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These caramel apple cookies are my Crumbl caramel apple cookie copycat: a chewy, apple-spiced cookie topped with a fluffy caramel cream cheese frosting, tart green apple, buttery cinnamon streusel, and a drizzle of caramel. It’s the caramel apple cookie recipe I make every single fall, and the secret is a little apple juice concentrate in the dough for real apple flavor in every bite!! If you’ve been looking for a copycat Crumbl caramel apple cookie recipe that tastes like the bakery box, this is it.
Quick Look: Caramel Apple Cookies
- 🍪 What it is: A chewy apple-spiced cookie with caramel frosting, green apple, streusel, and caramel.
- ⭐ Why it works: Apple juice concentrate adds real apple flavor without thinning the dough.
- 💛 Why you’ll love it: Readers say the cookie base is so good it could stand on its own.
- ⚠️ What to watch for: Add the diced green apple right before serving so it stays crisp and bright.
- ❄️ Make ahead: Make the cookies and frosting a day early, or freeze the dough balls and bake from frozen.
- 🎯 How close to the original: Readers who’ve had Crumbl’s version say this copycat is just as good, some say better.
Why This Recipe Works
Crumbl’s caramel apple cookie only shows up for a few weeks every fall, so I worked out a version you can bake any time the craving hits. Think of it as a caramel apple sugar cookie meets a caramel apple cheesecake cookie: soft and chewy underneath, creamy and tangy on top, with a little crunch from the apple and streusel. This caramel apple cookies recipe has been a reader favorite since 2022, with dozens of 5-star reviews.
- A tiny bit of apple juice concentrate gives the cookie base a real apple flavor, not just cinnamon
- Dark brown sugar keeps the cookies chewy with crisp edges and a caramel-y depth
- The caramel cream cheese frosting is the same one readers love on my Crumbl caramel pumpkin cookies
- Diced green apple on top brings the tartness of a real caramel apple (one reader was skeptical, then called that crunch perfect)
- Nine big bakery-style cookies, or 18 smaller ones for a party (find the rest of my bakery copycats in my Crumbl copycat recipes collection)
Table of Contents
Key Ingredients
- Dark brown sugar + granulated sugar: I use a mix of both for the right chewy texture. Dark brown sugar has a strong molasses flavor, which gives these cookies extra depth.
- Apple juice concentrate: Use the frozen concentrate from the can, thawed but not diluted. Two tablespoons add apple flavor and chewiness without making the dough wet.
- Warm spices: Cinnamon is the backbone of the cookie. The nutmeg, ginger, and allspice are only ⅛ to ¼ teaspoon each, so they add background warmth and are fine to skip.
- Cream cheese: Use full-fat brick cream cheese, softened, for a frosting that pipes and holds its swirl.
- Caramel: My homemade caramel sauce gives the best flavor (I tested both!), and it’s thick enough to keep the frosting from getting runny. A thick store-bought caramel works too.
- Green apple: Granny Smith gives that tart caramel apple contrast. Dice it small so every bite gets a piece.
Full ingredient amounts are in the recipe card below.
Substitutions and Additions
- No apple juice concentrate: Use the same amount of apple butter, or simmer ½ cup of regular apple juice down to 2 tablespoons (about 10 minutes). Unsweetened applesauce works in a pinch, but the apple flavor is milder.
- Apple cider drink mix: One reader stirred a single 0.74 ounce packet of spiced apple cider mix into the cookie base and loved the extra apple flavor.
- Other apples: Another reader used Gala apples on top instead of green apples and the cookies were still a huge hit. They’ll just be sweeter.
- Apples in the dough: You can fold diced apple into the dough for warm apple chunks in every bite. Add 1 to 3 minutes to the bake time. If you’d rather have apple pie filling on top, try my Crumbl apple pie cookies, or pair apple and caramel with chocolate in my chocolate caramel apple bark.
- Light brown sugar: Works in place of dark brown sugar, with a little less molasses flavor.
How to Make Caramel Apple Cookies
- Make the cookie dough. Preheat the oven to 350°F and line a baking sheet with parchment paper. Cream the butter and both sugars until fluffy, then mix in the egg, apple juice concentrate, and vanilla.
- Add the dry ingredients. Add the flour, spices, salt, baking soda, and baking powder, and mix just until the flour disappears. The dough is thick, and that’s normal.
- Scoop the dough. Scoop 9 equal dough balls with a ¼ cup cookie scoop and place them on the baking sheet. No need to flatten them.
- Bake and make the streusel. Bake for 12 minutes, until the edges are set and the centers still look soft, then let the cookies cool completely. While they bake, melt the butter in a skillet, stir in the flour, sugar, cinnamon, and salt, and toast until golden.
- Frost the cookies. Beat the cream cheese and butter until smooth, then whip in the powdered sugar, vanilla, and caramel until fluffy. Pipe a swirl onto each cooled cookie.
- Top and drizzle. Top each cookie with diced green apple, a sprinkle of streusel, and a drizzle of caramel. Enjoy!
Expert Tips
- Spoon and level your flour (or weigh it). Scooping straight from the bag packs in extra flour and makes the dough stiff like rolled sugar cookie dough.
- Don’t flatten the dough balls. They spread on their own and stay thick and soft in the middle.
- Pull them while the centers look soft. They finish setting as they cool, and that’s how you get the chewy Crumbl texture.
- Cool completely before frosting. Even slightly warm cookies melt cream cheese frosting.
- Keep the apples bright. Brush the diced green apple with a little lemon juice, and add it right before serving.
Caramel Apple Cookies FAQs
Very close! Like the Crumbl version, these caramel apple cookies have an apple-spiced cookie base, caramel frosting, and a crumbly streusel, which is why people also search for the caramel apple Crumbl cookie as the Crumbl apple cookie or apple crumble cookies. Mine add diced green apple and extra caramel, so they taste more like a real caramel apple, and readers who’ve had both say they’re just as good.
Yes! Bake the caramel apple cookies and make the frosting up to 1 day ahead, and keep them separately in the fridge. Frost and add the toppings right before serving, and brush the diced green apple with a little lemon juice so it doesn’t turn brown.
Store frosted caramel apple cookies in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 4 days, since the frosting has cream cheese. To freeze, freeze the unfrosted cookies, or freeze the dough balls and bake them straight from frozen, then frost after thawing.
Yes! Divide the dough into 18 smaller balls instead of 9 to make catering-size caramel apple cookies. Bake them for about 10 minutes instead of 12, then frost and decorate the same way.
These easy caramel apple cookies are perfect on a fall dessert table next to my apple cheesecake bars and caramel apple cheesecake dip. For a cozy fall brunch, serve the apple caramel cookies with soft pumpkin cinnamon rolls and a Starbucks Irish cream cold brew.
More Fall Apple Desserts
If you tried these Caramel Apple Cookies or any other recipe on my blog, please leave a ⭐ star rating and let me know how it goes in the comments! I love hearing from you!
Caramel apple cookies- Crumbl copycat
Ingredients
Cookie base recipe
- 1/2 cup butter softened
- 3/4 cup granulated sugar
- 1/4 cup dark brown sugar
- 1 large egg at room temperature
- 2 tbsp concentrated apple juice
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
- 2 cup AP flour
- 3/4 tsp cinnamon
- 1/8 tsp nutmeg
- 1/4 tsp ginger
- 1/8 tsp allspice
- 3/4 tsp baking soda
- 1/4 tsp baking powder
- 1/4 tsp salt
Cream cheese frosting
- 5 oz Cream cheese Softened
- 4 tablespoon Butter softened
- 3 tablespoon Caramel sauce Homemade or store bought
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- ¾ cup powdered sugar
- 1 green apple sliced into cubes
Homemade streusel
- 1/4 cup Flour
- 1 tbsp granulated sugar
- 1/4 tsp cinnamon
- 1/4 tsp salt
- 1 & 1/2 tbsp Butter melted
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350F, then line a baking sheet with parchment paper and set aside.
Make the streusel
- Melt the butter in a medium skillet. Remove from the heat, add the flour, sugar, cinnamon, and salt, and mix until fully moistened and forming small clumps. Return to the heat, stirring frequently until the streusel turns golden brown. Transfer to a plate and let cool.1/4 cup Flour, 1 tbsp granulated sugar, 1/4 tsp cinnamon, 1/4 tsp salt, 1 & 1/2 tbsp Butter
Make the cookie dough
- Cream the butter, granulated sugar, and brown sugar together until light and fluffy. Add the egg, concentrated apple juice, and vanilla extract, and mix to combine.1/2 cup butter, 3/4 cup granulated sugar, 1/4 cup dark brown sugar, 1 large egg, 2 tbsp concentrated apple juice, 1 tsp vanilla extract
- Gently mix in the flour, cinnamon, ginger, nutmeg, allspice, salt, baking soda, and baking powder until the flour mixture disappears.2 cup AP flour, 3/4 tsp cinnamon, 1/8 tsp nutmeg, 1/4 tsp ginger, 1/8 tsp allspice, 3/4 tsp baking soda, 1/4 tsp baking powder, 1/4 tsp salt
- Using a large cookie scoop (1/4 cup or 4 tbsp), scoop out 9 equal-sized cookie dough balls, place them on the baking sheet, and bake for 12 minutes. Let the cookies cool down.
Make the cream cheese frosting
- Cream the cream cheese and butter together until smooth and creamy. Add the powdered sugar, vanilla, and caramel, and whip until light and fluffy.5 oz Cream cheese Softened, 4 tablespoon Butter , 3 tablespoon Caramel sauce, 1 teaspoon vanilla extract, ¾ cup powdered sugar
- Frost the cooled-down cookies with the cream cheese frosting, top with cubed green apples, a sprinkle of homemade streusel, and a drizzle of caramel. Enjoy!1 green apple
Notes
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
How do you keep the diced apple topping from turning brown?
Hi Chris! I like to brush the diced apple with a little lemon juice to keep it from browning. If you’re making the cookies ahead, wait to add the apples until just before serving.
Can I use bread flour in this recipe?
Hi Mary! You can try it with bread flour, but I haven’t tested it. Come back and let us know how it turns out!