Snickerdoodle Cookies

Snickerdoodle Cookies by DK on Dec 9, 2009

This is the Best Snickerdoodle Cookie recipe EVER! From all the ones that I have tried (well its not as many would think, but anything more than 3 is many in my dictionary. I am lazy remember?). This recipe is from All Recipes where for once, at least for me, the term "best" has been used precisely. I know of so many of these "The best" recipes that turn out to be "oh hum" at the end. I scaled the recipe to yield about 24 cookies. I added a little cardamom powder and some more cinnamon for that aroma and taste ;)

There are some do's and don't for this recipe which I read in the comment section of the original recipe. I am providing them here along with few of my own observations. I am sure they will help you to make some amazing cookies ever. Snickerdoodle is a cousin of Sugar Cookie. The addition of Cream of tartar to these cookies helps these cookies to rise well. Wikipedia says - "The Joy of Cooking claims that snickerdoodles are probably German in origin, and that the name is a corruption of the German word Schneckennudeln, which means "snail dumpling."[1] A different author suggests that the word "snicker" comes from the Dutch word snekrad, or the German word Schnecke, which both describe a snail-like shape.[2] Yet another theory suggests that the name comes from a New England tradition of fanciful, whimsical cookie names.[3] There is also a series of tall tales about a hero named "Snickerdoodle" from the early 1900s which may be related to the name of the cookie." Best Snickerdoodle Cookie Recipe

You might also like these cookies: Christmas Cookies : Sugar Cookies, Gingerbread wo(man) Cookies, Gingersnaps (eggless), Ginger cookies Other cookies: Peanut Butter Cookies, Rich Butter Cookies, Gluten Free Oatmeal Raisin Cookies, Here's my very slightly adapted version

Cook time: Under 15 min
Prep time: Under 30 min
Yields: Around 22-24 cookies

Ingredients

1/4 cup butter, softened
1/4 cup shortening
3/4 cup white sugar
1 egg
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1-1/3 cups and 1 tablespoon all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon cream of tartar
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/8 teaspoon salt
2-3 tablespoon white sugar
2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1 tsp ground cardamom powder (or more if you like cardamom)

Tips

Note: For substituting Eggs pls refer my egg substitutes guide. For any other substitutes pls refer my Baking Substitutions Guide.

Method

1. Preheat oven to 400 degrees F (200 degrees C). Cream together butter, shortening, sugar, egg and the vanilla.There is something that hand mixing does this to this cookie. I tried this recipe twice - once when I mixed it using a hand mixer and once while with hand. I dunno what exactly - but I think hand mixing made the texture all the more better for this cookie. May be they looked puffier and prettier when done by hand. You be the judge.:)

2. In a separate bowl, blend in the flour, cream of tartar, soda and salt.

3. Now add the dry into the wet ingredients and blend well. Make sure you don't overmix them. The result will be a slightly sticky dough.

4. Mix the cinnamon, cardamom (if using) along with sugar and spread it on a plate. Shape dough by rounded spoonfuls into balls. Since the dough is little sticky, I actually dusted my hands with the sugar+spice mixture to help me shape the rounds. You anyways have to coat them with this mixture and I thought why not use it to make rounds too. It worked pretty well for me. Once shaped, roll the balls of dough in the sugar+spice mixture until well coated on all sides. Make sure to place these balls at least 2 inches apart on an ungreased baking sheet (or use parchment paper). They spread while baking. Depending on the size, you get about 22-24 cookies with this recipe.

5. The original recipe states to bake these for 8-10 minutes. I personally found 5 minutes worked out perfect for me in my Oven. So keep a look out from 5 minutes onward. The time to remove would be when you cookies have spread out, have the characteristic texture of the snickerdoodle, i.e cracked surface and have very slightly browned on top but might look still soft in the edges. Its fine since they will hardene up while cooling. Otheriwse they might turn out too hard.

6. Remove them from the oven, let them sit for few seconds and then take out the cookies from the pan.

Snickerdoodles are enjoyed wither crisp or soft depending on the preference. By removing them around 5-6 minute mark these come out somewhere in the middle. They are crisp on the surface and break well - but the insides are slightly soft. If you want crisper, keep it in the oven few seconds more after they "look" done. But make sure that they don't sit inside for too long cos though they might look perfect on top, the bottoms can burn.

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Recipe Reference

minimally adapted from all recipes

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Gluten Free Nanaimo Bars By DK on Jan 27, 2010

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Rich Butter Cookies By DK on Jul 16, 2009

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25 Comments

By Allison Bruner on Apr 9, 2013

Hey! I used virgin coconut oil instead of shortening and they turned out great! You can't taste the coconut, really, and it makes these cookies SO much healthier. Also, I ran out of white sugar so I used brown sugar for the inside and outseid of the cookie and was very pleased with the results. Bake on, ladies!

By chris on Dec 13, 2012

I cant get the cookies to flat out instead they raise what am I doing wrong I would appreciate any advise thank you

By Swetha on Sep 23, 2012

Made them yesterday and they came out really tasty. Substituted cream of tartar with a tsp of lemon juice, it turned out fine. I had to bake it for 12min in my oven though. Thanks for sharing the recipe.

By HI on Sep 16, 2012

:wink:

By Hila on Feb 11, 2012

are you aware that your recipe was copied and pasted here: http://johan-niemann-recipes.blogspot.com/2011/12/snickerdoodle-biscuits.html

By Warren on Jan 9, 2012

Snickerdoodles are one of my favorite simple to make cookies to keep around. The dough also freezes well so what I do is make a large batch, portion out the dough into cookies, packed tightly, but not touching, on a parchment paper covered cookie sheet and then freeze. Once they are good and set up I dump them all into a zipper bag and toss back into the freezer. Then when I want some I just take out as many as I want, and bake them fresh. The dough will keep for several months in the freezer - not that it ever lasts that long. :wink:

By Lisa on Dec 20, 2011

This recipe sounds DELICIOUS! Would you mind sharing it at the USPS Facebook Fan Page? I KNOW they'd love it there too!

By Baking Challenge, Day 2… « sihodoesit on Dec 19, 2011

[...] Source [...]

By cookie recipe snickerdoodle on May 15, 2011

[...] Easy and Best Snickerdoodle Recipe | Snickerdoodle Recipe … Dec 9, 2009 … This is the Best Snickerdoodle Cookie recipe EVER! From all the ones that I have tried (well its not … [...]

By Anita on Apr 2, 2011

I didn't have eggs so I used 1/2 cup oil as a substitute (per the substitute link provided). First batch was in oven too long, and therefore crunchy. 2nd batch was in in like 5 minutes and was softer... Overall, I don't have good experiences if I don't bake cookies with all the required ingredients but these were pretty good!! Thank you!

By Swapna on Jul 16, 2010

I tasted snickerdoodle cookies for the first time today and liked them. So thought... "hmm...maybe DK has some recipe for this" and ofcourse she has one :D. I am going to try these this weekend. Is there a substitute for shortening? I don't want to buy a whole can just for this. Thank you :)

Pls do refer my Substitutes table for details http://chefinyou.com/2009/07/substitutes-in-baking-101/

By tosha on Apr 21, 2010

This site is so well done with beautiful pictures! I can't have eggs so I tried the egg substitute but cookies still came out flat. Poofed up in oven and flattened way out while cooling. I hand mixed. Slight chance the cream of tartar might not have been fresh enough but the rest of the ingredients were. Hummm...I enjoy baking so I would love to figure this out and try again! :)

By Spice Rack on Dec 12, 2009

I love making snickerdoodles. These pictures look great.

By IronmanDunn on Dec 11, 2009

Made this yesterday evening and they are great! First time ever having a snickerdoodle and so I don't have anything to compare them to, but I really enjoyed them. Mine didn't rise quite like yours did and so I will have to check on my baking soda, but still chewy and tasty. The cardamom sure is a nice touch. I will definitely be repeating this one. Cheers for the recipe!

By susan from food blogga on Dec 11, 2009

Hi DK! I have yet to find the best snickerdoodle, so you may have just given me a fantastic Christmas present! :)

By Anne P on Dec 10, 2009

great recipe, your right, five minutes is perfect. thank you so much!

By IronmanDunn on Dec 10, 2009

I had another recipe for Snickerdoodles, but after seeing this post I am going to give this one a try instead. As a novice baker, I really appreciate all the tips and description you provided and it is going to help a lot. Will let you know how it all turns out!

By Jayashree on Dec 9, 2009

I love that pic of the snickerdoodles still in the oven. Looks delicious.

By Vandy on Dec 9, 2009

:wink: They really look yummy.

By CurryLeaf on Dec 9, 2009

Yum Yum Its my favourite.Love cinnamon and snickerdoodles.I had made a vegan version earlier

By sharmilee on Dec 9, 2009

Cookies look very inviting, nice presentation!

By notyet100 on Dec 9, 2009

thy look so yum ,..

By Yamini on Dec 9, 2009

These look amazing! :) i have never tried making snickerdoodles before, but this recipe (with these amazing photos) is reason enough to do so! :)

By Priya on Dec 9, 2009

Beautiful snickerdoodle...looks fantastic!

By Vidhya on Dec 9, 2009

oh.. this is so moist and yummy.. my twins were near me when I was reading this recipe.. They said "wow amma.. yummy cookies"