Snickerdoodles Cookie Recipe (2024)

FAQs

What's the difference between sugar cookies and snickerdoodles? ›

Snickerdoodles are sugar cookies rolled in cinnamon sugar. The cinnamon sugar gives the cookies their distinct flavor, texture, and appearance. Some food historians argue that sugar cookies recipes use baking powder to leaven the cookies, while snickerdoodles recipes use cream of tartar.

They puff in the oven and then settle back down while cooling into a soft, thick, supremely chewy cookie with a gorgeous crinkly top. They've received nothing but rave reviews! Snickerdoodle is sort of a strange name, yes?

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.

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).

Without cream of tartar, you'll get the same baked good in the end, but the consistency may not be as flawless. If you're worried about your cake coming out too flat or your lemon meringue pie going runny, adding cream of tartar is an effective way to prevent it.

Improper flour measurement is the #1 cause of your cookie dough being too dry or the cookies tasting like flour.

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.

Cream of tartar is an integral ingredient. It gives the cookies its tangy taste and signature texture. I do not recommend any substitutions on this. If you replaced it with baking powder, you would end up with a puffy, more cake-like sugar cookie.

How do you make snickerdoodles puffy and soft? The secret's in the ratio of butter to leavener to flour to egg. Don't use shortening here; you'll miss the flavor of butter. Slightly under-baking the snickerdoodles also guarantees a softer cookie.

If your cookies repeatedly turn out flat, no matter the recipe, chances are your oven is too hot. Here's what's happening. The butter melts super quickly in a too-hot oven before the other ingredients have firmed up into a cookie structure. Therefore, as the butter spreads so does the whole liquidy cookie.

Why do snickerdoodles call for cream of tartar? ›

Mom would tell you the cream of tartar stabilizes the snickerdoodles, providing the light, soft, pillowy texture. It also adds the tangy note associated with snickerdoodles. However, vanilla extract neutralizes that tangy note, and that's why it is left out.

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.

The dictionary suggested the word could be a compound of “snicker” (“a smothered laugh; a snigg*r”) and “doodle” (“a silly or foolish fellow; a noodle”) which left me more confused than before.

What Does Cream of Tartar Do in Cookies? Cream of tartar makes cookies chewy, as it precludes the sugar in the dough from crystalizing, which would lead to crispiness (ie: the opposite of chewiness).

You can also simply leave out the cream of tartar from a recipe, which may result in baked goods that are not as fluffy, but will still work out and taste good.

In baked goods, cream of tartar is used as a leavener, to give cakes, muffins and cookies their rise. It has a tinny, metallic taste that's most noticeable in Snickerdoodle cookies. A tiny pinch added to water also helps vegetables maintain their color when they're blanched.

Too Much Liquid

If there is too much liquid in the dough for the flour to absorb, the result will be a soft and sticky dough. Fluids refer to water or milk used in the recipe, as well as liquid sweeteners, flavorings and eggs or egg substitutes.