Thursday, February 18, 2010

Blizzard Baking - Snickerdoodles

One of the best things to do when snowed in is to bake! During Crazy Snow #1, I made Snickerdoodles from Smitten Kitchen. I actually made another one of her recipes during Crazy Snow #2, which will be in another post. Her recipes are easy to follow, look delicious and have a TON of good reviews on them.

The last time I made Snickerdoodles AKA Cinnamon Sugar Cookies was in Home Economics class in middle school. Do they even offer that class anymore?

Simple recipe with a small amount of ingredients (Actual recipe in italics):


2 3/4 cups all-purpose flour
2 teaspoons cream of tartar
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/4 teaspoon salt
16 tablespoons (2 stick or 8 ounces) unsalted butter, at room temperature
1 3/4 cups sugar, plus more if needed
2 tablespoons ground cinnamon, plus more if needed
2 large eggs

Preheat the oven to 400°, with one rack in top third and one rack in bottom third of oven. Line baking sheets with silicone baking mats or parchment paper; set aside.
I have 6 shelves in my oven, so I was confused as to where I needed to put the racks.

Sift together flour, cream of tartar, baking soda, and salt; set aside.


I didn't sift mine because I couldn't find my strainer.


In the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with a paddle attachment, combine butter and 1 1/2 cups sugar. Beat on medium speed until light and fluffy, about 2 minutes. Scrape down sides of bowl. Add eggs, and beat to combine.

I just have a hand mixer and that worked fine.


Add dry ingredients, and beat to combine.


At this point, I chilled the dough for an hour (or you can overnight) before scooping it, because I otherwise found it too difficult to scoop into balls and roll but the original recipe doesn’t find this step necessary.

I've seen people wrap the dough into plastic wrap to chill it, but I just covered the bowl for an hour in the fridge.


Once dough has chilled, in a small bowl, combine remaining 1/4 cup sugar and the ground cinnamon.


Use a small ice-cream scoop to form balls of the dough, and roll in cinnamon sugar. Place about two inches apart on the prepared baking sheets. Bake until the cookies are set in center and begin to crack (they will not brown), about 10 minutes, rotating the baking sheets after five minutes.

I used a spoon and rolled the dough into balls. The cookies on the bottom rack were darker on the bottom. I did rotate the baking sheets but I think that's only if your oven bakes unevenly, which isn't my case, so that wasn't necessary for me to do, haha.


Transfer the sheets to a wire rack to cool about five minutes before transferring the cookies to the rack. In theory, they can be stored in an airtight container up to one week, but I say good luck with that.


The bf loved the cookies even though some were burned if they were on the lower rack. I think I'll just bake one sheet at a time to ensure all the cookies get the middle rack. I thought they were a bit plain, but that's because I prefer my cookies to be super sweet and with a lot going on. These are very light, airy and simple cookies that are a classic flavor everyone can enjoy.

2 comments:

Nutrimill said...

Haven't had Snickerdoodles since I was a kid! Thanks for digging this one back up, we'll make some this weekend!!

John Knowles said...

very nice...i have to try some of ur concoctions one day, dskco =).