Applesauce-Spice Drops

Seven dozen cookies from one bowl. If that sounds like too many, it isn’t, because these go fast.

Applesauce keeps these drop cookies soft for days, and the cold coffee is the ingredient that makes people pause when they read the recipe. It doesn’t make the cookies taste like coffee. What it does is deepen the spice flavors and add a subtle complexity that brown sugar and applesauce alone don’t achieve. It’s the same principle as adding a small amount of espresso to chocolate cake batter.

The triple spice combination of cinnamon, nutmeg, and cloves is what makes these taste like the holidays. A full cup of raisins and half a cup of chopped nuts round out every bite. The dough is very soft, as the recipe specifically notes, which is what keeps the finished cookie tender rather than cakey.

Seven minutes at high heat. Watch for the moment when almost no indentation remains when touched, and pull them promptly.

Chef Tips

• The dough will look too soft to scoop. That’s correct. Don’t add more flour. Use a cookie scoop or two spoons to drop even rounds.
• Space cookies 2 inches apart as directed. They spread more than a stiff dough.
• These are done when they barely spring back when pressed, not when they look golden. Overbaked, they get dry.
• Cool on a wire rack and store in an airtight container. They stay soft for 4-5 days.

Variations

• Chocolate chips: Swap the raisins for semi-sweet chocolate chips for a spiced chocolate version.
• Orange zest: Add 1 teaspoon of orange zest to the wet ingredients for a citrus note that bridges the applesauce and cloves beautifully.