Super soft and full of cinnamon, these are our FAVORITE Snickerdoodle Cookies. They always get rave reviews!
Snickerdoodle Cookies are a classic cookie recipe we make all the time! We enjoy these almost as often as our Chocolate Chip, Sugar, or M&M Cookies!
The Best Snickerdoodle Recipe
I LOVE Snickerdoodle Cookies! My family searched for the best Snickerdoodle recipe for a long time, and we finally found THE ONE.
We’ve been using it for as long as I can remember now. It’s just as classic as our Favorite Chocolate Chip Cookies and Sugar Cookies recipes.
Why is it called a Snickerdoodle? From Wikipedia: The Joy of Cooking claims that Snickerdoodles are probably German in origin, and the name is a corruption of the German word Schneckennudeln (“snail noodles”), a kind of pastry.
Not sure how that word adapted, but I do admit that there is something sweet and fun about the word.
If you fall under the Snickerdoodles loving category, I suggest giving this cookie recipe a try. Or, to change it up a bit, try White Chocolate Snickerdoodles or Cake Mix Snickerdoodles!
How to Make Snickerdoodles
We love that these cookies are so simple, even the kids can help out!!
DRY INGREDIENTS. In a medium bowl, stir together the flour, cream of tartar, baking soda, and salt. Set aside.
WET INGREDIENTS. Cream together the butter (barely softened) and sugar. Add the eggs until it is well blended.
SHAPE. Add the dry ingredients to the wet ingredients, mix well, and then shape dough into 1 inch balls. Roll the dough balls into your cinnamon and sugar mixture.
BAKE. Place on an un-greased pan, bake at 350°F for 8-10 minutes.
These cinnamon cookies are baked to perfection, and result in the easiest, most delicious cookie!!
The perfect cinnamon/sugar ratio: In a small bowl, combine 3 tablespoons sugar with 1 tablespoon cinnamon.
recipe tips
Cream of Tartar. Many people debate whether it’s even a Snickerdoodle without the cream of tartar. It’s a key ingredient that transforms the cookies into a tangy, chewy cookie, differentiating it from a typical butter sugar cookie.
Although cream of tartar is typically used in Snickerdoodle Recipes to add a unique tangy taste and chewy texture, you can still use a substitution.
Cream of Tartar substitution. To make Snickerdoodles without cream of tartar:
- replace the 2 teaspoons cream of tartar AND the 1 teaspoon baking soda with 2 teaspoons of baking powder
- mimic the tangy taste by also adding a splash of lemon juice or white vinegar
Unsalted Butter. Make sure your butter is barely softened. Too soft and the dough will be too soft. Cold butter won’t be incorporated all the way and will result in a thicker cookie.
Room temperature eggs incorporate better than chilled eggs. To warm them up faster, place them in a bowl of warm-hot water for a few minutes. You can also use this post on How to Soften Butter Quickly.
Sifted ingredients. It may seem unnecessary, but be sure to sift the dry ingredients in a separate bowl, before mixing it into the creamed mixture. The less the gluten in the flour is activated by mixing, the softer the cookies will be.
Scoop. Use a cookie scoop to spoon out the dough. This will help ensure that all the cookies are uniform in size.
Soft Snickerdoodles
A soft Snickerdoodle is essential. There are a couple tricks to make and keep your Snickerdoodles soft and chewy:
Do NOT over bake them! Our recipe says to bake for 8-10 min. Depending on how soft you want them:
- Take them out of the oven after 8 minutes.
- Let them sit on the baking sheet for a minute, then place on a cooling rack.
Eight minutes cook time will insure a soft chewy cookie – even after they have cooled.
Store in an airtight container. Throw a piece of bread into the container with your cookies. The bread will absorb the extra air in the container, and make the cookies stay fresh for longer! Most cookies can stay fresh, when stored in an airtight container at room temp, for about 3 days.
to chill or not to chill
Many Snickerdoodle recipes call for CHILLING the dough. Ours DOES NOT, but you can if you’d like.
First cookie – CHILLED. The result is usually a thicker cookie, without as many cracks as are usually found on the tops of Snickerdoodles.
Center cookie – CHILLED + FLATTENED. This cookie was chilled, rolled into a ball, rolled into the cinnamon sugar mixture, then flattened a little bit with the bottom of a cup. If you like a more flat, chewy cookie, try this method.
Last cookie – NOT CHILLED + NOT FLATTENED. This is our classic recipe. No chilling, no flattening, and baked to perfection. This is how we prefer our cookies, but use the above methods if you like your cookies more thick or flat.
Storing Info
STORE. Keep cooled cookies in an airtight container at room temperature. They’ll last for 3-4 days.
FREEZE. Store in a freezer bag, or air-tight container in the freezer for up to 4 months. When you’re ready to eat or serve them, let them thaw in their container on the counter. They will taste just as yummy the day you made them!
FREEZE the dough. Once you have shaped and coated the cookie dough balls with the cinnamon and granulated sugar mixture, line them up on a small baking sheet (one that will fit into your freezer). Place the dough balls in the freezer until they are solid, then transfer to a freezer Ziploc. Freeze for up to 2 months.
- To bake – line dough balls on a baking sheet and allow them to thaw for about 20 minutes before baking. You may need to add a minute or two to the bake time to compensate for the cooler starting temperature.
Nothing can beat a warm, cinnamon and sugar covered cookie. That is why we love these Snickerdoodles so much! We hope you love them as much as we do.
For more snickerdoodle recipes:
- White Chocolate Snickerdoodles
- Snickerdoodle Bars
- Snickerdoodle Bread
- Snickerdoodle Puppy Chow
- White Chocolate Dipped Snickerdoodles
- Eggnog Snickerdoodles
Snickerdoodle Cookies Recipe
Ingredients
Snickerdoodle Dough
- 2 ¾ cups all-purpose flour
- 2 teaspoon cream of tartar
- 1 teaspoon baking soda
- ½ teaspoon salt
- 1 cup unsalted butter, just softened
- 1 ½ cups sugar
- 2 eggs
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
Cinnamon Sugar Coating
- ⅓ cup sugar
- 2 tablespoons cinnamon
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350°F.
- In a large bowl, mix together flour, cream of tartar, baking soda, and salt together. Set aside.
- In a stand mixer, cream together butter (barely softened) and sugar. Add eggs and vanilla and blend well.
- Add dry ingredients to wet ingredients and mix well.
- In a small bowl, combine remaining ⅓ cup sugar and 2 tablespoons cinnamon.
- Use a small cookie scoop to scoop out dough, roll into a ball and then roll into the cinnamon sugar mixture- twice.
- Place 2 inches apart on an ungreased cookie sheet.
- Bake for 8 – 10 minutes. Let sit on the cookie sheet for a few additional minutes before removing to a wire rack to cool.
These cookies are SOOO GOOD!!! Mine were on the bigger side so they needed closer to 13 or so minutes. These are still by far the best snickerdoodle cookies I’ve ever had.
*I used vanilla bean paste. Cookies came out perfect. My husband is very particular about snickerdoodles and said they are the best he has ever had. He will use for ice cream sandwiches!
Can you freeze these after making the cookie? Will they still taste good?
Oh yes!! They freeze wonderfully!
I am 42 years old and I can’t believe this is my first time trying a snickerdoodle cookie! I made these for a fundraiser, and when I tell you that this is THE BEST cookie I’ve ever had!!!! Thank you! I’m making a third batch tomorrow! Awesome recipe!
Better late than never I say! 😉 I’m so glad you found the recipe and love the cookies.
Do you use medium, large, or extra large eggs?
I typically use large eggs.
I made these for my boyfriend, and he LOVED THEM!! He’s tried plenty of snickerdoodle cookies and told me these were the best he has ever had!! If you want your man to fall head over heels for you, make these cookies for him! Taking them out at 8 mins kept the cookies super soft and perfect.
I’m so glad to hear he loved the cookies!! Thanks for sharing!
These cookies were too easy to make and too good. I didn’t have unsalted butter but they were still scrumptious! I am almost afraid to make with unsalted butter. Who do I call if I get addicted?
I’m so glad you loved the cookies. They are definitely addicting!!
I had to add an extra egg as the wet & dry ingredients didn’t blend well enough… Seemed to dry and flour would not incorporate.
Sorry to hear the recipe didn’t work well for you. Thanks for the feedback and giving the recipe a try.
My husband is working in Calif and we live in Illinois. What would be the best way to ship him the cookies. I would like to do this for Valentines day?
Not sure where I went wrong. Made exactly according to the recipe. The balls barely flattened and my husband who is a Snickerdoodles connoisseur said they are very dense. Where did I go wrong?
Did it exactly the way the directions said twice in a row and the dough is runny asf not cookie batter.