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These Chewy Snickerdoodle Cookies are chewy, buttery cookies coated in cinnamon and sugar and soft-baked to perfection. This classic cookie recipe delivers chewy centers and perfectly crisp edges for the BEST snickerdoodles.
When it comes to classic cookie recipes, snickerdoodle cookies are always a family favorite.
What’s not to love about a chewy snickerdoodle cookie? You take a chewy, buttery cookie completely coat it in cinnamon and sugar and then soft-bake it to melt-in-your-mouth perfection.
It’s a good thing this recipe makes a lot of cookies because trust me, they get gobbled up fast!
Now I don’t know about you but I have extreme snickerdoodle cookie lovers in my life and when it comes to Christmas cookies, the Christmas Seven Layer Magic Bars , the Peanut Butter Buckeyes and the Lofthouse Sugar Cookies are great but what they are really waiting for is to bite into their favorite snickerdoodle cookie.
What makes snickerdoodles the perfect cookie? It’s a soft buttery cookie that just melts in your mouth.
They are a little crisper on the edges and chewy in the middle and slightly underdone so they stay soft.
And when it comes to a perfect cookie, I don’t flatten these. I like a thicker snickerdoodle because nobody’s got time for flat cookies.
WHY THIS IS THE BEST SNICKERDOODLE COOKIE RECIPE
I have made a lot of chewy snickerdoodle cookies over the years and I have tweaked this classic cookie recipe until I finally feel I have made my very best snickerdoodle cookie recipe.
- These cinnamon cookies are double coated in cinnamon and sugar which means double the tastiness.
- A family favorite, these classic cookies deliver chewy buttery centers and lightly crisp edges and that sounds like perfection to me.
- This easy cookie recipe is for thicker snickerdoodle cookies but if you like them a bit flatter, simply flatten them a bit before cooking. Everyone’s happy 🙂
- We are using cream of tartar in the cookie dough so you get that signature tang of flavor in every bite.
- They aren’t too fat and puffy and they aren’t too flat, they are just right!
To make the BEST snickerdoodle cookie recipe ever, you will need:
- Butter
- Sugar
- Eggs
- All purpose flour
- Cream of tartar
- Vanilla extract
- Baking soda
- Salt
- Cinnamon
HOW TO MAKE THE BEST SNICKERDOODLES?
To make this Chewy Snickerdoodle Cookie Recipe, whisk together flour, cream of tartar, baking soda, and salt in a medium sized bowl and set aside.
Next, combine butter and sugar together in a large mixing bowl for 2-3 minutes until light and fluffy. Mix in the eggs one by one and then add the vanilla.
Slowly add the dry ingredients to the butter mixture in small increments, combining completely until all has been incorporated.
Lightly cover with plastic wrap and move your mixing bowl to chill in refrigerator for 1 hour.
Once chilled, start by preheating your oven to 350 degrees and line a baking tray with parchment paper.
Remove the chilled cookie dough and in a small bowl combine the last 3 tablespoons of sugar and cinnamon. This will be for your coating.
Roll dough into 1-1/2 inch balls and then roll through the cinnamon sugar, making sure each cookie ball is generously coated. Then roll them through the cinnamon sugar again to double coat.
Move your cookies to your prepared cookie sheet.
Bake for 10 minutes and when you remove from the oven, let the cookies cool on the sheet for 1-2 minutes before transferring to a wire cooling rack and cool completely.
WHY CHILL SNICKERDOODLE DOUGH?
If you want perfect snickerdoodle cookies, you will chill this cookie dough. Chilling cookie dough before baking your cookies solidifies the fat in the cookie batter.
As the snickerdoodle cookies bake, the fat in the chilled cookie dough takes longer to melt than room-temperature fat. And the longer the fat remains solid, the less your cookies will spread.
If you cook your cookies without chilling the dough, you will end up with flatter cookies and who wants that?
HOW TO STORE SNICKERDOODLES
Snickerdoodles are best right out of the oven (yesss!) but you can keep them in an airtight container for a up to five days on your kitchen counter. Like they’re going to last that long…. ?
CAN YOU FREEZE SNICKERDOODLES?
I am smack in the middle of Christmas cookie baking week and you had better believe I am freezing batches of these snickerdoodle cookies.
When it comes to baking big batches of cookies, I am a fan of freezing them for future occasions.. like a random Tuesday when I have the house to myself and don’t have to share 🙂
Once your cookies are cooled off, add your cookies back onto your cooled baking pan and move it to the freezer to freeze your cookies. Then transfer them into an airtight container or zip top bag to keep in the freezer until you need them.
Frozen snickerdoodle cookies can last up to three months in the freezer. When need, move them to the kitchen counter for about 20 minutes to thaw first before eating.
CAN YOU FREEZE SNICKERDOODLE COOKIE DOUGH?
Yes, you can usually freeze any cookie dough if it is made with a lot of fat aka butter. Simply make your dough and move it to a laid out piece of plastic wrap. Wrap it up tightly and move it to a zip top bag. Remove the excess air and move it to the freezer until you need it.
You can also roll the dough into balls first and then freeze them so that all you have to do thaw the dough balls and roll them in the cinnamon and sugar mixture, then bake as instructed.
To thaw, simply move the frozen cookie dough to your refrigerator for 2-3 hours.
DO YOU NEED CREAM OF TARTAR FOR SNICKERDOODLES?
Cream of tartar gives your snickerdoodle cookies that signature tang that they are known for. That unique flavor is what sets your chewy snickerdoodle recipe apart from regular sugar cookies.
You can find cream of tartar in the spice aisle of your grocery store and it’s used in a lot of different recipes so it’s good to always keep some on hand.
If you run out and can’t get to the store, you can use an easy substitute for your cream of tarter but know it won’t be exactly the same. In a pinch, for every 1/2 teaspoon of cream of tartar in your recipe, use 1 teaspoon fresh lemon juice or white vinegar.
PRO TIPS TO NAIL THE BEST SNICKERDOODLE RECIPE
- Beat the butter and sugar until its very light and fluffy, at least 2-3 minutes. It whips air into the cookie dough.
- You want to make sure you are measuring your flour correctly. If you scoop out a measuring cup of flour directly from the bag, you will pack in way too much flour which will result in cake-like cookies. To avoid this, spoon the flour into the measuring cup until its overfilled and then use the back of a butter knife to level the measuring cup at the top. Now you have the perfect flour measurement!
- Be sure to use room temperature eggs. Room temperature eggs helps give your cookies a lighter texture.. Plan ahead and pull the eggs out of the refrigerator about 30 minutes before use.
- Don’t forget the Cream of Tartar, it gives it the signature tangy flavor and chewy texture.
- Chill your dough for 1 hour so you cookies do not spread out too flat when baking.
- Take the time to double roll the cookie balls in the cinnamon-sugar mixture. This helps to make sure the cookies are completely coated in cinnamon-sugar before baking.
- Don’t over bake these snickerdoodles. You just want the edges to be a lightly golden. Chewy snickerdoodles are not over baked. Remove when you think they are slightly underdone and let them finish off out of the oven.
- If you want these easy snickerdoodles to be flat, press the dough balls down in the center before placing in the oven. Use the bottom of a flat cup or small plate.
MORE EASY COOKIE RECIPES
- Copycat Lofthouse Sugar Cookies
- Chocolate Cut Out Cookies
- Green Crinkle Cookies
- Strawberry Cake Mix Cookies
- Soft Baked Orange Sugar Cookies
Enjoy!!
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Chewy Snickerdoodle Cookie Recipe
Ingredients
- 1 cup butter softened
- 1-1/2 cup sugar
- 2 large eggs room temperature
- 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
- 2-3/4 cup all purpose flour
- 1-1/2 teaspoon cream of tartar
- 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 3 tablespoons sugar for rolling
- 3 tablespoons cinnamon for rolling
Instructions
- To make this Chewy Snickerdoodle Cookie Recipe, whisk together flour, cream of tartar, baking soda, and salt in a medium sized bowl and set aside.
- Next, combine butter and sugar together in a large mixing bowl for 2-3 minutes until light and fluffy. Mix in the eggs one by one and then add the vanilla.
- Slowly add the dry ingredients to the butter mixture in small increments, combining completely until all has been incorporated.
- Lightly cover with plastic wrap and move your mixing bowl to chill in refrigerator for 1 hour.Once chilled, start by preheating your oven to 350 degrees and line a baking tray with parchment paper. Remove the chilled cookie dough and in a small bowl combine the last 3 tablespoons of sugar and cinnamon. This will be for your coating.
- Roll dough into 1-1/2 inch balls and then roll through the cinnamon sugar, making sure each cookie ball is generously coated. Then roll them through the cinnamon sugar again to double coat.
- Move your cookies to your prepared cookie sheet. Bake for 10 minutes and when you remove from the oven, let the cookies cool on the sheet for 1-2 minutes before transfering to a wire cooling rack and cool completely.
Notes
PRO TIPS TO NAIL THE BEST SNICKERDOODLE RECIPE
- Beat the butter and sugar until its very light and fluffy, at least 2-3 minutes. It whips air into the cookie dough.
- You want to make sure you are measuring your flour correctly. If you scoop out a measuring cup of flour directly from the bag, you will pack in way too much flour which will result in cake-like cookies. To avoid this, spoon the flour into the measuring cup until its overfilled and then use the back of a butter knife to level the measuring cup at the top. Now you have the perfect flour measurement!
- Be sure to use room temperature eggs. Room temperature eggs helps give your cookies a lighter texture.. Plan ahead and pull the eggs out of the refrigerator about 30 minutes before use.
- Don't forget the Cream of Tartar, it gives it the signature tangy flavor and chewy texture.
- Chill your dough for 1 hour so you cookies do not spread out too flat when baking.
- Take the time to double roll the cookie balls in the cinnamon-sugar mixture. This helps to make sure the cookies are completely coated in cinnamon-sugar before baking.
- Don't over bake these snickerdoodles. You just want the edges to be a lightly golden. Chewy snickerdoodles are not over baked. Remove when you think they are slightly underdone and let them finish off out of the oven.
- If you want these easy snickerdoodles to be flat, press the dough balls down in the center before placing in the oven. Use the bottom of a flat cup or small plate.
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Update Notes: This post was originally published in December of 2018 but was republished with an updated recipe, new photos, step by step instructions and tips in December of 2019.
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