How to make Erin Jeanne McDowell's Dutch apple pie cookies

Celebrity baker Erin Jeanne McDowell joined "Good Morning America" with a must-try recipe for "GMA"'s 12 Days of Christmas cookies.

McDowell, author of "The Book on Pie" and "The Fearless Baker," shared a recipe that features all the deliciousness of a streusel-topped apple pie, but in a cookie. Her Dutch apple pie cookies can also be cut into an egg shape to represent six geese a-laying from "The Twelve Days of Christmas" classic Christmas carol.

Try McDowell's Dutch apple pie cookies this holiday season!

Dutch apple pie cookies

Makes about 20 cookies

Apple pie filling ingredients:
1 tablespoon unsalted butter
1 3/4 cup (175 g) finely diced peeled apples (from about 1 large or 2 small apples, such as Granny Smith or Honeycrisp)
1/3 cup (66 g) dark brown sugar
1 teaspoon lemon juice
3/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon fine sea salt
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 tablespoon granulated sugar
1 tablespoon all-purpose flour

Streusel topping ingredients:
1/4 cup (30 g) all-purpose flour
1/4 cup (20 g) old-fashioned oats
2 tablespoons dark brown sugar
Pinch ground cinnamon
Pinch fine sea salt
3 tablespoons cold, unsalted butter, cut into 1/2 inch cubes
2 sheets puff pastry, thawed if frozen
Oval cookie cutter (3 inches long and 2 1/2 inches wide) or round cookie cutter (2 1/2 inches wide)

Directions:
1. In a small pot, melt the butter over medium heat. Add the apples, brown sugar, lemon juice, cinnamon and salt together to combine. Cook until the apples begin to release some of their liquid and soften, 4 to 5 minutes. Stir in the vanilla.

2. In a small bowl, whisk the granulated sugar and flour to combine. Sprinkle this mixture over the apples, and stir well to combine. Cook, stirring constantly, until the mixture thickens, 2 to 3 minutes. Transfer to a bowl to cool completely.

3. In a small bowl, whisk the flour, oats, brown sugar, cinnamon and salt to combine. Add the butter, and use your fingers to rub the butter into the flour until a clumpy streusel forms.

4. Preheat the oven to 400 F with a rack in the center of the oven. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper. On a lightly floured surface, roll out the 2 puff pastry sheets until they are 1/8 inch thick (the sheets will only require a small amount of rolling, as they are already quite thin).

5. Dock the pastry generously all over with a fork, then use the cookie cutter to cut out shapes and place them on the prepared baking sheets. The pastry shapes can be placed quite close together, as they will not spread -- stagger to leave at least 1/2 inch between each cookie.

6. Top each piece of pastry with about 1/2 tablespoon of the cooled apple filling, then top each piece with about 1 tablespoon of streusel.

7. Transfer the cookies to the oven, and bake until the crust is golden brown and the streusel is set, 18 to 22 minutes. Cool completely on the baking sheet. Store in an airtight container.

Recipe reprinted with permission from Erin Jeanne McDowell.