โค๏ธ๐๐ The BEST Snickerdoodles Recipeย makes soft, pillowy puffs that are so irresistible! It’s the closest recipe to Mrs. Fields’ snickerdoodles that youโll find!
Easy Snickerdoodle Recipe
A good snickerdoodle is hard to come by, but this recipe is my favorite.ย Soft with a slightly chewy texture and pillowy little puffs of goodness that I canโtย stay away from!
- As mentioned, these homemade snickerdoodle cookies are slightly chewy around the edges with soft, pillowy centers.
- Theyโre buttery with a light cinnamon-sugar coating. Not too heavy, just classic snickerdoodle. If youโre a cinnamon fiend, I recommend making myย Soft and Chewy Cinnamon Chip Snickerdoodlesย instead.ย
This recipe is everything I want in a classic snickerdoodle cookie, and my family agreed by eating the whole batch on the afternoon I made them. I sent a dozen cookies with them to the beach for the afternoon, somewhat expecting theyโd come back with a few left over. That was clearly foolish thinking. So, I highly recommend making an extra batch!
Looking for more holiday cookies?
Try my Christmas cut out sugar cookies, chocolate peppermint kiss cookies, thumbprint cookies, and linzer cookies, too!
Ingredients and Notes
For this homemade snickerdoodles cookie recipe, you’ll need:
- Unsalted butter
- Granulated sugar
- Light brown sugar
- Egg
- Vanilla extract
- All-purpose flour
- Baking soda
- Cream of tartar – Cream of tartar (sold in the spice aisle) is the leavener that gives the cookies lift, lightness, provides the signature tang, and is key for this recipe. Donโt skip it, or you wonโt end up with the best snickerdoodles. If you donโt have cream of tartar on hand but want to make snickerdoodles immediately, try myย White Chocolate Snickerdoodlesย or myย Chewy Sugar-Doodle Vanilla Cookiesย instead.ย
- Salt
- Cinnamon
Note: Scroll down to the recipe card section of the post for the ingredients with amounts included and for more complete directions.
How to Make Snickerdoodles
Donโt let the tasty cinnamon sugar coating fool you into thinking homemade snickerdoodles are hard to make. These cookies are actually one of the easiest Iโve ever made!
- Cream the butter and sugars in a large bowl until the mixture is light and fluffy. Mix in the egg and vanilla, then add the dry ingredients.ย
- Scoop the snickerdoodle cookie dough into balls and refrigerate for at least an hour, or up to five days. I used a 2-inch cookie scoop to form these cookies (about 2 heaping tablespoons). Youโre welcome to make larger cookies, but if you do that, youโll need to add a couple of minutes to the bake time.ย You MUST chill the dough before baking so your cookies bake up thick and full.ย Unchilled dough will result in cookies that are prone to spreading, and theyโll be much thinner and flatter.ย
- Once the cookie dough has chilled, roll each ball into the cinnamon sugar before baking.ย Feel free to add more or less cinnamon to the cinnamon-sugar coating to suit your preferences. Or, double roll the cookie dough balls. I like my snickerdoodles to have a good amount of cinnamon flavor on them, but I know not everyone likes it as much as I do!ย
- Bake on a cookie sheet just until the edges are set and the tops have just set. When making this chewy snickerdoodle recipe, I underbake them by a minute or two to ensure the centers are extra soft. Underbaking also helps the cookies stay softer and fresher over time, but you can bake longer if you prefer more well-done or firmer cookies.
- Let the cookies cool for 10 minutes before serving with a big glass of milk.ย
Double the recipe!
Very easily, yes! You’ll need to use multiple baking sheets, though, since you don’t want to crowd the cookies.ย
The Best Snickerdoodles
Equipment
- 1 Stand Mixer Fitted with a Paddle Attachment
- 1 Large Bowl
Ingredients
Dough
- ยฝ cup unsalted butter, softened
- ยฝ cup granulated sugar
- โ cup light brown sugar, packed
- 1 large egg
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 1 ยฝ cups all-purpose flour
- ยฝ teaspoon baking soda
- ยผ teaspoon cream of tartar
- ยผ teaspoon salt, optional and to taste
For Rolling
- ยผ cup granulated sugar
- 2 teaspoons cinnamon
Instructions
- To the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment (or large mixing bowl and electric mixer) combine the butter, sugars, and beat on medium-high speed until creamed and well combined, about 3 minutes.
- Stop, scrape down the sides of the bowl, and add the egg, vanilla, and beat on medium-high speed until well combined, light and fluffy, about 3 minutes.
- Stop, scrape down the sides of the bowl, and add the add the flour, baking soda, cream of tartar, optional salt, and beat on low speed until just combined, about 1 minute.
- Using a medium 2-inch cookie scoop or your hands, form approximately 14 equal-sized mounds of dough (2 heaping tablespoons each), roll into balls, and flatten slightly.
- Place mounds on a large plate or tray, cover with plasticwrap, and refrigerate for at least 1 hour, up to 5 days. Do not bake with unchilled dough because cookies will bake thinner, flatter, and be more prone to spreading.
- Preheat oven to 350F, line a baking sheet with a Silpat or spray with cooking spray.
- In a small bowl, combine sugar, cinnamon, and stir to combine.
- Dredge each mound of dough through cinnamon-sugar.
- Place dough mounds on baking sheet, spaced at least 2 inches apart (I bake 8 cookies per sheet) and bake for about 9 minutes, or until edges have set and tops are just set, even if slightly undercooked, pale, and glossy in the center; donโt overbake for soft, pillowy cookies. For firmer cookies, bake a minute or two longer. Cookies firm up as they cool.
- Allow cookies to cool on baking sheet for about 10 minutes before serving. I let them cool on the baking sheet and donโt use a rack.
Notes
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
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Been using this recipe for years. Although my kids swear itโs better when I use salted butter instead of unsalted butter I think itโs good both ways. Definitely always make a double batch!
Thanks Amanda for the five star review and I love hearing that you’ve been making these for years. I’m a big fan of salted butter because in recent years, I love a good salty-sweet dessert but regular butter is also great in cookies. I think it comes down to personal preference.
Made these with King Arthur’s Gluten-free flour and they were so delicious that my granddaughter declared them her new favorite cookie!
The only question I have is the amounts of sugar and cinnamon for the dredging as there was so much left over.
Thanks for the five star review DD and for letting me know that you were able to make them with KAF GF flour (my personal pick too!) and that they are your granddaughter’s new favorite cookies!
For rolling/dredging, a quarter cup of sugar, doesn’t seem like a lot to me for an entire batch of cookies, but if you had too much, you could always scale that back. And scale the cinnamon back a little bit too then. They’re also comes a point where if you’re working with too skimpy of an amount you really can’t easily get much onto the cookies. But do what works for you without wasting.
I think these snickerdoodles and your cream cheese chocolate chip cookies are the best cookie recipes I’ve ever made… and everyone who tries them tells me the same thing! Chilling the dough and underbaking is truly key… Thank you!
I love that everyone who tries the softbatch cookies adores them! And I totally agree – chilled dough and underbaking is key!
Every time I make these (following the instructions to the T) the spread and come out super flat. I even tried freezing the doughโฆ How do I keep them from spreading?
Make sure your baking soda and cream of tartar are fresh, chilled dough which sounds like you’re doing, and I recommend baking on a Silpat (grippy) not on a parchment (slippery) for best results. https://amzn.to/49RKa34
Also, King Arthur brand all-purpose flour is the best flour for baking and I get better results with it. Consider trying it out!
Iโm making the same recipe for almost 5 years!!
That’s wonderful and I’m glad that you’ve been loving the snickerdoodles for many years!
I’ve made these cookies for family, work, friends, and bible study gatherings and each time people tell me they are the best they’ve had! I’ve actually made multiple of your cookie recipes and I always receive compliments. Thank you for including specific tips and instructions in your recipes; I’ve learned a lot from you! :)
Thanks for the 5 star review, Sarah, and I’m glad that you’ve made these cookies multiple times, for multiple different groups of people, and that they always are met with compliments and people saying they’re the best! I appreciate the feedback too that you enjoy my specific tips. It’s one of the things I try to be really precise about, my directions and any possible tips along the way that I think will help my readers have success with the recipe.
Iโve been coming back to this recipe for YEARS! I made these for my mother in law the first time I met her, then for my wedding reception, and now for my baby shower, and all events in between! They come out pillowy soft in the middle with crispy edges and the flavor is out of this world!
Thanks for the 5 star review, Amber, and I love getting comments like yours – they are a huge motivator for me to keep on creating and sharing recipes! From meeting your MIL to your wedding reception and now to your baby shower, these cookies have been with you on all the big milestones and I am honored you choose and keep choosing my recipe!
Let me start by saying I NEVER review online recipes, but I had had to rave about this one. These are THE BEST snickerdoodles. I doubled the recipe and they came out perfect on the first bake, which never happens.
I almost always have to change ingredients, but not with these! Would definitely recommend!
Thanks for the 5 star glowing review, Jennifer! I am glad that you loved this recipe enough to comment, and to not change anything, and that you definitely recommend it! I love hearing things like this so thank you for taking the time to leave a comment!
Delicious cookies that were devoured by my family
great