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Snickerdoodles
Snickerdoodles are such a classic cookie, yet up until this point they have honestly been the bane of my existence. I can master croissants, danish, eclairs, and all sorts of complicated bread recipes, but hand me a snickerdoodle recipe and they will undoubtedly spread into a massive, flat, crunchy 14×16-inch cookie. I am not sure where the problem lies, but for some reason this one cookie has given me nothing but headaches. I’m glad that you all like them so much and that they ended up in the top 10 cookies mentioned during the cookbook giveaway, because it gave me an excuse to tackle them yet again with a new recipe. I am happy to report that I have finally experienced successful snickerdoodles! Wonderful round, soft, cinnamon-sugar goodness that taste every ounce as good as they look.
I don’t remember how I stumbled upon this recipe for soft snickerdoodle cookies, but I had it saved for quite some time and was very excited to finally give it a try. The recipe received hundreds of raving reviews claiming that it was the first actual soft snickerdoodle recipe that many had ever tried. I was sold immediately given all of my problems with the spreading crunchy catastrophes. The recipe is incredibly simple and the only real difference that I could discern between this recipe and the others I have tried is that it instructs you to chill both the dough and the cookie sheets before baking. I surmise that this drastically cuts down on the spreading, and resulted in one absolutely elated Brown Eyed Baker. I’m so happy to have a great snickerdoodle recipe that I can bust out during the holidays!
After I took these out of the oven (and stole two that “broke”… “accidentally”), I Tweeted about how great the warm snickerdoodles were fresh from the oven. Elly of Elly Says Opa! replied by saying that I should make snickerdoodle ice cream sandwiches once the cookies cooled. Elly – you have won Genius of the Day award. These were absolutely, 100% incredible. If you have some vanilla ice cream stashed away in the freezer, you definitely need to throw one of these together! Go from cookie to full-fledged dessert in less than a minute.
Cookies from the Top 10 I have made:
No-Bake Cookies
Almond Macaroons with Nutella Filling
Chocolate-Dipped Coconut Macaroons
Chocolate Chip Cookies (Thick & Chewy)
Oatmeal Chocolate Chip Cookies
Peanut Butter Cookies
Sugar Cookies
Oatmeal Raisin Cookies
Peanut Butter Blossoms
Did you make this recipe?
My version of a cookie classic!
1. Preheat oven to 350ยฐF. Line baking sheets with parchment paper or a baking mat and put in refrigerator to chill.
2. Whisk together the flour, cream of tartar, baking soda and salt in a medium bowl. Set aside.
3. Cream together the butter and sugar until pale and fluffy. Add the eggs, one at a time, beating well after each addition. Beat in the vanilla.
4. Gradually stir in the flour mixture, beating on low speed just until the flour is blended.
5. Chill the dough for at least 30 minutes.
6. In the meantime, mix together the sugar and cinnamon in a small bowl.
7. Scoop 1-inch balls of dough and roll in the cinnamon and sugar mixture to coat.
8. Place on chilled cookie sheet about 2 inches apart and bake for 10 minutes.
9. Chill the dough and cookie sheets between batches.
10. Let cookies set on baking sheet for 2-3 minutes and then remove to a cooling rack. Store cookies in an airtight container.
Calories: 90kcal
Fat: 4g
Saturated fat: 2g
Cholesterol: 16mg
Sodium: 38mg
Potassium: 31mg
Carbohydrates: 12g
Sugar: 7g
Protein: 1g
Vitamin A: 2.6%
Calcium: 0.5%
Iron: 2.1%
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Amazingly delicious!
Is the dough supposed to be real thick?
Hi Jodie, Yes it is a thick dough!
Snickerdoodles had been the bane of my existence as well until I found your recipe. One of my sister’s ex boyfriends made the best snickerdoodles ever. Chewy, soft. I searched the internet everywhere and tried a bunch, but mine never came out the same. I even underbaked them. Your recipe and tips saved me from going behind my sister’s back and secretly contacting her ex lol thank you!
I love your recipes. I have tried several and all are fantastic. This Snickerdoodle recipe is the best I have ever found and is my go to recipe. I made them for my best friend and he loves them too, so much he asked for the recipe. I have made them for many people and functions and they are always a hit and disappear fast. Thank you so much for such a great recipe! :)
Quick question, how do you manage to get them perfectly uniform? I roll out the balls and they all seem to look the same but come out of the oven totally different. Do you have a trick or am I just defective. ;)
Hi Sarah, I just use a cookie scoop to scoop the dough and then roll them between my palms.
I’m a huge proponent of frozen cookies and so I’m wondering how well the Snickerdoodles freeze??
My husband and I find that frozen cookies are great for portion control…….it takes more time to eat a frozen cookie and they are not as accessible as cookies in a cookie jar. And they are quite good
Hi Barbie, I have never frozen these myself, but I think they would freeze well. Enjoy!
These Snickerdoodles were amazing! Hands down, the best I’ve ever baked or eaten. I made 5 dozen to send overseas to a friend and his troops. Can’t wait to get their reaction!
I am at an altitude of 5000ft and i tried adding 1/4 cup more of flour to the recipe. The cookies still flattened out. Should I add more?
Hi Sabrina, I am admittedly not an expert at high altitude baking, but I have compiled some tips:
https://www.browneyedbaker.com/high-altitude-baking-tips/
These. are. awesome.
I feel bad, but after baking these, it’s time to kick my grandma’s snickerdoodle recipe to the curb. My husband loved them, I liked that they stayed soft & delicious, and my office raved.
Thanks for yet another knock out recipe, brown eyed baker!!! <3
These cookies looked wonderful. I can never make good snickerdoodles. When you mentioned that you put the dough and pan in the refrig I thought here is my answer!!! But still I have puffed up snickerdoodles. We really like the flat kind but can never make them. Ok, what did I do wrong now?
This look amazing! I was wondering if i could cut them out in shapes? Would they hold? Thank You and Merry Christmas!!! <3
Hi Alex, This cookie batter isn’t the right consistency to roll out and cut out shapes. Merry Christmas to you!
I stumbled on your posting today quite by accident. I read of your history of trouble with the Snickerdoodle, and was very puzzled by your woes. I mastered Snickerdoodles when I was a mere girl of 10 – well over 40 years ago. Then I read the recipe that finally gave you success, and I chuckled. You finally followed the “correct” recipe. This is the recipe I learned from my mother all those decades ago. It is the one she learned from her mother. This aging baker thanks you for today’s chuckle.
to autumn besauce lately, I have been craving all things cinnamon. I came across this recipe for Snickerdoodle Bread recently on the boards, and thought it might be worth a try. Afterall, it looked easy
Delicious! I normally don’t like eating snickerdoodles, but these are fantastic. Thanks for the wonderful recipe.
the ice cream sandwich is even better if you add salted caramel
These cookies are incredible!!! I’ve made these over 30 times and each time they turn out incredibly!!!!!!!! USE THIS RECIPE!
Lol I just baked a recipe off the internet last night that was a toal failure! The snickerdoodles did to me what they do to the-brown-eyed-baker all the time: go completely flat and just plain suck! And I can bake ANYTHING! I’m trying this recipe Today/tonight and I’ll report back on my success or failure (once again.
I never grew up with snickerdoodles, and before I made these this week for the apple pie ice cream, I had never had them. When I read the recipe, I wondered what made people so in love with snickerdoodles, they were, afterall, just cinniamon butter cookeis. My entire feelings about this cookie can be described by the thoughts that popped into my head after the first bite: “Oh. I get it.”
I was too impatient to cool the pan between batches (I only have one cookie sheet) so I just made double sized cookies and remembered to only eat half a cookie at a time. My husband liked these a lot – he’s a big fan of soft cookies – so I guess this might become a family tradition for us, haha.
My kiddos LOVE these cookies. I’m planning on making them for my daughters bake sale. I’ve never doubled/tripled the recipe. What are your thoughts?
Hi Mercedes, I have done this around the holidays, and never had a problem. Enjoy!
When i make these these cookies they’re always a hit. I omitted the cinnamon sugar mixture for a couple of of the cookies for my mom. she loved the plain cookies but asked if i can add peanut butter to the recipe. Since i know she likes how these cookies come out (instead of following one of your peanut butter cookie recipes) i was just wondering if there are any changes in the recipe if I add regular smooth peanut butter. How much peanut butter should i add into the recipe? Can i just scoop peanut butter out of the jar and straight into the butter and sugar and cream them together then? Thanks!
Hi Melissa, You would add the peanut butter as you noted, but it would change the consistency of the cookies. You may need to play around with the ratios of flour, butter, etc.
These cookies were a hit with my family! I had to keep baking just to feed them! Thanks for sharing!
Hi Michelle! Any ideas why it didn’t flatten enough after baking? It flattened slightly but not similar to the pictures. Your blog is our favorite! Thanks for your help!
This Snickerdoodle recipe brought me to this website, and now I’m hooked! My husband asked me what I wanted for dessert, and after looking up some things online I ended up here with this recipe. He made them, I ate them:) And now I want to make everything posted here…thank you!