Apple cookie quest

So you can tell I've been a little stressed by the inordinate amount of baking I've been doing of late.

The most recent was an attempt at the glorious apple cookies that Daniel and I used to purchase on our trips to French Canada. They were made by monks in Notre Dame du Lac, and they were heavenly, in every sense of the word.

I've been on a search for a recipe that approximates their moist apple-y wonders, and when I saw one on the blog of a French Canadian baker, I thought I'd hit the jackpot. While the results were good, and relatively healthy, they bore little resemblance to the object of my desperate quest. They were supremely oaty and did not hold together as well as I might have liked. However, those who sampled them did seem to enjoy them, so here is the blog from the website One Whole Clove...

Sarah Lou's Apple n' Cinnamon Porridge Cookies

1 3/4 cup old fashioned rolled oats
1/2 cup flour
1 tsp. cinnamon
1/4 tsp. baking soda
1/4 tsp. salt
1/2 cup packed brown sugar
1/2 cup margarine
1 gala apple, peeled, cored half grated half cut into small pieces
1 egg
1/2 tsp. vanilla
1/2 cup sultanas

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Line cookie sheet with a silpat mat or spray with nonstick cooking spray.
In a medium bowl combine oats, flour, cinnamon, baking soda and salt
In a mixer bowl, with an electric mixer fitted with paddle attachment and on high speed, cream together brown sugar and margarine until fluffy. Add grated apple half, egg and vanilla. Add the dry ingredients, stir to blend, add the apple pieces and sultanas.
Drop dough by heaping tablespoons onto lined baking sheet. Flatten with the back of a wet wooden spoon. Bake until lightly brown, at least 15 minutes. Cool on cookie rack.

(For the record, I used two Pink Lady apples and no raisins. Otherwise I stuck to the recipe...)