Turkish Cookies (Elmali Kurabiye) are delicious melt-in-the-mouth pastries made with crispy cookie dough filled with apple, cinnamon, and walnuts. These traditional cookies are commonly sold in almost every pastry shop in Turkey.
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This is the perfect time for apples and I love the smell of them when cooked with cinnamon and sugar. It is a great reminder of my childhood memories as my mom used to make these delicious cookies quite often! What makes my Apple Crumble recipe so special and delicious is probably the same reason: Cooking the apples with cinnamon and sugar!
This simple recipe was given to me by my mom years ago and it never let me down. The delicious and crispy pastry is very similar to a pie pastry but much easier to shape. Lemon zest is optional and you can replace it with vanilla paste or orange zest if you prefer. I chopped the walnuts very finely but you can chop them in chunky bites if you want to achieve a crunchier texture.
Why This Recipe Works?
- This recipe is very easy to follow with step-by-step instructions.
- It's the perfect combination of apples, cinnamon and walnuts.
- You only need a few pantry ingredients that you might already have in hand.
- They freeze beautifully!
Ingredients & Substitutes
- Apples - you can use any sweet cooking apples such as Braeburn, Honeycrisp, Bramley and Cox's are best for these cookies. Peel or keep the skin on and grate them before cooking.
- Sugar - I use caster sugar but granulated or brown sugar would work perfectly too. Adjust the amount of sugar to your taste and the apples you use.
- Cinnamon - I love adding a spoonful of cinnamon powder to the apple filling for intense flavour. You can omit it if you find it too strong or use it just a little.
- Walnuts - baking with nuts is a great way to add flavor and texture to your crumble. Use pecan or hazelnuts if you prefer. Lightly toast them for a more intense flavour before adding them to your baked goods.
- Butter - this recipe recalls for softened butter. Keep your butter at room temperature for a couple of hours (depending on the room temperature) until it is soft.
- Yoghurt - use plain or natural yoghurt with no sugar & flavour added. Yoghurt gives the pastry a fluffy and light texture.
- Baking powder - baking powder helps to increase the volume and lighten the texture of the pastry.
- Plain white flour - it is also known as all-purpose flour. It is perfect for making cakes, cookies, pastries and thickening sauces.
- Icing Sugar - It has a tiny bit of cornstarch and a powdery consistency which gives a more crumbly texture to the pastry.
- Lemon zest - it is the yellow outside of its peel without going to the white part which is bitter and unpleasant. It adds a tangy flavour and a citrusy smell to the cookies. You can replace it with vanilla paste.
Step-by-Step Instructions
This is a very simple recipe and to achieve the best results, you need to follow a few simple steps:
- Prepare the apple filling - peel and grate the apples. Place a pan on medium heat and add the grated apples, cinnamon and sugar to the pan and cook them until soft, for about 10 minutes. Remove the pan from the heat and let the filling cool down while preparing the cookie dough. Add the walnuts when the filling is cooled down and mix well.
- Prepare the cookie dough - Preheat the fan oven to 170 °C. Place the flour in a large mixing bowl and add the softened butter, baking powder, icing sugar, yoghurt and lemon zest. Mix them with your fingertips gently until combined. Return the mixture to a worktop and form a nice soft dough.
- Shape the cookies and bake - Roll the dough into a log and then cut into 5 equal pieces (approximately 140 grams each) and turn them into balls. Lightly flour the worktop, sprinkle some flour on a dough ball and roll it out into a 20 cm (8") dia circle (approximately ½ cm thick). Cut the circle into 8 equal triangles and place a teaspoon of apple filling on the wide side of each triangle. Roll them up into a cylinder and place them on a baking paper-lined tray. Bake for 20 minutes, until lightly browned. Sprinkle some icing sugar on top when they are still warm.
Related Recipes
Love apples? Why not check my other delicious recipes with apples?
The best way to store these lovely cookies is at room temperature for up to 3 days. If you want to keep them longer, refrigerate them for up to 5 days or freeze them for up to 3 months in an airtight container.
Top Tip From the Chef
To save some time, you can prepare the filling in advance and keep it in the fridge for up to 3 days until you need it.
I hope you enjoy the process of making these delightful Turkish Apple Rolls as much as you enjoy eating them!🙂
Bon appétit! / Afiyet Olsun!
Turkish Cookies (Elmali Kurabiye)
Equipment
Ingredients
For the Apple Filling
- 3 medium apples (any apples you like cooking with) (400 grams)
- ¼ cup sugar (50 grams)
- 1 teaspoon cinnamon
- 80 grams walnuts (finely chopped)
For the Cookie Dough
- 250 grams butter (room temperature)
- 1 tablespoon natural yoghurt
- 1 teaspoon baking powder
- 400 g plain white flour / all purpose flour
- 1 lemon zest
- 30 g icing sugar (plus extra for dusting)
Instructions
Preparing the Apple Filling
- Peel and grate the apples.
- Place a pan on medium heat and add the apples, cinnamon, and sugar to the pan.
- Cook the apples until soft, for about 10 minutes.
- Remove the pan from the heat and let the filling cool down while preparing the cookie dough.
- Add the walnuts when the filling is cooled down and mix well.
Preparing the Cookie Dough
- Preheat the fan oven to 170 °C.
- Place the flour in a large mixing bowl and add the softened butter, baking powder, icing sugar, yogurt, and lemon zest.
- Mix them with your fingertips gently until combined.
- Return the mixture to a worktop and form a nice soft dough.
- Roll the dough into a log and cut into 5 equal pieces (approximately 140 grams each) and turn them into balls.
- Lightly flour the worktop, sprinkle some flour on a dough ball, and roll it out into a 20 cm (8") dia circle (approximately ½ cm thick).
- Cut the circle into 8 equal triangles and place a teaspoon of apple filling on the wide side of each triangle.
- Roll them up into a log shape and place them on a baking paper-lined tray.
- Bake for 20 minutes, until lightly browned.
- Sprinkle some icing sugar on top when they are still warm.
Video
Nutrition
Food safety
- Cook to a minimum temperature of 165 °F (74 °C)
- Don't leave food sitting out at room temperature for extended periods
- Never leave cooking food unattended
- Use oils with high smoking point to avoid harmful compounds
- Always have good ventilation when using a gas stove
See more guidelines at USDA.gov.
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Did you make this recipe?
Please let me know how it turned out for you! Leave a comment below and tag @cookingorgeous on Instagram and hashtag it #cookingorgeous.
OLIVER
Great Recipe
Ayla Clulee
Thank you Oliver 🙂
Kadir Bora
Elinize emeğinize sağlık, teşekkürler...
Ayla Clulee
Rica ederim Kadir Bey, umarım deneyip begenmissinizdir.
Saygilarimla
Ayla
Zula
Hi, I have just made this cookies. They are delicious! However it was difficult to work with the dough which was tearing very easily. It was very hard to roll the triangles in without the dough tearing.
Is this dough supposed to be that soft and "fragile"?
The only thing I changed is that I added greek yoghurt instead regular yoghurt.
Ayla Clulee
Hi Zula,
I am glad you have found the cookies delicious! And thanks for your feedback.
The type of yogurt as well as the humidity in the air affects the consistency of the dough. Next time if you don't have natural yogurt and you have to use Greek yogurt again, try to adjust the consistency of the dough by adding more flour. You should have a soft but workable dough (i.e. a dough that doesn't break easily). I hope you find this helpful for the next time and please feel free to reach out if anything is unclear.
Best wishes and Happy New Year
Ayla
Zula
Ayla,
Thank you so much for your kind reply.
I am making those cookies again tomorrow so I will adjust flour accordingly. Thanks!
They are exceptionally delicious! They also freeze very well. Thawed in microwave they tasted just like freshly baked!