These caramel apple oatmeal cookies are soft, chewy and full of apple and caramel flavor. They are easy to make and you only need 3 ingredients to make them. The cookies also don’t contain any flour or eggs.
With summer ending soon, I am definitely ready for Fall desserts like these caramel apple cookies. These are so fun to eat and really do taste like caramel apples.
Ingredients
- Quick Oats (Or Instant Apple Cinnamon Oatmeal)
- Cinnamon Applesauce
- Dulce de Leche (or Salted Caramel Topping)
Quick oats: These oatmeal cookies use quick oats as their base. If you want to increase the apple flavor for the cookies, you can also use instant apple and cinnamon flavored oatmeal.
Cinnamon applesauce: I used sweetened cinnamon applesauce but you can also use unsweetened since the cookies are also sweetened with the dulce de leche.
Dulce de Leche: Dulce de leche is a milk based caramel sold in cans similar to sweetened condensed milk cans. I used dulce de leche to give these cookies their caramel flavor. Dulce de leche is a thick caramel which makes it easier to incorporate into the cookie dough without the dough becoming too wet. Some of the caramel is mixed into the cookie dough and more is drizzled on top. You can also use salted caramel topping if you want these cookies to have a salted caramel flavor. Salted caramel topping is usually used for ice cream. It is sold in jars and is mostly solid at room temperature and needs to be heated before it can be drizzled.
How to Make Caramel Apple Oatmeal Cookies
The oats and applesauce are first mixed together until fully combined. Heat the dulce de leche for a few second before adding it to the cookie dough. Use a cookie scoop to scoop the dough and release the dough onto your prepared baking sheet. Flatten the cookies with the back of a metal spoon.
Bake cookies for about 15 minutes or until they are done. Once they are out of the oven you can drizzle additional dulce de leche over the cookies.
Cookie Texture
These cookies have a soft and chewy texture. They do not have the same texture as classic oatmeal cookies. Instead, these cookies have a texture more like baked oats in cookie form.
Variations
- If you prefer a melted gooey caramel center, you can add half of a soft chewy caramel candy to the center of the cookie dough.
- Use instant apple cinnamon oatmeal instead of quick oats to have an even strong apple oatmeal flavor.
- Use salted caramel topping or sprinkle some sea salt on top of the cookies for a salted caramel finish.
More Oatmeal Cookie Recipes
- 4 Ingredient Crispy Coconut Oatmeal Cookies
- 4 Ingredient Carrot Cake Oatmeal Cookies
- 3 Ingredient No Bake Lemon Oatmeal Cookies
3 Ingredient Caramel Apple Oatmeal Cookies
Ingredients
- 1 cup (88 g) quick oats or instant apple cinnamon oatmeal
- 1/2 cup (119 g) sweetened cinnamon applesauce can use unsweetened and can also use plain applesauce without cinnamon
- 2 tbsp (34 g) dulce de leche slightly heated until easy to stir, plus more for drizzling on top of the cookies
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350°F (177°C). Line a large cookie sheet with parchment paper or a silicone baking mat.
- In a large bowl, stir together the oats (or oatmeal) and applesauce until evenly combined. Stir in the heated dulce de leche until evenly mixed. If you are not planning on drizzling more dulce de leche at the end you may want to add 2 more tablespoons of dulce de leche to the cookie dough. You can taste and adjust as needed. I didn't add that much caramel to the dough since I drizzled more on top.
- Use a 1.5 tbsp cookie scoop and scoop dough balls, placing them onto prepared baking sheet, spaced 2 inches apart. Using the back of a metal spoon, press down on dough balls to form thick round disks (about 3/8 inch thick). The cookies will not spread or change shape during baking so shape them as needed until they are how you want them to be. If your dough is too sticky you can lightly wet the spoon before shaping.
- Bake cookies about 15 minutes or until they are done. If you are unsure if the cookies are set, use a cookie spatula and try to lift a cookie off of the baking sheet. You should be able to lift the cookie off of the sheet without the center sticking to the baking sheet. When cookies are cooled, you can drizzle with additional dulce de leche on top for decoration. You will want to heat the dulce de leche (I heated in my microwave for a few seconds) so that it becomes a thinner consistency that you can drizzle easily.
Notes
- If you are using instant apple cinnamon oatmeal you will need 3 individual packets to equal 1 cup, about 105 grams.
- If you are using instant apple oatmeal, you don't need to use cinnamon applesauce, you can use plain applesauce.
- I recommend drizzling the dulce de leche on top if you really want to taste the caramel flavor. The caramel flavor isn't as strong in the cookie dough.
- If you want a molten gooey caramel center, add half of a chewy caramel candy (I used Werther's chewy caramel candy) to the center of each cookie, pressing down lightly so that part of the candy goes into the oatmeal dough.
- You can also use salted caramel topping instead of dulce de leche. Salted caramel topping refers to the thick caramel topping that is usually sold as an ice cream topping and must be heated just like dulce de leche to get a runny consistency.
- Nutrition information is for the cookie only before the additional drizzle of caramel on top.
Nutrition
The nutrition information provided are only estimates based on an online nutritional calculator. I am not a certified nutritionist. Please consult a professional nutritionist or doctor for accurate information and any dietary restrictions and concerns you may have.
These recipes sound delicious I am always trying to make different healthy snacks for my grandkids
Thank you! We hope you and the grandkids enjoy it!
I absolutely love this recipe. My son wanted caramel apple cookies from the store, but they were $7 for a dozen! Now I can make them whenever I want. YAHOO!!!
YAY! Love to hear it! So glad you enjoyed this recipe!