Preheat the oven to 350°F and lightly spray a cookie sheet with cooking spray.
In a bowl, combine all the dry ingredients except the coarse sanding sugar and mix well.
In a separate bowl, cream together the butter, both sugars, and the vanilla.
Add the applesauce to the sugar and mix well again.
Combine both the dry and wet ingredients and mix well into a thick cookie dough.
Roll into 1-inch balls and place on the prepared baking sheet.
Use a fork to press down the cookie dough balls, leaving a criss-cross pattern. Sprinkle with the coarse sugar and bake for about 8–10 minutes or until the edges start to turn a very light gold color.
Remove from the oven and leave the cookies on the pan to cool for a few minutes.
Notes
If you want to cut shapes out of the sugar cookies, prepare the dough, then cover it and chill for two hours. Next, sandwich the dough in between two sheets of wax paper and roll it out, making sure to use plenty of flour so it doesn’t stick. Cut out your shapes and bake them following the same baking time and temps in the recipe.