I spend a lot of December baking cookies. They’re easy to prepare. You can make a large batch and freeze the dough to use later. They’re crowd-pleasers. And there’s no limit to the flavour combinations you can try. Plus, the cookie jar is ALWAY OPEN FOR BUSINESS, so I can sneak another cookie (or two) and (*whispers*) nobody will ever know.

For this recipe, sugar is your friend. We want to get that gorgeous caramelised flavour, so go for brown sugar. I found some Molasses sugar in the supermarket, which was DIVINE when cooked with the apples. The golden syrup brings another layer of caramel to the party. And when it comes to the caramel pieces, find some soft caramels. They’ll ooze during baking, and then when cooled, will become all chewy with crispy edges. Yum!

RECIPE: Caramel Apple Cookies

FLAVOUR PROFILE: Soft  and sweet cookies – a kind of cakey / flapjack hybrid, with rich caramelised flavours and punches of sharp apple.

GOES GREAT WITH: These would happily grace any cookie platter! And if you’re feeling generous, leave one out for Santa on Christmas Eve. Don’t forget a carrot for Rudolf though, because it’s unlikely Santa will want to share!

NOTES: Granny Smiths seem to work best for this recipe as they hold their shape better during cooking. Feel free to use your favourite apples, but just keep an eye on them during the first stage so that they don’t break down too much.

MAKES: 20

INGREDIENTS:

• 125g GRANNY SMITH APPLE, peeled and finely diced
• 20g + 25g GOLDEN SYRUP
• 20g DARK BROWN SUGAR (Use dark brown Molasses sugar, if you can find it If not, regular brown sugar will be fine.)
• ½ tsp. GROUND CINNAMON
• 140g FLOUR
• 110g BUTTER, room temperature
• 110g BROWN SUGAR
• 1 EGG, beaten
• 50g ROLLED OATS
• ½ tsp. VANILLA EXTRACT
• 40g SOFT CARAMEL PIECES, chopped into chunks

METHOD:

1. Preheat oven to 180c. Add the GRANNY SMITH APPLES, 20g GOLDEN SYRUP, DARK BROWN SUGAR and CINNAMON to a saucepan. Give it a good stir, and then cook over a medium heat for 10 minutes. You want the apples to soften and caramelise slightly, but not to lose their structure and break down. Leave aside to cool.
2. In a mixing bowl, add the BUTTER, BROWN SUGAR and VANILLA EXTRACT. Whip it with an electric whisk until it is pale and fluffy. Add the EGG and 25g GOLDEN SYRUP. Then, with the whisk running on a low speed, add the FLOUR and ROLLED OATS.
3. Fold in the cooled APPLE-MIXTURE along with the SOFT CARAMEL PIECES.
4. Chill for 20 minutes.
5. Scoop balls of the mixture onto a lined baking tray, leaving a little space between them for spreading. Then bake in the centre of the oven for 11 minutes. If you prefer a bit more of a bite to your cookie, add an extra minute to the baking time, but they will firm up during cooling.