over the cookies. Top each with a few pieces of the pecans. Allow glaze to set before storing in containers.
- Makes 2 1/2 dozen cookies
My husband took a plate of these to a body shop where our car was being worked on and the guys all loved them. My neighbors also gave the seal of approval.
HOW TO MAKE CARAMEL APPLE CINNAMON ROLL COOKIES:
1. Prepare the dough first. Chill for 30 minutes.
2. After rolling out the dough, spread the butter evenly over it.
Arrange the diced apples, sprinkle sugar and cinnamon mixture, and top with caramel bits.
3. Roll the dough like when doing cinnamon rolls. Cut log in half and wrap each half in cling wrap. Chill for 1 hour.
4. Cut into 1/2 inch slices and bake. Allow to cool on wire rack.
5. Prepare mascarpone glaze and drizzle over the cookies. Melt caramel bits as directed and drizzle over the cookies. Top with honey roasted chopped pecans.
My inspiration for this recipe was a Cinnamon Roll Cookie by the Pioneer Woman. Here is her recipe.
These cookies also freeze very well. Allow the glaze and caramel to dry completely, place in a Ziploc bag and store flat in the freezer.
Recipe makes about 2 1/2 dozen
Some other delicious cookies to add to your trays are:
Cranberry Orange Pecan Snickerdoodles
