This soft and chewy Snickerdoodle Recipe is a family favorite. If you love snickerdoodle cookies the way we do, then you’ll want to have this easy snickerdoodle recipe in your collection!
The Best Snickerdoodle Recipe
For me, a delicious snickerdoodle has a few requirements:
- Snickerdoodles first and foremost must be soft and chewy. The best snickerdoodle recipe in my opinion has to be a soft snickerdoodle recipe. Crunchy snickerdoodles are a hard pass for this girl. I prefer a soft snickerdoodle, and one that stays soft for days.
- Next, it has to have a fantastic blend of flavor, with both butter and cinnamon coming through. The perfect snickerdoodle cookies are a delicious and balanced combo of both.
- Finally, as with almost all of my recipes, I prefer an easy snickerdoodle recipe. This is a cookie, not Honors Pre-Calculus (a current headache in my home), therefore it needs to be simple and easy to make.
This snickerdoodle recipe checks ALL of those boxes.
Truth be told I didn’t even try a snickerdoodle until about ten years ago. A friend of mine loves the Disneyland snickerdoodles, and asked me to bring her one home when we went for a visit. I searched that entire park for a darn snickerdoodle. Finally a cast member at one of the bakeries told me they had rotated them out for for another cookie at that given moment in time.
So I did what any crazy, obsessed snickerdoodle stalker would do. I came home and set out to make amazing, Disney-worthy, snickerdoodles.
Recipe For Snickerdoodles
A few things to take note of before you start making this snickerdoodle recipe.
Flour
It’s critical that you measure your flour correctly. You want to give your flour a stir, then gently spoon it into the measuring cup and level it off. Check out my all about flour post if you need more details. If you scoop, or don’t level your flour, you will have too much in your recipe.
Chill Your Dough
First, you are going to need to chill your dough. I know, dough chilling can be a pain. I get it. Trust me, I avoid putting into recipes when I can. For this recipe however, it really does make a difference. Chilling the dough gives you a richer tasting cookie that doesn’t spread too much.
Brown Sugar
Second, this recipe uses brown sugar. If you’ve made snickerdoodles before, chances are they just used granulated white sugar. And that’s fine. But brown sugar, it will take your snickerdoodles up a notch.
One time I needed to make snickerdoodles for an event, and like always was doing it at the last minute. Gasp, I was almost completely out of granulated sugar. Brown sugar to the rescue! That was one of the best substitutions I’ve ever made. The depth of flavor is greatly increased and the texture is just a bit softer.
Cream Of Tartar
Third, this recipe uses cream of tartar. Apologies if you you don’t have it in your pantry at the moment, but it’s really a snickerdoodle staple.
Cream of tartar is an acid, a tartaric acid. It’s used as a leavener, and when combined with baking soda they produce dioxide gas, which is the same gas that is produced by yeast in bread baking. Not only does it help make your cookies wonderfully soft, it also gives a hint of tartness.
If you don’t have any on hand and need to make these snickerdoodle cookies immediately, here’s some substitution advice. Disclaimer, I haven’t tested this snickerdoodle recipe with a substitute, only with cream of tartar.
Snickerdoodle Recipe
Ingredients
Cookies:
- 4 cups flour
- 1 teaspoon baking soda
- 1/2 teaspoon baking powder
- 1 teaspoon cream of tartar
- 1 teaspoon cinnamon
- 1 cup butter softened
- 3/4 cups granulated sugar
- 1 cup firmly packed brown sugar light or dark is fine
- 2 large eggs make sure they are large eggs as they provide moisture for the recipe
- 1/3 cup milk
- 1 teaspoon vanilla
Topping:
- 6 tablespoons sugar
- 1 teaspoons cinnamon
Instructions
- In a bowl, sift together the flour, baking soda, baking powder, 1 teaspoon cinnamon and cream of tartar. Set aside.
- In a separate bowl, cream the butter and sugars until fluffy. Add the eggs, milk and vanilla. Mix well.
- Stir in the dry ingredients. Stir until just combined.
- Cover bowl (or remove dough from bowl and wrap in plastic wrap) and chill for at least one but not more than 24 hours.
- When ready to bake, Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.
- Form the dough into 1 inch balls. Mix cinnamon and sugar in a small bowl and roll each ball of dough through the cinnamon and sugar mixture to coat well.
- Place on a greased baking sheet or a cookie sheet covered with wax paper or silicone baking mat.
- Bake 8-10 minutes. Check for the tops to start firming up, and the sides to show a bit of browning. Make sure they are cooked but do not over bake. Allow to cool on baking sheet for at least ten minutes before transferring to a wire cooling rack.
Nutrition
Disclaimer
Nutrition information is estimated as a courtesy. If using for medical purposes, please verify information using your own nutritional calculator. Percent Daily Values are based on a 2000 calorie diet.
Need more snickerdoodle cookies in your life? I hear ya. I have a few more recipes you’ll want to try! My Pumpkin Spice Snickerdoodles are always a big hit. My friend Rebecca over at Foodie With Family has a Snickerdoodle Cake recipe that you need in your life. Aimee over at Shugary Sweets has a Snickerdoodle Banana Bread that makes mornings extra delicious. Snickerdoodle Pie? Oh yeah, it’s a thing and Deborah over at Taste and Tell will fill you on in that deliciousness.
Sammi says
Make these for family holiday get toethers, they are always a hit!
VivianAnnSullivan says
I followed the recipe. Organic ingredients. First off 1 inch balls creates 5 dozen not 3. Is that why my cookies didn’t deflate I wonder, they stayed puffy, which is not very snickerdoodle-ish!
Christi Johnstone says
Vivian, yes, you’d want to divide the dough to make the three dozen as listed. Second, how did you measure your flour? Did you give it a stir, then spoon it into the measuring cup and level, or did you measure by scooping with the measuring cup (which leads to more flour than called for)? It definitely sounds like you have too much flour. I think if you make them and carefully measure your flour, and make 36 vs 60, you’ll find you will get quite a different result. Enjoy!
Ethan says
Is it going to make a huge difference that I accidentally added 1/2 cup of milk instead 1/4 cup of milk?
Christi Johnstone says
You might want to add 1/4 cup or so of flour to help compensate.
Susan says
We liked the recipe, but the cookies remained round like a ball vs. spreading flat, Thoughts?
Christi Johnstone says
Susan, it sounds like too much flour. Make sure you are spooning your flour into your measuring cup and not scooping the flour with the measuring cup. That little extra flour can add up if you scoop. Hope that helps!
Leslie Trazenfeld Philip says
Can the cookie be made larger or will they not spread well? Thanks.
Christi Johnstone says
Sure!
Lisa says
Do you flatten the cookies before you put them in the oven?
Christi Johnstone says
You can if you like, but I typically do not.
Olivia says
Can this dough be frozen as it makes way too much ?
Christi Johnstone says
You can freeze it, or the cookies, as you could any other. Or make a half batch. Lots of options for this standard sized cookie recipe. 🙂
Marissa says
How much butter? It doesn’t say in the recipe
Christi Johnstone says
Marissa, I’m a bit confused, I just double checked and the recipe states 1 cup butter, softened. Is that now showing up for you in the recipe card?
Jill Harris says
What is a substitute for cream of tartar?
Christi Johnstone says
Jill, if you don’t have cream of tartar on hand, you can skip it. It helps a bit with the rise and chewiness, but I promise you’ll still have great cookies without it, just take care not to overbake.
Jaime says
Is the butter supposed to be cold or at room temp?
Christi Johnstone says
Jamie, go with softened butter – so room temp.