KateOhKatie blogs

No, not Snapplesauce.  Though I would be intrigued by that product–would it be like a smoothie, with trivia under the lid?  Perhaps.  I shall now write the appropriate letter…

Applesauce cookies are a big thing in my family…Grandma used to make them when Mom was a kid, and a few years back I “rediscovered” the recipe.  They’ve been really popular ever since then, and since the only fat in them comes from 1/2 cup shortening, they’re really not all that unhealthy.  It’s a Depression recipe, from a time when butter was expensive, so they found other ways to make recipes work.

So before I share this recipe with you guys, you have to promise promise promise on your yarn stash/nearest cat/Dyson vacuum/whatever that you will try these cookies.  And that you will *not* share this recipe with anyone else.  Because once the secret’s out, man, it’s not going back in.

Promise?  OK let’s go.

Warm up your oven to 375* F and roll up your sleeves, then get ready for slightly-delayed gratification!  In no time flat you’ll be in heaven.  Cookie heaven.  Where there are milk waterfalls, elastic waistbands, and no scales.  My kinda heaven.

Assemble:

Applesauce, milk, salt, baking soda, baking powder, shortening, cream cheese, an egg, clove, cinnamon, powdered sugar, flour, and plain sugar.  You know it’s gonna be good!

Make sure your cream cheese is softening (de-chilling?) on the counter; you’ll need it in a little bit.

Dump half a cup of shortening into a large mixing bowl:

And then a cup of sugar (sinkful of dirty dishes optional):

And then, if you’re a bum like me and didn’t quite have enough sugar to make a full cup, toss in some brown sugar to round it out:

It’ll be OK, I promise.

Then break out your trusty pink KitchenAid hand mixer, and combine the shortening and sugar:

When you’re done it’ll look sort of like streusel topping…but it’ll be OK, I promise (my new mantra):

Mmmm.

Crack an egg into your bowl (I advise omitting the shell, though):

And mix again:

Set aside.  You won’t need it for a while.

Then pull out that one badass kitchen tool, the one that fairly screams, I’m an expert!”

Bummmmm, bummmmmmm, bummmmmmmm…..BA-DUMMMMMMM!

I love my sifter.

This part really is necessary, guys, unless you want aplesauce-flavored rocks.  $5 at Target, get yours today.  Once you have it you’ll find multiple uses.  It’s OK, I promise ().

then, put it in a small bowl:

(I’m really glad I included this photo, just for anyone who doesn’t know what a sifter in a small bowl might look like.  How considerate I am).

Meaure out two cups of flour:

And dump them into the sifter’s top:

Then measure out 1/2 teaspoon cinnamon:

And 1/4 teaspoon clove:

Then wallow in the smell.  It’s OK, I won’t tell anybody.

When you’re done wallowing, dump in 1/2 teaspoon of soda:

As well as 1/2 t of salt and 1 t of powder:

Then stir it up a bit within the sifter:

And sift!  This is my favorite part!

Sift it alllll into that small mixing bowl, so then you’ll have a nice dark picture like this:

If you want to play “army men in a volcano” for a little while it’s OK, I won’t tell anybody.

When you’re done playing “army men in a volcano” (please rinse your army men before playing with them in your food!), measure out 1 cup of applesauce:

Now here comes the fun part.  Remember that bowl of sugar and shortening and egg you set aside so long ago?  Haul it back to the forefront!

Now what you’re gonna do, in alternating steps is *gradually* add your flour/spices mixture and your applesauce in with the sugar/shortening.  It’s super-important to start, and end with the flour/spices mixture.  I usually do 1/3 of the flour, 1/2 of the applesauce, 1/3 of the flour, 1/2 of the applesauce, 1/3 of the flour.  See?  Gradually.

So ya start with the flour:

And stir it in with your favorite spatula.  (It’s here that I like to play a game called “too wet!  too dry!” wherein, *for fun*, I freak myself out about the dough’s texture at any point in the mixing process.  Even though I’ve learned, eleventy-billion times, that it comes out OK in the end.  Try it, you might like it).

(“Oh no!  Too dry!”  see how much fun that is?  Hold on, I’ve gotta get the door…two nice men in white coats are here)

1/2 the applesauce:

And stir.

etc etc. until all the flour and applesauce are mixed in.

When you’re done, it’ll have a rather smooshy texture–not runny, but not like regular cookie dough, either.  That’s OK.  These babies spread out during cooking but ultimately result in a *fantastic* cake-like cookie.

Mmm.  Grab a finger- or spoon-ful.  It’ll take you home again.

Time to grease a couple cookie sheets!

These things spread during cooking, so you won’t want to put more than a tablespoon or a tablespoon and a half or so in each dollup.  Pop ‘em in your preheated oven for about 13 or 14 minutes, or until the cookies’ edges are just beginning to turn brown, and the tops are no longer shiny.

Cooked versus uncooked:

Now here’s a weird phenomenon.  The dough for these cookies is to-die-for (and go to cookie heaven for!  Oh what a way to go!).  But the baked product?  Not so much.

UNLESS.

Unless!  you make the frosting I’m about to prescribe.  Cover each cookie in a thickly-applied layer of the stuff, then pack your bags for nirvana.

This is where the milk, cream cheese, and powdered sugar come in.

Break out your 8 oz of softened cream cheese:

Add a splash of milk and a good amount of powdered sugar:

Then break out your mixer again, and go to town.  I usually add about 4 or 5 cups of powdered sugar by the time it’s all said and done.  You don’t want your frosting to be too thick, because then it’ll tear up the cookies.  But you don’t want it to be too thin either, because then it’ll drip right off.  Very tough place to be.

This is too thin:

And this is juuuuuust right:

Now find your favorite frosting-spreading knife (mine doesn’t have any of those tiny serrations that most butter knives do):

And go to town! (once your cookies are thoroughly cool, that is)

Success!

om nom nom nom nom.

Don’t say I didn’t warn you.

I warned you.