During my last visit to my parents’ house to spend time with them and play with their new puppy, my dad offered to barbeque for dinner. With the warm summer weather still lingering, everyone immediately agreed, so he drove to the store to pick up groceries.
A little while later, he stood outside over the grill, carefully spreading out the hot coals before setting the grate on top. Once satisfied with the temperature, he added freshly shaped burgers for my mom and brother, a sriracha sausage for himself, and a seasoned chicken breast for me.
Just before rotating the entrées for the final time, Dad slid the veggies onto the barbeque, gingerly rotating those zucchini spears, mini bell peppers, and ears of corn for the perfect kiss of char. We call him the Grill Master of our family for a reason!
The entire meal turned out perfectly, as we all commented multiple times while enjoying bites of everything. As we started clearing the table, Mom casually mentioned she had a craving for pie, just like when we typically grill during the hot summer months.
The rest of us thought nothing of it… Until Mom returned from the grocery store the following evening with a frozen berry pie to bake. That craving must have been much stronger than any of us realized!
Although I flew home shortly after, I kept thinking about Mom and her pie… But before I started craving it as strongly as she did, I baked a batch of these Healthy Apple Pie Thumbprint Cookies to satisfy my sweet tooth! They’re so much easier to make, compared to baking a pie entirely from scratch, and have the same sweet, cozily spiced flavors as the traditional pie.
Even better? They have built-in portion control! (In case you’re anything like Mom and me who feel tempted slice off an itty bitty sliver every time you walk through the kitchen… ?) Plus they contain no refined flour or sugar and only 42 calories!
So let’s talk about how to make these healthy cookies!
You’ll start with one of my trusty cookie dough recipes. You’ll need white whole wheat flour (like this!), which has the same exact health benefits as regular whole wheat flour but a lighter taste and texture. That really lets the chewy texture of these cookies shine! Then for added softness and chewiness, you’ll whisk in a tiny bit of cornstarch. Such a nifty trick, isn’t it?
With just 1 ½ tablespoons of butter or coconut oil (but I truly prefer the rich flavor of butter in these cookies!), you’ll also mix in extra vanilla extract. That boost of vanilla enhances the butter’s flavor, which makes these cookies taste much more buttery and indulgent than they really are!
Instead of refined sugar, you’ll use coconut sugar (like this!) to sweeten your cookie dough. It’s an unrefined sweetener that comes from coconuts, but it doesn’t actually taste like coconuts! It has a rich, caramel-like flavor similar to brown sugar, but it pours like granulated sugar. It’s a staple in my pantry!
After chilling the cookie dough, you’ll drop it into small mounds on your baking sheet. I just use a spoon and spatula for this! To make it round and make the well in the center, moisten your fingers with a tiny bit of water first. This trick prevents the cookie dough from sticking to your hands!
The filling is even easier to make! You’ll toss finely diced apples (yes, very finely… even smaller than the size of miniature chocolate chips!) with a little cinnamon, and then you’ll cook those on the stove. This softens the apples so they’re not entirely raw when you bite into the cookies… Because the cookies don’t bake long enough for the apples to fully cook through! Just before spooning the filling into your cookie dough, you’ll toss it with a little pure maple syrup (like this!), for a sweetness boost.
Remember to gently press the filling down into those wells! The filling does not spread or change shape while baking… So it will look exactly the same as it does when you pop your baking sheet in the oven, even though the cookie dough typically spreads some!
So much easier than pie… And just as sweet and satisfying! ?? And when you make your own, remember to snap a picture and share it on Instagram using #amyshealthybaking and tagging @amyshealthybaking IN the photo itself! (That guarantees I’ll see your picture! ?) I’d love to see your cookies and feature them in my Sunday Spotlight series!
| Healthy Apple Pie Thumbprint Cookies | | Print |
- for the cookies
- 1 cup (120g) white whole wheat flour or gluten-free* flour (measured like this)
- 1 tsp cornstarch
- ¾ tsp baking powder
- ⅛ tsp salt
- 1 ½ tbsp (21g) unsalted butter or coconut oil, melted and cooled slightly
- 1 large egg white, room temperature
- 1 ½ tsp vanilla extract
- ½ cup (96g) coconut sugar
- for the filling
- ½ cup (60g) very finely diced apple
- ¼ tsp ground cinnamon
- 1 tsp pure maple syrup
- To prepare the cookie dough, whisk together the flour, cornstarch, baking powder, and salt in a medium bowl. In a separate bowl, whisk together the butter, egg white, and vanilla. Stir in the coconut sugar. Add in the flour mixture, stirring until incorporated. Chill the cookie dough for 30 minutes.
- While the cookie dough chills, prepare the filling. Add the apples and cinnamon to a small pan lightly coated with cooking spray, and cook over medium-low heat for 3-5 minutes, or until the apples are tender. Transfer to a small bowl to cool. Once at room temperature, stir in the maple syrup.
- Preheat the oven to 350°F, and line a baking sheet with a silicone baking mat or parchment paper.
- Drop the cookie dough into 24 small rounded mounds on the prepared baking sheet. Using your index finger or thumb, make an indentation in the center of each. (If the dough cracks, gently pinch it back together with your fingers. If the cookie dough sticks to your fingers, moisten them with a small amount of water!) Carefully spoon in a small amount of filling, and gently press it down into the cavity with a spatula.
- Bake at 350°F for 8-10 minutes. Cool on the baking sheet for 10 minutes before carefully transferring to a wire rack. (If the cookies stick to the baking sheet, slide a knife underneath each first!)
Whole wheat pastry flour, regular whole wheat flour, or all-purpose flour may be substituted for the white whole wheat flour.
The cornstarch helps keep the cookies soft.
Brown sugar or granulated sugar may be substituted for the coconut sugar.
Honey or agave may be substituted for the pure maple syrup.
I used a Fuji apple, and I did not peel it. Most firm red apples will work! The apples should be cut even smaller than the size of miniature chocolate chips. Yes, I know it takes extra time and effort, but I promise it’s worth it! This small size ensures the apples will soften more while baking.
The filling does not spread while baking, so you must gently pat it down with a spatula. If you prefer more filling, then double the amounts!
This recipe is easily doubled!
{gluten-free, clean eating, low fat}
View Nutrition Information
You may also like Amy’s other recipes…
♡ Pecan Pie Thumbprint Cookies
♡ Dark Chocolate Salted Caramel Thumbprint Cookies
♡ Peanut Butter Cheesecake Thumbprint Cookies
♡ Grandpa’s Thumbprint Cookies
♡ Dark Chocolate Cheesecake Thumbprint Cookies
♡ Cranberry Jam Thumbprint Cookies
♡ PB&J Thumbprint Cookies
♡ Apple Pie Oatmeal Cookies
Hi. Do you have a “jump to recipe” tab that I am overlooking? That would be a really handy addition to your website.
I really appreciate your interest in my recipes, Lyn! That’s on my list of things to discuss with my website developer the next time we meet. 🙂 If you decide to try making these thumbprint cookies, I’d love to hear what you think of them!
Hey there,
Would I be able to use the base cookie recipe and switch out the apples in order to make choc chip cookies? Would the texture still be chewy? Thank you!
I really appreciate your interest in my recipe, Beverley! The answer is basically yes… But it depends on how much you’d like your cookies to spread. As written, these don’t really spread at all. If you’d like cookies that spread a little, but not too much, then I’d actually recommend this recipe (it’s almost exactly the same, and you can easily substitute chocolate chips!) or this chocolate chip cookie recipe (no egg and the cookies spread a lot more!). Both have the same flavors and a really soft and chewy texture.
I also have a few more chocolate chip cookie recipes here, here, and here. (Cookies are my favorite thing to make… Especially when they involve chocolate chips! 😉 )
I’d love to hear what you think if you end up trying any of these recipes!