Lightly-spiced vanilla biscuits with a crispy, cinnamon-sugar outer layer and a soft and chewy centre. Made from simple pantry ingredients these snickerdoodle cookies are perfect with a cup of tea.
In the mid 1980s, my amazing mum Margot went on a trip to the United States where she discovered Snickerdoodle cookies. She instantly fell in love with them, tracked down a recipe and has been making them for us ever since. As kids, they were a firm favourite on the baking rotation and when I turned 21, my mum hand-wrote the recipe into my first recipe book.
With a crispy cinnamon-sugar shell and a soft butter centre, these moreish cookies take me right back to childhood. I hope you enjoy them as much as I do.
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Ingredient notes:
- Flour: This recipe calls for regular, plain flour.
- Cream of tartar: The cream of tartar is what gives the cookies their chewy texture in the centre. However, if you don't any, you could just increase the baking soda from ½ a teaspoon to 1 whole teaspoon.
- Eggs: I always use standard size 7 eggs for my baking.
Note: Scroll to the recipe card for the ingredients, quantities and the full method.
Step by step instructions:
In a stand mixer, cream butter and sugar until fluffy.
Add the eggs, milk and vanilla then mix again until well combined.
Sift in the dry ingredients and mix on low until just combined. Place cookie dough in the fridge for 20 mins to firm up.
Preheat the oven to 180°C fan bake. Mix together the cinnamon and sugar for the coating. Roll the dough into small balls and then coat each one in the coating mixture.
Place on a baking tray about 5cm apart. Flatten the dough balls to about 1cm thick with the bottom of a glass. Bake for 12 minutes until starting to crisp on the outside but still soft in the centre.
Cool on the tray for 10 minutes then use a spatula to move the cookies onto a wire racks to cool completely. Store in an airtight container in the pantry.
Recipe FAQs:
This is a great question. As mentioned, my mum discovered these while visiting America in the 1980s. Apparently they were first made in the New England area in the late 1800s, the recipe being brought over by Dutch and German immigrants.
While there are no concrete facts about the origin of the unusual name, research suggests it is a translation of the German term Schnecke Knödel which means 'snail dumpling'.
Storage:
If you want to get ahead, the cookie dough can be made up to a day before baking. Simply store it, covered, in the fridge up to that point.
Store your baked cookies in an airtight container for up to one week.
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Snickerdoodles
Gorgeous, vanilla cookies coated in sugar and cinnamon then baked until the outside is crispy and the inside is chewy.
Ingredients
- 225g butter, softened
- 1 ¾ cups sugar
- 2 eggs
- ¼ cup milk
- 1 tsp vanilla essence
- 3 cups plain flour
- ½ tsp salt
- ½ tsp cream of tartar
- ½ tsp baking soda
Coating
- ⅓ cup sugar
- 2 Tbsp cinnamon
Instructions
- In a stand mixer, cream butter and sugar until fluffy.
- Add the eggs, milk and vanilla then mix again until well combined.
- Sift in the dry ingredients and mix on low until just combined.
- Place cookie dough in the fridge for 20 mins to firm up.
- Preheat the oven to 180°C fan bake.
- Mix together the cinnamon and sugar for the coating. Roll the dough into small balls and then coat each one in the coating mixture.
- Place on a baking tray about 5cm apart.
- Flatten the dough balls to about 1cm thick with the bottom of a glass.
- Bake for 12 minutes until starting to crisp on the outside but still soft in the centre. Cool on the tray for 10 minutes then use a spatula to move the cookies onto a wire racks to cool completely.
Notes
- Store in an airtight container in the pantry.
Nutrition Information:
Yield: 50 Serving Size: 1Amount Per Serving: Calories: 96Total Fat: 4gSaturated Fat: 2gTrans Fat: 0gUnsaturated Fat: 1gCholesterol: 17mgSodium: 68mgCarbohydrates: 14gFiber: 0gSugar: 8gProtein: 1g
Nutritional values are approximate. Please use your own calculations if you require a special diet.
Thank you for checking out this recipe. I hope you enjoy making and eating it! If you have any questions, queries or feedback, please feel free to leave a comment below.
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Vanya
Sam says
I love how this recipe makes 50! So good to have a cookie recipe that serves a crowd. 🙂
Toi says
Hiii! These taste so fab! How important is it to refrigerate the dough? You’ve advised to do so in the above section but not where the recipe is. I made these but they expanded abit!
VJ cooks says
Hi Toi, both the recipe card and the step by step instructions advise to refrigerate the dough...? Yes, that stops them from expanding!
Anna says
Would these be suitable to freeze?
VJ cooks says
Absolutely.
Steph says
Not everyone has a stand mixer . Will a hand mixer work too
VJ cooks says
Yes!
Val says
Is the flour Plain or Self Raising please?
VJ cooks says
Plain flour 🙂 I've updated the recipe card.