Snickerdoodle Recipe

Now that you have cinnamon sugar in your kitchen, it’s time to make Snickerdoodles. Snickerdoodles are a cookie with a funny name (like someone laughed with playing Pictionary), but despite that, they are sooo good. Vanilla cookie rolled in cinnamon sugar, light, sweet and delicious.

This traditional cookie has been around for years for a reason. They are a great after school snack or coffee break treat. You can even throw them together at the last minute… and they will vanish as they hit the plate.

On a grumpy day you can make up a batch that will fill your house with the warm, cinnamony scent. Then sit in a corner with a coffee or tea, a book, and a warm plate of Snickerdoodles. All better….

Added bonus! Snickerdoodles are a great cookie for the Holiday Season. They can even be made ahead and frozen! (for those of you who are organized enough to be ahead of the game….show offs….) And

Ok, yes, this Snickerdoodle Cookie Recipe uses shortening… and we’ve been trained to think of shortening as though it sits slightly to the left of illegal drugs in terms of wrecking your body. Relax. You need it for the texture, you just do. Plus, I’ve  come up with a way to make this recipe with only half the amount that the old recipes called for (ok, you also need butter… but this is cookies!) The recipe also calls for Cream of Tartar… I’ve given the longwinded scientific explanation below… just know that it’s white powder stuff, and you need it to make these cookies work.

So… enjoy them… have a couple… give the rest away… walk around the block a few extra times… like maybe 4…. but don’t deny yourself the pleasure of a Snickerdoodle.

Snickerdoodle Recipe

Makes 4 dozen

Prep Time: 15 minutes

Total Time: 1 hour 30 min

Ingredients

1 stick butter- room temperature

1 stick (1/4 pound) shortening- plain is fine

1 1/2 cups sugar

2 eggs

1 tsp. Vanilla Extract

2 3/4 cups unbleached flour

2 teaspoons cream of tartar

1 teaspoon baking soda

1/4 cup sugar

3 or 4 tsp. ground cinnamon

Instructions

Preheat oven to 350 degrees

Put the butter, shortening and sugar in the mixing bowl, and mix until it is smooth and maybe a little fluffy. Scrape sides, add eggs, beat well. Add Vanilla Extract. Mix. Scrape sides. In measuring cup, mix up cream of tartar, baking soda and flour, slowly add to butter/egg mixture. Scrape sides, and mix until all combined.

OK, at this point you have a choice. Most recipes want you to put the dough in the fridge for at least an hour. If you want to… go ahead… go read a magazine for an hour. When you get back, the dough will be kind of stiff and easy to roll.

If you are impatient, like me, you can already roll them with no serious problems. The dough is a little sticky, but that’s fun too.

In a small bowl (a cereal bowl is perfect) mix the sugar and cinnamon.

Now, take a bit of dough, about the size of a large walnut, (I use one of those fancy cookie scoops with a thumb lever… works like a dream) and roll it in the cinnamon sugar. Really get it in there. Dump extra on top.

Put it on the cookie tray… repeat.

If you should run out of cinnamon sugar, make more.

I find it helpful to manipulate the dough with just one hand… that way I have the other one clean to grab the phone, answer the door, whatever…

Bake the cookies for 11 minutes

Let them cool on the cookie tray for 2 or 3 minutes, then transfer to a cooling rack.

Eat

Cream of Tartar

What is it? And Why Use it?

The scientific name for Cream of Tartar is potassium hydrogen tartrate. It’s an acid salt that’s a by product of the wine making process.

All you need to know is… Cream of Tartar is an acid used to stabilize egg whites and give texture to some baked goods. It’s not dangerous, or hazardous. It won’t affect the flavor of baked good… but, if it’s called for, you should use it. Leaving it out will make the the baked goods feel off.

You can find it in the spices section of the grocery store.