Snickerdoodles are traditionally served during the Festive Season. However, unless it's Hot Cross Buns, Pandoro, Panetonne and Christmas Fruit Cake we're talking about - I don't think there should be seasons for the treats you love!
These little beauties are so simple to make, baking them is tantamount to meditation. Collect your ingredients, switch on your oven, cue your favourite happy tunes and you're in the zone.
Think what a better world it would be, if we all, the whole world, had cookies and milk about three o'clock every afternoon and then lay down on our blankets for a nap." - Barbara Jordan
Ms. Jordan is definitely on to something! Even better is if you've baked them yourself, been subjected to the aromatherapy of butter, vanilla, cinnamon and sugar and are about to enter a sugar coma - true story.
Here's my go-to recipe...
Ingredients
Snickerdoodle Cookie Dough
340g (1 1/2 cups) of shortening or butter (unsalted)
450g (2 1/4 cups) white sugar
3 large eggs
6g (1 1/2 teaspoons) vanilla extract
420g (3 1/2 cups) cake flour
12g (3 teaspoons) cream of tartar
5g (1 1/3 teaspoons) bicarbonate of soda
1g (1/4 teaspoon) salt
Cinnamon Sugar Coating Mixture
66g (1/3 cup) white sugar
15g (1 tbsp) ground cinnamon
Instructions
Pre-heat your oven to 190 degrees C or 375 degrees F
In a bowl attached to a stand mixer (using the paddle attachment) cream together the butter and white sugar completely. Alternatively, you can use a large bowl and a handheld mixer with beaters as well.
Add in the eggs one at a time, incorporating each one thoroughly into the dough after adding.
Mix the vanilla into the batter completely.
In a medium sized bowl, whisk together your dry ingredients, then mix into the butter mixture until completely combined together.
Combine the white sugar and cinnamon in a bowl.
Roll a tablespoon sized amount of the snickerdoodle cookie dough into a ball, then roll in the cinnamon/sugar topping, making sure to cover the cookie dough ball completely with the cinnamon mixture.
Place the cinnamon/sugar covered cookie dough balls on a lined baking sheet about 5 cm apart
Bake for approximately 15 minutes, watching closely, until the bottoms of the cookies are browned nicely and the edges are baked. Remove from the oven and let cool for 2-3 minutes.
Remove from the baking sheets onto a cookie rack and cool completely.
Recipe Notes
Using shortening is the authentic way to make snickerdoodles, however you can use all butter or a 50/50 mix - it's up to your personal taste.
To reduce your effort in creaming the butter and sugar together if you're using a handheld beater (like I do) - cut the butter up into the sugar before using the mixer.
If you want your cookies to be of a more uniform shape, try using a 15ml measuring spoon like an ice cream scoop. Swipe the cookie dough out of the spoon and place "as is" on a clean surface. Once you have enough to fill a baking sheet, roll them into balls and coat in the sugar mixture. I find this helps to prevent the dough from becoming too soft from the heat of your hands.
This recipe makes approximately 48 servings - it just depends on how much cookie dough is consumed in the making...
Enjoy!
