4 Ingredient Applesauce Cookies

Love healthy cookie recipes? Try my healthy oatmeal chocolate chip cookies, healthy oatmeal raisin cookies, protein cookies, and low calorie cookies next. Come Fall, my kitchen smells like cinnamon, and my fridge is full of pumpkin puree and applesauce. Actually, that’s a lie. Applesauce is a year-round staple in my household, and I use it in tons of baking recipes to cut down on the need for oil or butter. When I want to make applesauce the star of the show, nothing beats whipping up a batch of applesauce cookies.

Why I love this recipe

Perfect texture and flavor. The texture of my cookies is thick, soft, and perfectly chewy. They have a pleasant apple flavor with hints of cinnamon throughout. Ready in 12 minutes. Because these need just four ingredients to make, the cooking time is minimal. No eggs or butter. Besides the light apple flavor, using applesauce in cookies helps replace the butter and eggs completely. Although they won’t have a super-rich flavor butter will provide, we add some peanut butter to compensate. It also helps bind the cookies together. Vegan and gluten-free. And also dairy-free!

Ingredients needed

Rolled oats. Rolled oats yield a super chewy and hearty texture. These also work with quick-cooking oats. If you’d prefer a flour-based cookie, you can use whole wheat flour. Applesauce. Because I’m not adding liquid or granulated sugar to these cookies, you must use sweetened applesauce. If you can only find the unsweetened kind, add 1/4 cup of either maple syrup or coconut sugar/brown sugar. Peanut butter. Adds some richness and a buttery texture without needing actual butter. You can substitute this for any nut or seed butter of your choice (I love using almond butter or tahini). Cinnamon. A must for any recipe that uses applesauce. Vanilla extract. Completely optional, but if you love a subtle hint of vanilla, add a drop into the batter.

How to make applesauce oatmeal cookies

I’ve included step-by-step photos below to make this recipe easy to follow at home. For the full printable recipe instructions and ingredient quantities, scroll to the recipe card at the bottom of this post. Step 3: Bake the cookies for 12-15 minutes or until slightly golden. Remove from the oven and allow to cool on the pan completely.

Arman’s recipe tips

Do not overbake the cookies. They will continue to cook as they are cooling down. They also won’t become super crunchy either. Taste the mixture. These cookies rely on the sweetness of the applesauce. Taste the mixture before shaping into balls (no eggs, so no worries!), and if needed, add some sugar or maple syrup. Change the spices. Nutmeg, ginger, allspice, and ground cloves are warming spices that work well with applesauce or even some vanilla powder. Add mix-ins. If you love cookies with some texture in them, add some dark chocolate chips, chopped walnuts, raisins, or even coconut flakes. I’ve also folded through some of my air fryer apples into the batter for a more intense apple flavor.

Storage instructions

To store: Place leftover cookies in an airtight container and store them in the fridge for up to five days. To freeze: Once the cookies have cooled, place them in a ziplock bag and store them in the freezer for up to 6 months.