Apple Brown Butter Cookies
These brown butter apple cookies are soft, chewy, warmly spiced, and filled with little pockets of tender cinnamon apples and caramelized white chocolate. The brown butter gives them that deep, nutty bakery-style flavor, while the apples make the centers soft and cozy.
They taste like apple pie meets a chewy brown butter cookie, with caramelized white chocolate running through every bite.
Cookie Dough Ingredients
125 g unsalted butter, weighed before browning, then browned and cooled
135 g brown sugar
45 g granulated sugar
1 large egg
1 egg yolk
½ tbsp vanilla extract
180 g cake flour
½ tsp baking soda
½ tsp baking powder
½ tsp salt
1 tsp cinnamon
½ tsp ginger
Touch of nutmeg
205 g caramelized white chocolate, chopped
Spiced Apples Ingredients
130 g apples, finely chopped
2 g cornstarch
½ tsp cinnamon
15 g brown sugar
Caramelized White Chocolate Ingredients
205 g white chocolate
Caramelized White Chocolate Instructions
Add the white chocolate to a medium stainless steel pan and place over low heat.
Stir constantly as the chocolate melts.
The chocolate may look thick, grainy, or slightly seized at first — that’s okay. Keep stirring gently over low heat.
Continue cooking until the chocolate turns from white to a golden caramel color.
Remove from the heat and let it sit in the pan for about 30 minutes, stirring every 5 minutes or so. It will become smoother and more fluid as it rests.
Spread onto a parchment-lined baking sheet and chill until fully set.
Chop into pieces and keep chilled until ready to use.
Make the Spiced Apples
In a small bowl, toss the chopped apples with the cornstarch, cinnamon, and brown sugar.
Set aside while you make the cookie dough.
Make the Cookie Dough
In a bowl, whisk together the cake flour, baking soda, baking powder, cinnamon, ginger, nutmeg, and salt. Set aside.
In a separate bowl, cream together the cooled brown butter, brown sugar, and granulated sugar until combined and slightly lightened.
Add the egg, egg yolk, and vanilla. Mix until smooth, glossy, and slightly fluffy.
Add the dry ingredients to the butter mixture and mix until a soft cookie dough forms.
Fold in the spiced apples and chopped caramelized white chocolate.
Scoop the dough into cookie dough balls and place onto a lined baking sheet.
Chill for at least 1 hour, or up to 24 hours.
Bake
Preheat oven to 350°F and line a baking sheet with parchment paper.
Space the chilled cookie dough balls apart on the baking sheet.
Bake for 14–16 minutes, until the edges are set and the centers still look slightly soft.
Remove from the oven and scoot the cookies while warm, if needed.
Press a few extra pieces of caramelized white chocolate on top while the cookies are still warm.
Let cool fully before enjoying.
Notes
Because these have fresh apples, I like storing them in an airtight container in the fridge. They’re especially good chilled for about an hour before eating — the cookie gets extra chewy, the apple flavor settles in, and the caramelized white chocolate firms up beautifully.
If you loved the bakery-style results of this Apple Brown Butter Cookies recipe, you will find even more inspiration in my Fantastic Pastry Cookies ebook. This guide is curated specifically for the home baker who wants to master unique flavor combinations—like these deeply toasted brown butter bases, tender cinnamon apples, and rich, caramelized white chocolate—right in their own kitchen. 🍰✨
Download the Fantastic Pastry Cookies Ebook Here
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Apple Brown Butter Cookies
These brown butter apple cookies are soft, chewy, warmly spiced, and filled with little pockets of tender cinnamon apples and caramelized white chocolate. The brown butter gives them that deep, nutty bakery-style flavor, while the apples make the centers soft and cozy.
They taste like apple pie meets a chewy brown butter cookie, with caramelized white chocolate running through every bite.
Ingredients
- 125 g unsalted butter, weighed before browning, then browned and cooled
- 135 g brown sugar
- 45 g granulated sugar
- 1 large egg
- 1 egg yolk
- ½ tbsp vanilla extract
- 180 g cake flour
- ½ tsp baking soda
- ½ tsp baking powder
- ½ tsp salt
- 1 tsp cinnamon
- ½ tsp ginger
- Touch of nutmeg
- 205 g caramelized white chocolate, chopped
- 130 g apples, finely chopped
- 2 g cornstarch
- ½ tsp cinnamon
- 15 g brown sugar
- 205 g white chocolate
Instructions
- Add the white chocolate to a medium stainless steel pan and place over low heat.
- Stir constantly as the chocolate melts.
- The chocolate may look thick, grainy, or slightly seized at first — that’s okay. Keep stirring gently over low heat.
- Continue cooking until the chocolate turns from white to a golden caramel color.
- Remove from the heat and let it sit in the pan for about 30 minutes, stirring every 5 minutes or so. It will become smoother and more fluid as it rests.
- Spread onto a parchment-lined baking sheet and chill until fully set.
- Chop into pieces and keep chilled until ready to use.
- In a small bowl, toss the chopped apples with the cornstarch, cinnamon, and brown sugar.
- Set aside while you make the cookie dough.
- In a bowl, whisk together the cake flour, baking soda, baking powder, cinnamon, ginger, nutmeg, and salt. Set aside.
- In a separate bowl, cream together the cooled brown butter, brown sugar, and granulated sugar until combined and slightly lightened.
- Add the egg, egg yolk, and vanilla. Mix until smooth, glossy, and slightly fluffy.
- Add the dry ingredients to the butter mixture and mix until a soft cookie dough forms.
- Fold in the spiced apples and chopped caramelized white chocolate.
- Scoop the dough into cookie dough balls and place onto a lined baking sheet.
- Chill for at least 1 hour, or up to 24 hours.
- Preheat oven to 350°F and line a baking sheet with parchment paper.
- Space the chilled cookie dough balls apart on the baking sheet.
- Bake for 14–16 minutes, until the edges are set and the centers still look slightly soft.
- Remove from the oven and scoot the cookies while warm, if needed.
- Press a few extra pieces of caramelized white chocolate on top while the cookies are still warm.
- Let cool fully before enjoying.
Notes
Because these have fresh apples, I like storing them in an airtight container in the fridge. They’re especially good chilled for about an hour before eating — the cookie gets extra chewy, the apple flavor settles in, and the caramelized white chocolate firms up beautifully.
