Easy Snickerdoodle Cookies

These easy snickerdoodle cookies are chewy, soft, perfectly spiced and rolled in cinnamon sugar – perfect for a cosy cookie. They have a wonderful texture that is unmatched, and make you want to eat several in one sitting.

Notes from The Patisserie

These deliciously warming and cosy homemade snickerdoodle cookies with a wonderful cinnamon flavour, and a brown sugar cinnamon coating are uncomplicated, they have a wonderful texture, and you will all adore them. 

So snickerdoodles are a cinnamon flavoured cookie that is so soft, sugar coated and utterly heavenly. I have eaten them over the years, and I haven’t been able to keep up with the amount of requests for this recipe, SO HERE YOU GO!

Snickerdoodles are often similar to sugar cookies in some peoples eyes, but they are wonderfully different in mine. They are a nostalgic cookie for so many people and I am not surprised, these cookies are definitely one of my new obsessions.

What makes snickerdoodle cookies different to other cookies?

The difference with these cookies, is that they have an elite texture that is almost impossible to describe. They have a delightful texture from the cream of tartar (mentioned more below) and when the dough is prepped they are rolled in a brown sugar cinnamon mixture it creates a crystal like texture all around

Cream of tartar is an acidic raising agent that enhances texture in a different way to those which only use bicarbonate of soda, or baking powder for example. The technical method is that it prevents such from crystallising, which creates the texture of chewy and soft at the same time, which is ideal for these.

Ingredient notes and swaps 

The cookie dough starts with quite a few ingredients, but different to a normal cookie dough. All of the ingredients have importance, but simple changes can be made if needed 

• Flour – for these cookies, as with most, you want to use plain flour
• Cream of tartar – a bit of a different ingredient compared to my normal cookie dough, but this is the perfect leavening agent for the texture you are after
• Bicarb – even with the cream of tartar, you still want bicarb as they have different properties
• Cinnamon – the main flavour, the key to the cookie, the best bit
• Salt – I always add a pinch of salt to my cookies, trust the process
• Butter – I use baking butter when I make these, but block butter at room temperature works well
• Sugar – I used light brown sugar as I think it helps increase the flavour, but dark brown soft sugar will also work well
• Egg – you only need one egg, I tend to always use medium
• Vanilla – a little splash of vanilla, but this is optional

Expert tips for these cookies

These cookies are very easy to make, as with all of my recipes, once you crack the basics of baking. I would always recommend reading the recipe through, and not making any recipe swaps unless you are certain. 

To prevent anything such as your cookies spreading more than they should, make sure that the butter isn’t too warm and that the dough hasn’t been overworked. Always mix the dough as little as possible until combined 

If your cookies are dry, they have likely over baked. All ovens vary in strength, temperature and bake because of the nature of different brands/settings/heat sources. This is normal, but it’s worth getting an oven thermometer to check it first and then adapt – reduce temperature and baking time. 

I tend to use large baking trays for my cookies as they need a little bit of spreading room, and I only put six to a large tray. This recipe makes about 18 cookies, so I used three large trays.

Because the cookie dough is quite thick, which is what you want, they don’t spread too much but turn into the best cookie dough. You want to bake them until they are a deeper golden colour, and the edges have set slightly, whilst the middle is still slightly soft. 

I tested these cookies by leaving them to cool on the trays so that they can firm up enough before moving them as I find this best. The sugar on the outside will also firm up once baked and make a nice crunchy outside to the cookie with a delicious flavour.

Recipe FAQs

Storage and freezing

Once baked, these cookies will last for 4-5+ days at room temperature. I prefer to store them in an old chocolate box tin or cake tin, or even a cake box. Tupperware can work, also, but make sure they are cool before going in otherwise they may sweat and soften 

These cookies can freeze for 3+ months, I would thaw at room temperature for speed, but the fridge is also fine. I would freeze them on a tray, and then transfer to a container for storage so that they are cold before manoeuvring too much

If you would like to freeze the dough raw and bake whenever you like, scoop/portion the cookie dough into the balls, freeze on a baking tray until solid, and then store in a sealed container and bake from frozen (add 1-2 minutes baking time) 

Related recipes

This recipe is ideal for the autumn season, or just because you love something cinnamon based. I would happily bake these all year round – but I have lots of other delicious recipes that might inspire you

My apple cinnamon loaf cake is moist, delicious and incredibly moreish and my cinnamon swirl loaf is a little more effort, but 100% worth the dedication of making bread yourself.