The Best Snickerdoodle Recipe: Your Guide to Soft, Chewy, and Perfectly Spiced Cookies

Prepare to bake the ultimate batch of Snickerdoodle cookies! This recipe delivers unparalleled soft, chewy, and thick cookies with irresistibly tender centers and edges that are crisp, all coated in a delightful cinnamon-sugar blend. Say goodbye to dry, flat cookies and hello to your new favorite classic dessert.

Why You’ll Adore This Snickerdoodle Recipe

This isn’t just another cookie recipe; it’s *the* Snickerdoodle recipe you’ve been searching for. Here’s why it consistently earns rave reviews and becomes an instant favorite for anyone who tries it:

1. Foolproof Baking Experience: We’ve meticulously crafted these steps to be incredibly easy to follow, ensuring a successful batch of delicious Snickerdoodles every single time. Even novice bakers can achieve bakery-quality results with confidence.

2. Perfectly Spiced to Perfection: The balance of cinnamon in both the dough and the outer coating is key. This recipe uses just the right amount, creating a warm, inviting aroma and a flavor that’s both comforting and exciting, without being overpowering.

3. Melt-in-Your-Mouth Texture: Imagine a cookie that’s wonderfully soft and tender on the inside, offering a satisfying chew, while maintaining perfectly crisp, golden edges. That delightful contrast in texture is what sets these Snickerdoodles apart.

4. An Unforgettable Crowd-Pleaser: Whether it’s a family gathering, a holiday party, or simply a treat for yourself, these Snickerdoodles are universally loved. Their classic appeal and irresistible taste make them perfect for sharing and always leave a lasting impression.

5. The Signature Tangy Twist: The secret ingredient, cream of tartar, is what gives Snickerdoodles their distinctive, slightly tangy flavor profile. Beyond taste, it also contributes to their signature soft and chewy texture, making them uniquely delightful.

Essential Snickerdoodle Recipe Ingredients

Crafting the perfect Snickerdoodle starts with quality ingredients and understanding their role. Here’s a breakdown of what you’ll need and why:

• Unsalted Butter: Using unsalted butter gives you complete control over the salt content of your cookies. Melted and cooled to room temperature, it contributes to the tender texture and rich flavor.
• Granulated & Brown Sugar: This recipe uses a thoughtful combination of both white and light brown sugar. Granulated sugar provides crispness and spreads, while brown sugar adds moisture, chewiness, and a subtle molasses flavor, creating the perfect balance.
• Eggs: We call for 1 large egg plus 1 large egg yolk. The extra yolk adds richness, chewiness, and helps bind the dough, resulting in a more decadent cookie. Ensure your eggs are at room temperature for better emulsion and a smoother dough.
• Vanilla Extract: A good quality vanilla extract is crucial for enhancing all the other flavors in the cookie. It adds a warm, aromatic depth that completes the Snickerdoodle experience.
• All-Purpose Flour: Accurate flour measurement is paramount. Flour provides the structure for your cookies. Measuring by weight (grams) is highly recommended for consistent results, preventing cookies that are too dry or spread too much.
• Cream of Tartar: This is the hallmark ingredient of a classic Snickerdoodle! As an acidic leavening agent, cream of tartar reacts with baking soda to give the cookies their characteristic soft, puffy texture and prevents them from becoming too flat. It also imparts the subtle, tangy flavor that defines a Snickerdoodle.
• Baking Soda: Working in conjunction with cream of tartar, baking soda helps the cookies rise and achieve that perfect tender crumb.
• Ground Cinnamon: Used both in the cookie dough for a foundational flavor and generously in the cinnamon-sugar coating, high-quality cinnamon is essential for that iconic Snickerdoodle taste.
• Salt: Just a touch of salt is vital for balancing the sweetness and enhancing the overall flavor profile of the cookies.

Step-by-Step: How to Make the Best Snickerdoodle Cookies

Follow these detailed instructions to create the most incredible Snickerdoodles, bursting with flavor and perfect texture:

1. Prepare Your Butter

   In a large microwave-safe bowl, gently melt the unsalted butter. Once melted, set it aside to cool completely to room temperature. This crucial step prevents the cookies from becoming greasy and ensures the dough’s proper consistency.

2. Combine Dry Ingredients

   In a separate large bowl, whisk together your flour, cream of tartar, salt, baking soda, and 3/4 teaspoon of ground cinnamon. Whisking ensures all leavening agents and spices are evenly distributed for a consistent cookie.

3. Mix Wet Ingredients

   In the bowl with your cooled melted butter, add the granulated sugar and light brown sugar. Whisk thoroughly until they are well combined and emulsified. Then, add the whole large egg, the extra large egg yolk, and the vanilla extract. Continue whisking until the mixture is smooth, creamy, and uniform in color.

4. Form the Dough and Chill

   Gradually add the dry ingredient mixture to the wet ingredient mixture. Mix gently until *just* combined. Be careful not to overmix, as this can develop the gluten too much, leading to tough cookies. Stop mixing as soon as no streaks of flour remain. Cover the dough tightly with plastic wrap and refrigerate for at least 1 hour. Chilling is essential for firming up the dough, preventing excessive spreading during baking, and allowing the flavors to meld beautifully.

5. Preheat and Prepare Coating

   Once your dough has chilled, preheat your oven to 325°F (160°C). While the oven heats, combine the granulated sugar and ground cinnamon for your coating in a small, shallow bowl. Stir until well mixed.

6. Shape and Coat Cookies

   Portion the chilled dough into balls, approximately 45 grams each (or about 2 packed tablespoons). For optimal chewy centers and crisp edges, roll these portions into tall, slightly skinnier balls rather than perfectly round spheres. Generously roll each dough ball in the cinnamon-sugar mixture, ensuring it’s completely coated. Return the shaped and coated dough balls to the refrigerator for another 15-20 minutes to firm up again before baking. This extra chill helps maintain their shape.

7. Bake to Perfection

   Place the chilled, coated dough balls on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper or a silicone baking mat, ensuring ample space between them (typically 6 cookies per standard sheet). Bake for 9-12 minutes. The key is to avoid overbaking; the cookies should be set around the edges but still look slightly soft and puffy in the center. A slight under-bake is often ideal for a chewier texture. Immediately after removing from the oven, if any cookies have uneven edges, gently use the back of a metal spatula to press the edges inward, creating perfectly round cookies. Let the cookies rest on the baking sheet for 5 minutes before carefully transferring them to a wire rack to cool completely.

Mastering Your Snickerdoodles: Expert Tips for Success

Elevate your Snickerdoodle baking with these invaluable tips designed to ensure every cookie is a masterpiece:

• Accurate Flour Measurement: This cannot be stressed enough! Too much flour will result in dry, crumbly, and tough cookies, while too little can cause them to spread excessively and become flat. The best method is to use a digital kitchen scale for precise measurement (395 grams for this recipe). If using cups, spoon the flour into the measuring cup and level it off with a straight edge, rather than scooping directly from the bag.
• Room Temperature Eggs: For a lighter texture and a more evenly emulsified dough, ensure your eggs are at room temperature. Cold eggs can cause the butter to seize, resulting in a lumpy dough. If you forget to take them out, place them in a bowl of warm water for 5-10 minutes.
• Invest in Quality Kitchen Tools: For consistent baking and easy cleanup, always use a high-quality silicone baking mat or parchment paper. These prevent sticking, promote even baking, and contribute to those desirable crisp edges.
• The “Cookie Scoot” Trick: After baking, if your cookies have spread irregularly, gently press any uneven edges inward with a metal spatula as soon as they come out of the oven. This simple trick helps shape them into perfect circles while they’re still warm and pliable.
• Roll Taller Cookie Dough Balls: Instead of flat or perfectly round balls, aim for dough balls that are taller and slightly skinnier. This shape encourages the cookies to spread outwards while maintaining a thick, chewy center and crisp edges.
• Keep the Dough Cold: Chilling the dough is a non-negotiable step. Cold dough prevents excessive spreading in the oven, ensuring your cookies retain their thickness and chewiness. If your kitchen is warm, or if you’re working in batches, keep unbaked dough balls in the fridge until ready to go into the oven.
• Don’t Overmix the Dough: Once you add the dry ingredients to the wet, mix only until just combined. Overmixing develops gluten, which can lead to tough, dense cookies. A light hand here is key to a tender crumb.

More Irresistible Cookie Recipes to Try

If you’re a fan of homemade cookies, we have a variety of other fantastic recipes that are sure to become family favorites:

• Classic Peanut Butter Cookies
• Delightful Coconut Oil Chocolate Chip Cookies
• Sweet Raspberry Almond Thumbprint Cookies
• Hearty Oatmeal Chocolate Chip Cookies
• The Softest Shortbread Cookies

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5 from 62 votes

Snickerdoodle Recipe

By
Chelsea Lords

This is the ultimate Snickerdoodle recipe! Soft, thick, and chewy with perfectly tender centers and crisp, cinnamon-sugar-coated edges. It’s a classic for a reason!

Prep Time:

15
minutes

Cook Time:

10
minutes

Chilling Time:

1
hour
20
minutes

Total Time:

1
hour
45
minutes

Servings:

22
cookies

Video

Watch how to make these delicious Snickerdoodle Cookies:

Equipment

• Food scale (optional, but highly recommended for accuracy!)
• Sheet pan (15″ x 10″)
• Parchment paper or silicone baking mat
• Large mixing bowls
• Whisk
• Wire cooling rack

Ingredients

• 16 tablespoons unsalted butter (melted and cooled to room temperature)
• 2/3 cup granulated sugar
• 2/3 cup light brown sugar (firmly packed)
• 1 large egg
• 1 large egg yolk
• 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
• 2-3/4 cups all-purpose flour (see note 1 for accurate measurement)
• 1-1/2 teaspoons cream of tartar
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1 teaspoon baking soda
• 3/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon

Cinnamon Sugar Coating

• 1/4 cup granulated sugar
• 3 teaspoons ground cinnamon

Instructions

• In a large microwave-safe bowl, melt butter, then let cool completely to room temperature. Ensure it’s not hot to avoid greasy cookies and properly emulsify with sugars.
• In a separate large bowl, combine the all-purpose flour, cream of tartar, salt, baking soda, and the 3/4 teaspoon of ground cinnamon. Whisk these dry ingredients together thoroughly to ensure even distribution.
• In the bowl with your melted and cooled butter, add both the granulated and light brown sugars. Whisk vigorously until the mixture is well emulsified and smooth. Next, incorporate the whole large egg, the additional large egg yolk, and the vanilla extract. Continue whisking until the wet ingredients are fully combined and uniform.
• Gradually add the whisked dry ingredients into the wet ingredients. Mix just until combined, being careful not to overmix. Stop as soon as no streaks of flour are visible. Overmixing can lead to tough cookies. Cover the dough tightly with plastic wrap and refrigerate for at least 1 hour to allow it to firm up and flavors to develop.
• Once the dough is chilled, preheat your oven to 325°F (160°C). In a small bowl, stir together the granulated sugar and 3 teaspoons of ground cinnamon for your cinnamon-sugar coating.
• Portion the chilled dough into individual balls, aiming for about 45 grams each (or roughly 2 packed tablespoons). For the best texture, shape these portions into tall, slightly skinnier balls. Generously roll each dough ball in the prepared cinnamon-sugar mixture, ensuring an even and thorough coating. Return these shaped and coated dough balls to the fridge for another 15–20 minutes, or until they are firm. This second chill is key for preventing spread.
• Place the chilled, coated dough balls on a sheet pan lined with parchment paper or a silicone baking mat, ensuring ample spacing between them (about 6 cookies at a time per standard sheet). Bake for 9–12 minutes. Be vigilant and avoid overbaking; the cookies should be set around the edges but still appear slightly soft and puffy in the center. A slight under-bake is ideal for a chewy texture. Immediately after baking, if any cookies have uneven edges, gently press them inward with a metal spatula to create perfectly round shapes. Remove the baking tray from the oven and let the cookies rest on the sheet for 5 minutes before carefully transferring them to a wire rack to cool completely.

Recipe Notes

Note 1: Accurate Flour Measurement. Proper flour measurement is absolutely crucial for the success of this recipe. Excess flour can lead to dry, tough, and crumbly cookies, while too little can cause them to spread excessively and become flat. To ensure the most accurate measurement, consider using a kitchen food scale and weighing your flour. For this recipe, aim for 395 grams of all-purpose flour. If measuring by cups, lightly spoon the flour into your measuring cup and level it off with a knife, do not pack it down.

Storage: Keep freshly baked Snickerdoodle cookies in an airtight container at room temperature for 2–3 days to maintain their softness and flavor. For longer storage, you can freeze unbaked cookie dough for up to 3 months: simply shape the dough into balls, roll them in cinnamon sugar, and then freeze them on a baking sheet until firm. Once frozen, transfer the dough balls to an airtight container or freezer-safe bag. When you’re ready for a warm treat, bake the frozen dough balls directly from the freezer, adding approximately 2-4 extra minutes to the baking time as needed.

Nutrition Facts (per cookie)

Serving: 1 cookie

|

Calories: 157kcal

|

Carbohydrates: 21g

|

Protein: 2g

|

Fat: 7g

|

Saturated Fat: 4g

|

Polyunsaturated Fat: 0.4g

|

Monounsaturated Fat: 2g

|

Trans Fat: 0.3g

|

Cholesterol: 32mg

|

Sodium: 86mg

|

Potassium: 53mg

|

Fiber: 0.5g

|

Sugar: 12g

|

Vitamin A: 230IU

|

Vitamin C: 0.01mg

|

Calcium: 13mg

|

Iron: 1mg

Nutrition information is automatically calculated and is an approximation. Please consult a professional for precise dietary needs.

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