Lithuanian Apple Cookies (Obuolių Sausainiai)
These are a classic Lithuanian home-baking project: a rich, cold sour-cream pastry wrapped around cinnamon apples, sealed into little parcels, and baked until golden.
Equipment
- Box Grater (for the butter)
- Rolling Pin
- Pastry brush
- Parchment Paper
- 2 Large Baking Sheets
Ingredients
For The Pastry:
- 2 ½ cups (350g) all-purpose flour
- 1 heaped tbsp granulated sugar
- pinch of salt
- 200 g (1¾ sticks / 14 tablespoons) unsalted butter frozen
- ¾ cup + 1 tbsp (200g) full-fat sour cream or creme fraiche
- 1 large egg
For The Apple Filling:
- 3 medium apples about 1 lb (450g) total — a firm, tart variety like Granny Smith or Braeburn holds its shape best
- 1 tablespoon (20g) honey
- 3 tablespoons (35g) granulated sugar
- 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
For The Topping:
- 1 small egg beaten
- 2 tablespoons granulated sugar
- ½ teaspoon ground cinnamon
Instructions
- Before you begin, wrap the required amount of butter in a piece of parchment paper and place it in the freezer for at least 1 hour before making the cookies. It should freeze solid.
Make The Pastry
- In a large bowl, combine the flour, salt and sugar. Grate the butter straight from cold into the flour. Work it quickly between your fingers until it looks like coarse crumbs with no dry flour left.
- Add the sour cream and the lightly beaten egg (or beat the egg and sour cream right in the well of the flour). Mix and knead just until the dough comes together into a ball — don't overwork it. If it's too sticky to handle, work in an extra tablespoon of flour.
- Flatten and wrap the dough in plastic and chill for 1–2 hours.
Make The Filling:
- Make the filling shortly before you're ready to roll (don't do this too far ahead, or the apples will weep and the honey will thin out). Peel the apples, halve and core them, then slice thinly — about ⅛ inch (3mm) thick. You're aiming for roughly 50–55 slices total across the 3 apples, so keep them slim rather than chunky. Toss with the honey, sugar, and cinnamon until evenly coated.
Shape and Bake:
- Preheat the oven to 350°F (180°C) if you're using convection/fan; if your oven doesn't have a fan setting, use 375°F (190°C) instead. Line two large baking sheets with parchment.
- On a floured surface, roll the chilled dough out to roughly 22 x 18 inches (55 x 45cm) — you'll likely need to do this in sections given the size. Cut into squares about 2.5–2.75 inches (6.5–7cm) per side, sized to fit one apple slice diagonally.
- Place one apple slice on each square. Fold the corners up and over the apple and pinch gently to seal — you're not aiming for a perfect parcel, just something that holds together in the oven. Arrange on the lined baking sheets, leaving a little space between each.
- Brush each pastry with the beaten egg, then sprinkle with the cinnamon sugar.
- Bake for about 20-25 minutes, until golden brown. Thinner slices cook through quickly, so check at 20 minutes. Let cool for a few minutes before eating — the filling holds a lot of heat.
Notes
Honey tip: if your honey is thick or crystallized, warm it for a few seconds so it mixes into the apples evenly rather than sitting in clumps.
A squeeze of lemon juice in the filling isn't traditional but is worth considering if your apples are on the sweeter side — it also stops the thin slices from browning while you're shaping the rest.
Make-ahead: the dough can be made up to a day ahead and kept in the fridge, or frozen for up to a month. Don't fill and shape ahead of time — the apples release liquid and the pastry will go soggy before it even hits the oven.
Storage: keep in an airtight container at room temperature for 2 days. Best the day they're baked; the pastry softens a bit after that.