Name: Apple Cinnamon Sourdough Oatmeal Cookies
Prep time: 10 min
Cook time: 17 min
Total time: 2900 min
Ingredients: 115 g Butter ((softened at room temperature - salted or unsalted is fine)); 100 g Granulated Sugar; 100 g Brown Sugar; 1 Egg; 100 g Sourdough Starter ((can be discard or active starter)); 5 g Vanilla Extract; 100 g All Purpose Flour; 3 g Cinnamon; 2 g Salt ((just a pinch)); 3 g Baking Soda ((1/2 tsp of bicarbonate of soda or bicarb)); 175 g Rolled Oats; 150 g Walnuts ((roughly chopped)); 250 g Apple ((cored and finely diced - approx 2 medium apples, see notes for details)); 115 g Dark Brown Sugar ((see notes)); 30 g Butter ((soft)); 60 g Whole Milk ((or heavy cream)); 3 g Vanilla Paste; 2 g Salt; 100 g Powdered Sugar

These apple cinnamon sourdough oatmeal cookies are soft in the middle, crisp around the edges, and filled with fall flavors. The mix of apple, cinnamon, oats, and walnuts makes them the perfect cookie for a chilly afternoon or a weekend treat. A drizzle of caramel glaze takes them to the next level without being too sweet. You can rest the dough for a few hours or a couple of days, which makes them super flexible to fit into your baking schedule.

Close up of two apple cinnamon sourdough oatmeal cookies stacked on a white plate with apples in the background.

There’s something about fall that has me craving apples right alongside all the sourdough pumpkin recipes. These cookies are the kind that make your kitchen smell cozy and sweet, like apple pie cooling on the counter. The mix of fresh apple, cinnamon, and brown sugar feels so comforting, especially when the weather starts to turn. If you’ve already made my sourdough apple crisp or sourdough apple pie, you’ll love how these cookies capture that same flavor in a soft, chewy bite-sized treat.

Why You'll Love This Recipe!

Simple Ingredients and Technique - These cookies are made with simple pantry ingredients you likely already have, and they're mixed by hand in a mixing bowl.

Make-Ahead Friendly - Just like with my maple pecan sourdough oatmeal cookies, this dough actually gets better after resting in the fridge overnight, giving the cookies a richer flavor and softer texture.

Caramel Glaze Finish - That glossy brown sugar glaze adds the perfect touch of sweetness and makes these cookies look (and taste) like they came from a bakery.

Close up of apple cinnamon sourdough oatmeal cookie on a plate with a bite taken out.

Ingredients

Butter - Softened butter mixes easily with the sugars to create a classic chewy cookie texture. Salted or unsalted butter both work fine.
Granulated Sugar - Helps the cookies spread and gives crisp, golden edges.
Brown Sugar - Adds depth and caramel sweetness that pairs perfectly with the apple and cinnamon.
Egg - Use a large egg, about 60g.
Sourdough Starter - I prefer making these with active starter, but as long as your discard isn't too sour, it's fine to use either.
Vanilla Extract
All Purpose Flour
Cinnamon - A little cinnamon helps add the warmth and tie all the flavors together.
Salt
Baking Soda
Rolled Oats - It's really important to use old-fashioned rolled oats for hearty texture and chew. Quick oats and steel cut oats won't work.
Walnuts - Use roughly chopped walnuts. They pair really well with the apple and cinnamon. Pecans can be used as a substitute if needed.
Apple - I've used 2 medium sized green apples. I shredded them in a food processor without peeling them first. The resulting weight was 250g of fruit (not including the core which I removed first).
Caramel Sugar Glaze - This is optional, but easy and really makes these cookies pop. I've included a simple recipe with brown sugar, butter, whole milk, vanilla paste, salt and powdered sugar.

How to Make Apple Cinnamon Sourdough Oatmeal Cookies

These cookies are a twist on my classic sourdough oatmeal raisin cookies. The method is just as simple, but this version swaps raisins for fresh apple and adds a buttery caramel glaze that makes them extra addictive.

In a large mixing bowl add the butter, granulated sugar, brown sugar, egg, vanilla and sourdough starter. Whisk together until thoroughly combined.

Two photos to show mixing the wet ingredients and sugar together for the dough to make apple cinnamon sourdough oatmeal cookies.

On top of this mixture, add the dry ingredients - all purpose flour, cinnamon, salt, baking soda, rolled oats, walnuts and apple and gently mix together using a spatula to form a sticky dough. It will be fairly wet and that's ok.

Two photos to show folding in apples and oats into dough for apple cinnamon sourdough oatmeal cookies.

Cover the cookie dough and place into the fridge for a minimum of 2 hours (but can stay in the fridge for up to 48 hours).

When You're Ready to Bake

Preheat the oven to 190ºC (375ºF).

Using a large spoon or cookie scoop (I've used a 3 tablespoon scoop), scoop balls of dough onto cookie sheets lined with parchment paper. These sourdough oatmeal cookies will spread so make sure you leave at least 2" between each dough ball.

Scooping cookie dough out of a bowl and onto a cookie sheet to make apple cinnamon sourdough oatmeal cookies.

Place trays into the oven and bake for around 16 minutes at 190ºC (375ºF) or until the edges of the cookies are starting to brown but the middles are still soft. Don't let them overcook!

Remove them from the oven and allow to cool on the cookie tray for around 10 minutes before placing them on a wire rack to fully cool.

Once cool, they will have crispy edges and a soft, chewy centre - YUM!

Fresh baked apple cinnamon sourdough oatmeal cookies on a cookie sheet with a hand to correct cookie edges, making them round.

Caramel Sugar Glaze

To create the caramel sugar glaze, add the brown sugar and butter to a medium sized saucepan and allow them to melt together over a medium heat. As they start to bubble, gently whisk until they become foamy.

Now, remove from the heat and add the vanilla paste, salt and whole milk, while continuing to whisk.

Once that is all combined, return to the heat and bring the caramel to a boil over medium heat. As soon as it reaches boiling point, remove from the heat and add the powdered sugar, bringing it together to form a glaze. If the glaze is too thick, add a dash of milk, if it's too thin, add a little more powdered sugar (Every time I make this glaze, it seems to need one or the other).

Once cooled slightly, add the glaze to a piping bag and pipe onto the cooled cookies.

Kate's Recipe Tips

I recommend either using a food processor to shred the apple or finely dice them by hand. Do not shred them using a box grater because they will be too wet and the cookies will not crisp up when you bake them.
You can use a 1 tablespoon cookie scoop to create 32 smaller cookies. These will be thinner cookies with crispier edges. Bake for 10 minutes.
For thicker, soft cookies, I recommend using a 3 tablespoon cookie scoop. Bake these larger cookies for 16 minutes.

How to Store + Freeze

Store at Room Temperature - Keep your cookies in a tin or glass jar for up to 4 days. I like to layer them with parchment paper to keep the edges crisp.

Refrigerate - If your kitchen is warm, store them in the fridge for up to a week. Let them come back to room temperature before eating for the best texture.

Freeze the Dough - Scoop the dough into balls, freeze them on a tray, then store in a freezer bag. Bake straight from frozen, adding 2–3 extra minutes to the bake time.

Freeze Baked Cookies - You can freeze baked cookies for up to 3 months. Thaw at room temperature and drizzle the glaze after they’ve thawed for best results.