These traditional snickerdoodle cookies are sweet and soft, with that slight tang that makes them unique. Rolled in cinnamon sugar, they're a favorite for the holidays, potlucks, and picnics. The dough can be made a day ahead, and the baked cookies keep well.
Who can argue with cookies rolled in cinnamon sugar?
We've been on a snickerdoodle bender lately, making this the third recipe posted in the past few months to go along with pumpkin snickerdoodles and chocolate snickerdoodle cookies.
Cookie baking season is one of the best times of the year. You can make amazing homemade gifts or fill the cookie jars at home and take them to work without much effort.
Many popular cookies are made in one bowl, but you need some patience because, you know, baking one batch after the other takes time.
Snickerdoodles fall under that category, easy and delicious, with that unique flavor that makes them such crowd-pleasers.
The cookie is soft and chewy with a nice cinnamon flavor and a crackly top.
They're a must for the holidays around here, and no cookie tray doesn't include them along with snowballs, chocolate mint chip cookies, chocolate fudge, brownie cookies, and gingersnaps.
Ingredients
- Cream of tartar: the ingredient that makes snickerdoodles what they are. There's no substitution. You can buy it in supermarkets and online (like Mc Cormick gourmet cream of tartar).
- Cinnamon: any ground cinnamon you usually use works fine. I like Frontier Vietnamese cinnamon, Mc Cormick's culinary cinnamon, or Simply Organic Ceylon cinnamon.
- Vanilla: I use pure vanilla extract or pure vanilla paste when available, but a good vanilla essence (artificially flavored) also works and is infinitely cheaper.
- Unsalted butter.
- All-purpose flour.
- Salt: I like to use kosher salt when baking. But regular table salt works just fine.
- Baking soda: make sure it's not expired.
- White, granulated sugar.
- Egg: fresh, large.
See the recipe card at the end of this post for quantities.
Why use cream of tartar?
Cream or tartar gives snickerdoodles their characteristic chewiness and slight tanginess. It's what sets these cookies apart from others.
This is the ingredient that sets these cookies apart. A snickerdoodle is not such if it doesn't use it.
About this recipe
- Easy to make: a one-bowl dough that can be made in the stand mixer, especially if making large batches.
- Make ahead: you can freeze the cookie balls to bake at a later time.
- Great flavor: snickerdoodles have a unique taste from the addition of baking soda, and the cinnamon sugar they're rolled in makes them irresistible.
How to make snickerdoodles
Mixing the dough: you can use a stand mixer with the paddle attachment (great when you make a large batch) or a mixing bowl and an electric mixer. You can also make it by hand if you're up to an arm muscle workout.
Beat butter with sugars until creamy; then add eggs and flavorings.
Make sure you sift the dry ingredients, especially the baking soda and cream of tartar, as they can clump during storage.
Cinnamon sugar coating: this is a necessary step to call them snickerdoodles, so don't omit it.
Make cookie dough balls the size of walnuts and roll them, coating them well. The color will be uneven due to the cinnamon.
Vintage Kitchen tip: the cookies can be baked immediately or the dough can be refrigerated for up to 2 days before baking. Always cover the bowl well so it doesn't dry out.
Baking
Snickerdoodle cookies will rise, puff, and then crash down, giving them the characteristic crinkle. It's supposed to happen and results from the amount of cream of tartar and baking soda used.
Place them on a greased, parchment or Silpat-lined cookie sheet a few inches apart.
Bake according to the instructions on the recipe card. Let cool on a wire rack before eating.
Frequently asked questions
I don't, not even if the cookie dough is cold from the refrigerator. Unless you want very flat cookies. In that case, slightly flatten them before baking. The puffy center that collapses as they cool down is a characteristic of these snickerdoodles.
They keep well for about 5 days in an airtight container or cookie jar. Make sure they're completely cooled down before you store them. No need to refrigerate them.
These cookies are meant to be soft and chewy and should be removed from the oven while still tender in the center. They will harden as they cool. Don't wait until they're completely set. That will render tougher cookies.
Kitchen notes
- Organization: read the recipe first and ensure you have ingredients at the correct temperatures, equipment, and enough workspace. This will make the process so much easier!
- Baking time: keep in mind that all ovens and pans are different, even if they look the same or very similar. The baking time in my recipes is as accurate as it can be, but it might take you more or less time. Use a thermometer inside the oven (like the OXO oven thermometer) to check that the temperature is right. I recommend you keep track of how your oven works and what tiny details you might need to adjust.
- Cinnamon: this is a cinnamon cookie, so use the best one you can afford.
- Cream of tartar: the ingredient that sets these cookies apart and makes them what they are. So there's no substitute. If you leave it out, you have cinnamon cookies, not snickerdoodles.
- Make ahead: these cookies keep well for several days, so you can make them a few days before you plan to eat or gift them.
- Large batch: you can double the recipe (a good idea if making lots of these cookies for the holidays) and use the stand mixer to make the dough.
- Size: I use a cookie dough scoop that's 1,57 inches (4cm), the small one of this cookie scoop set). If you use a larger one, the cookies will take a few more minutes to bake, and the recipe will render fewer cookies.
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Chewy Snickerdoodles
- Total Time: 25 minutes
- Yield: 40 cookies
Ingredients
For the cinnamon coating:
- 2 tablespoons (30g) sugar
- 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
For the cookie dough:
- 1 ½ cups sugar
- 2 ¾ cups all-purpose flour
- 1 teaspoon baking soda
- 1 ½ teaspoons cream of tartar
- ¼ teaspoon salt
- 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
- 1 cup unsalted butter, at room temperature
- 2 eggs, at room temperature
- ½ teaspoon vanilla extract
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 375ºF / 190ºC.
- Lightly butter cookie sheets or line them with parchment paper.
For the cinnamon coating:
- In a small shallow bowl, mix the sugar and 1 ½ teaspoons cinnamon. Reserve.
For the cookie dough:
- Beat butter with sugar in a large bowl for 2 minutes, until creamy.
- Add eggs, one at a time, and mix well.
- Add vanilla and mix.
- Sift dry ingredients: flour, cinnamon, baking soda, cream of tartar, and salt (I measure them and sift directly over the butter, but you can do it in another bowl if you want). Add to the butter and mix well until no dry spots remain. Don't overmix at this point.
- Take teaspoons of dough and make balls the size of walnuts.
- Roll them in the cinnamon sugar and place them on the prepared sheets, spacing them a few inches apart as they expand during baking.
- Bake for 12-15 minutes, until the top is dry and the cookies barely start to crackle.
- Let cool for 5 minutes and lift them carefully with a spatula. Let cool completely on a wire rack and keep in tins or airtight cookie jars.
- Prep Time: 15 minutes
- Cook Time: 10 minutes
- Category: Cookies
- Method: Baking
- Cuisine: American
Keywords: snickerdoodle cookies
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