Snickerdoodles. Very American cookies. For a long time, I had no idea what snickerdoodles were. I had seen the name before. I had heard the word before. But it gives nothing away, does it? A chocolate chip cookie is, quite obviously, a cookie with chocolate chips. Brownies hint at being something brown, probably chocolately. Sugar cookies are just that; basic cookies with sugar. But what on earth is a snickerdoodle?
It baffled me. Does it have Snickers bars in it? Why is there ‘doodle’ in its name? We don’t have snickerdoodles in Australia (along with a plethora of other insane foods that feature only in the United States). So when I came across this recipe on the Brown Eyed Baker and realised that they actually looked delicious and didn’t have any Snickers bars inside, I made them straight away. And let me tell you – I’m so glad that I did.
Snickerdoodles are deliciously soft sugar cookies that are rolled in cinnamon-sugar before baking. They puff up and the tops crackle, they are soft and chewy and they kind of taste like a cinnamon bun but without the sticky frosting part. These are good. Bake these.
SNICKERDOODLES
Cream of tartar is traditionally used in snickerdoodles but if you don’t have any, substitute with 1.5 times the amount of baking soda (eg. 1 tsp cream of tartar = 1 1/2 tsp baking soda). I also used dutch cinnamon here because the smell is amazing and its more delicate, but feel free to use ground cinnamon if that’s all you have.
110g unsalted butter, softened
3/4 cup white sugar
1 egg
1/2 tsp vanilla
1 1/3 cups plain flour
1 tsp cream of tartar
1/2 tsp soda
1/2 tsp salt
2 tbsp sugar, for coating
1/2 tbsp dutch cinnamon
Put three baking trays in the fridge. This is important in stopping the snickerdoodles from spreading.
Cream the butter and sugar together using an electric mixer until pale and fluffy. Add the egg and vanilla and beat until incorporated.
With the mixer on a low speed, gradually mix in the flour, soda and salt. Chill the dough for half an hour.
Preheat the oven to 180 C. Mix the extra sugar and the cinnamon together in a small bowl. Form small tablespoons of the dough into balls, then roll them in the cinnamon-sugar mixture, making sure they are completely coated.
Bake for 10-12 minutes, until the cookies are lightly golden and puffed up. They will flatten and crackle as they cool. Leave them on the trays for 2-3 minutes then transfer to wire racks to cool. Makes 20 snickerdoodles.
These remind me so much of yummy soft cinnamon buns. Mmmmm. Going to go and eat one (or three!) now.
