These Perfect Snickerdoodle Cookies Are The Only Recipe You Need (2024)

In my opinion, snickerdoodles are an underrated cookie, often overlooked by the chocolate chip cookies of the world. Soft, chewy and somehow impossibly light, snickerdoodles are born from a sugar cookie coated in cinnamon sugar and baked into a puffy, crackly cookie with a signature tang (thanks, cream of tartar) that just can’t be replicated. Ready to make a batch of these warm and cozy cookies for the Christmas season? There are a few things you should know:

How to make soft snickerdoodles:
What makes these snickerdoodles so good? They’re thick and substantial, but with an inside that is anything but dry. A lot of snickerdoodles turn out crispy or cakey, but these have my ideal cookie center: One that, when properly baked, is chewy with a bit of denseness to it that makes the bite oh so satisfying. Our secret for extra soft snickerdoodles? First, we slightly underbake our cookies to keep them from drying out. Cookies have a lot of carryover baking after coming out of the oven—you don’t want to risk overbaking them, so we slightly underbake to ensure they stay soft. Second, we don’t skip out on the key snickerdoodle ingredient: cream of tartar.

What does cream of tartar do?
Cream of tartar is the key to a classic snickerdoodle. It not only provides a little tang to the cookie, but it’s the best way to achieve a soft snickerdoodle. It’s a stabilizer that’s often used in meringues, lemon meringue pie, and other methods, like marshmallow frosting, that involve whipping egg whites to keep them sturdy.

Can I substitute cream of tartar?
I often see lemon juice and vinegar as substitutes for cream of tartar, but I don’t recommend that for these cookies. Lemon flavor isn’t really what you are looking for here, and neither will give quite the same chewiness as cream of tartar will. If you are really in a pinch for a substitute, I would replace both the baking soda and cream of tartar for 2 teaspoons baking powder. Baking powder is essentially baking soda and an acid, so it will give mostly the same texture as baking soda and cream of tartar together. Baking powder, however, won’t give you the tangy flavor that cream of tartar provides. All in all, I highly recommend using cream of tartar for the best snickerdoodle.

Can I make these ahead of time?
Snickerdoodles are great to prep ahead of time. The dough can be made the day before and kept in the refrigerator. After shaping the dough into balls, they can be frozen for up to 1 month. Let the dough thaw in the refrigerator before rolling in cinnamon sugar.

Storage:
If you have any leftovers, the baked cookies can be kept in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 3 days.

Made this recipe? Let us know how it went in the comments below!

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Prep Time:
10 mins
Total Time:
2 hrs
Cal/Serv:
179

Ingredients

  • 3 c.

    (360 g.) all-purpose flour

  • 2 tsp.

    cream of tartar

  • 1 tsp.

    kosher salt

  • 3/4 tsp.

    baking soda

  • 1 c.

    (2 sticks) unsalted butter, room temperature

  • 1 1/2 c.

    (300 g.) granulated sugar, divided

  • 2

    large eggs

  • 1 tsp.

    pure vanilla extract

  • 1 tbsp.

    ground cinnamon

Directions

    1. Step1In a medium bowl, whisk flour, cream of tartar, salt, and baking soda until combined. In a large bowl, using a handheld mixer on medium-high speed, beat butter and 1 1/4 cups sugar until creamy. Add eggs, one at a time, beating to blend after each addition. Beat in vanilla. Add dry ingredients and beat on low speed until just combined. Cover and refrigerate until chilled, at least 1 hour or up to overnight.
    2. Step2Preheat oven to 350°. Line 2 baking sheets with parchment. In a small bowl, whisk cinnamon and remaining 1/4 cup sugar.
    3. Step3Using a medium cookie scoop (about 2 tablespoons), scoop dough and roll into balls. Toss balls in cinnamon sugar and arrange on prepared sheets, spacing 2" apart.
    4. Step4Bake cookies until puffed and edges are just set, 10 to 12 minutes. Let cool on baking sheet 5 minutes, then transfer to a wire rack and let cool completely.

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Makinze Gore

Senior Food Editor

Makinze is currently senior food editor at Delish, where she develops recipes, creates, and hosts recipe videos and is our current baking queen. She is our expert pie crimper, believes you should always have the ingredients for chocolate chip cookies on hand, and everyone needs to know a perfect roast chicken recipe.

These Perfect Snickerdoodle Cookies Are The Only Recipe You Need (2024)

FAQs

What is a snickerdoodle cookie made of? ›

Snickerdoodles are known for their soft and chewy texture, along with a sweet, cinnamon-sugar coating. The primary ingredients in Snickerdoodle cookies include butter, sugar, eggs, vanilla extract, flour, cream of tartar, baking soda, and salt, all rolled into a cinnamon sugar mixture.

Why do my snickerdoodle cookies go flat? ›

If your cookies are coming out flat, it's likely that your oven is too cool, baking the cookies at a lower temperature, and causing them to come out flat.

How do you keep snickerdoodles from spreading? ›

“When chilled cookies bake, the butter stays in a solid form longer, slowing the spread,” says Dawn. “30 to 60 minutes in the refrigerator does wonders, and you can bake the cookies right from the fridge.” Not only will chilling help the fats firm up and the flour hydrate, but it also helps the flavors develop.

Why do my snickerdoodle cookies get hard? ›

Snickerdoodles might turn out hard if they are overbaked or if the dough is too dry. Be sure to keep an eye on them as they bake – when the edges are set but the centers are still soft and puffy, they are done. Also, make sure you're not adding too much flour.

Why is snickerdoodle called snickerdoodle? ›

The Joy of Cooking claims that “snickerdoodle” comes from “Schneckennudel,” a German word that literally means “snail noodles.” Schneckennudels don't have anything to do with snails or noodles, though—they're actually delicious-looking German cinnamon rolls.

Why are my snickerdoodles raw? ›

If the cookie tastes raw or doughy, it needs more time in the oven. Flavour development: Cookies often develop more flavour as they cool down. If the taste is slightly lacking, allow them to cool entirely before finalising.

What can I substitute for cream of tartar in snickerdoodles? ›

You can either replace cream of tartar with baking powder at a 1:1.5 ratio (1 teaspoon cream of tartar : 1 ½ teaspoons baking powder), or you can replace cream of tartar with the combination of baking soda and either lemon juice or vinegar (as with this recipe).

Why are my snickerdoodles sour? ›

If your snickerdoodles are too sour, you may have added too much cream of tartar. It does give the cookies a subtle sour-tangy flavor, but it should not be over-powering and should balance nicely with the cinnamon and sugar.

Why are my snickerdoodles so runny? ›

Why is My Dough Runny? Kind of like how crumbly dough is usually because there's too much of the dry ingredients, runny cookie dough comes from having too much of the liquid ingredients.

Why did my snickerdoodles come out cakey? ›

Generally when baking, cakey texture is from more flour and less sugar. The ratio of fat, sugar and flour is what achieves the texture of the cookie. Also, when you are whipping the eggs in the recipe as well.

How do you tell if a snickerdoodle is done? ›

How do you know when the cookies are baked? The snickerdoodle cookies will only take about 10 to 12 minutes to bake, so be sure to keep your eye on them! It's best to rotate the cookies after about 6 minutes so that the cook evenly. The cookies are done when the edges are just set and the centres are soft and cracked.

How do you thicken snickerdoodle cookie dough? ›

Soft – Dough that's “soft” or “runny” can be thickened by adding one or two tablespoons of flour to your mix. This will help keep your batch from “Spreading” and coming out of the oven looking like flat, not-so-cookie-like puddles.

What happens if you forget baking soda in snickerdoodles? ›

baking soda allows the ingredients to rise and become airy. Without baking soda, your cookies will be very dense, perhaps not chewy, and not as tasty. Originally Answered: What happens if you don't put baking soda in cookies? Most likely, the cookies will be flat and hard.

Why do my snickerdoodles sink in the middle? ›

The most common reason why cakes sink in the middle is that they're underbaked. If a cake isn't fully baked through, the center doesn't have a chance to set and it will sink. This creates a doughy, dense texture in the center of your cake layer.

What is the difference between a sugar cookie and a snickerdoodle? ›

The addition of cinnamon is the clear distinguishing factor between snickerdoodles and sugar cookies. But snickerdoodles don't have to be all about one spice. More than anything, they have the flavor of warm spices, which opens them up to other ingredient inclusions that don't make them any less of a snickerdoodle.

What is snickerdoodle flavor? ›

What Does Snickerdoodle Taste Like? A classic snickerdoodle tastes like a sugar cookie generously flavored with cinnamon. And if the recipe uses cream of tartar, the cookie also tastes a little sour and tangy.

What does snickerdoodle flavor taste like? ›

The snickerdoodle flavor is best described as a mix of vanilla and cinnamon with a singular tanginess thanks to the cream of tartar.

What is the historical story of a snickerdoodle cookie? ›

1931s Joy of Cooking claims the term snickerdoodle is based off the German word Schneckennudel—a German pastry whose name literally translates as 'snail noodle'. A Schneckennudel is a yeast dough roll that more closely resembles a cinnamon bun, not a snickerdoodle cookie.

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