Snickerdoodle Recipe (2024)

This soft and chewy Snickerdoodle Recipe is a family favorite. If you love snickerdoodle cookies the way we do, then you’ll want to have this easy snickerdoodle recipe in your collection!

The Best Snickerdoodle Recipe

For me, a delicious snickerdoodle has a few requirements:

Snickerdoodles first and foremost must be soft and chewy. The best snickerdoodle recipe in my opinion has to be a soft snickerdoodle recipe. Crunchy snickerdoodles are a hard pass for this girl. I prefer a soft snickerdoodle, and one that stays soft for days.
Next, it has to have a fantastic blend of flavor, with both butter and cinnamon coming through. The perfect snickerdoodle cookies are a delicious and balanced combo of both.
Finally, as with almost all of my recipes, I prefer an easy snickerdoodle recipe. This is a cookie, not Honors Pre-Calculus (a current headache in my home), therefore it needs to be simple and easy to make.

This snickerdoodle recipe checks ALL of those boxes.

Truth be told I didn’t even try a snickerdoodle until about ten years ago. A friend of mine loves the Disneyland snickerdoodles, and asked me to bring her one home when we went for a visit. I searched that entire park for a darn snickerdoodle. Finally a cast member at one of the bakeries told me they had rotated them out for for another cookie at that given moment in time.

So I did what any crazy, obsessed snickerdoodle stalker would do. I came home and set out to make amazing, Disney-worthy, snickerdoodles.

Recipe For Snickerdoodles

A few things to take note of before you start making this snickerdoodle recipe.

Flour

It’s critical that you measure your flour correctly. You want to give your flour a stir, then gently spoon it into the measuring cup and level it off. Check out my all about flour post if you need more details. If you scoop, or don’t level your flour, you will have too much in your recipe.

Chill Your Dough

First, you are going to need to chill your dough. I know, dough chilling can be a pain. I get it. Trust me, I avoid putting into recipes when I can. For this recipe however, it really does make a difference. Chilling the dough gives you a richer tasting cookie that doesn’t spread too much.

Brown Sugar

Second, this recipe uses brown sugar. If you’ve made snickerdoodles before, chances are they just used granulated white sugar. And that’s fine. But brown sugar, it will take your snickerdoodles up a notch.

One time I needed to make snickerdoodles for an event, and like always was doing it at the last minute. Gasp, I was almost completely out of granulated sugar. Brown sugar to the rescue! That was one of the best substitutions I’ve ever made. The depth of flavor is greatly increased and the texture is just a bit softer.

Cream Of Tartar

Third, this recipe uses cream of tartar. Apologies if you you don’t have it in your pantry at the moment, but it’s really a snickerdoodle staple.

Cream of tartar is an acid, a tartaric acid. It’s used as a leavener, and when combined with baking soda they produce dioxide gas, which is the same gas that is produced by yeast in bread baking. Not only does it help make your cookies wonderfully soft, it also gives a hint of tartness.

Snickerdoodle Recipe

4.91 from 20 votes

Author Christi Johnstone

Course Dessert

Cuisine American

Ingredients

Cookies:

▢ 4 cups flour
▢ 1 teaspoon baking soda
▢ 1/2 teaspoon baking powder
▢ 1 teaspoon cream of tartar
▢ 1 teaspoon cinnamon
▢ 1 cup butter softened
▢ 3/4 cups granulated sugar
▢ 1 cup firmly packed brown sugar light or dark is fine
▢ 2 large eggs make sure they are large eggs as they provide moisture for the recipe
▢ 1/3 cup milk
▢ 1 teaspoon vanilla

Topping:

▢ 6 tablespoons sugar
▢ 1 teaspoons cinnamon

Instructions

In a bowl, sift together the flour, baking soda, baking powder, 1 teaspoon cinnamon and cream of tartar. Set aside.
In a separate bowl, cream the butter and sugars until fluffy. Add the eggs, milk and vanilla. Mix well.
Stir in the dry ingredients. Stir until just combined.
Cover bowl (or remove dough from bowl and wrap in plastic wrap) and chill for at least one but not more than 24 hours.
When ready to bake, Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.
Form the dough into 1 inch balls. Mix cinnamon and sugar in a small bowl and roll each ball of dough through the cinnamon and sugar mixture to coat well.
Place on a greased baking sheet or a cookie sheet covered with wax paper or silicone baking mat.
Bake 8-10 minutes. Check for the tops to start firming up, and the sides to show a bit of browning. Make sure they are cooked but do not over bake. Allow to cool on baking sheet for at least ten minutes before transferring to a wire cooling rack.

Nutrition

Disclaimer

Nutrition information is estimated as a courtesy. If using for medical purposes, please verify information using your own nutritional calculator. Percent Daily Values are based on a 2000 calorie diet.

Tried this Recipe? Pin it!Mention @LoveFromTheOven or tag #LFTORecipes!

Need more snickerdoodle cookies in your life? I hear ya. I have a few more recipes you’ll want to try! My Pumpkin Spice Snickerdoodles are always a big hit. My friend Rebecca over at Foodie With Family has a Snickerdoodle Cake recipe that you need in your life. Aimee over at Shugary Sweets has a Snickerdoodle Banana Bread that makes mornings extra delicious. Snickerdoodle Pie? Oh yeah, it’s a thing and Deborah over at Taste and Tell will fill you on in that deliciousness.

FAQs

What is a substitute for cream of tartar in snickerdoodles? ›

You need 1 teaspoon baking powder to make this snickerdoodle recipe without cream of tartar.

Why aren't my snickerdoodles puffy? ›

How do you make snickerdoodles puffy and soft? The secret's in the ratio of butter to leavener to flour to egg. Don't use shortening here; you'll miss the flavor of butter. Slightly under-baking the snickerdoodles also guarantees a softer cookie.

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Why don't my snickerdoodles crack? ›

If yours aren't cracking, your oven may not be hot enough or your ingredients may not be fresh enough! Are snickerdoodles supposed to be undercooked? I always recommend slightly underbaking your cookies and then letting them finish baking through cooling on the pan.

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What happens if you dont use cream of tartar in cookies? ›

Adding it to cake or cookie batters prevents sugar from banding together and crystallizing, meaning that it results in more of a tender chew—snickerdoodles and sugar cookies wouldn't be the same without cream of tartar. The same effect is why it's added to some frostings and syrups, where it helps keep things smooth.

Read On ›

Can I skip cream of tartar in a recipe? ›

In some recipes, you can leave out cream of tartar if there is no suitable replacement. You can simply omit cream of tartar from the recipe if you're making whipped egg whites, syrups, frostings, or icings.

Learn More Now ›

Why do my Snickerdoodle cookies go flat? ›

If your cookies repeatedly turn out flat, no matter the recipe, chances are your oven is too hot. Here's what's happening. The butter melts super quickly in a too-hot oven before the other ingredients have firmed up into a cookie structure. Therefore, as the butter spreads so does the whole liquidy cookie.

Tell Me More ›

What is a substitute for 1 teaspoon of cream of tartar? ›

So, if you have baking powder, you technically have cream of tartar too! You can substitute 1.5 teaspoons of baking powder for every 1 teaspoon of cream of tartar. Note: this only works in recipes that already include baking soda as an ingredient. Buttermilk.

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Why did my Snickerdoodle cookies not flatten? ›

If you reduce the amount of butter or oil in a recipe, your cookies won't spread as much. If you add too much flour, your cookies won't spread as much. If your cookies have more brown sugar than white sugar, they won't spread as much. It's a careful balance.

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Why did my snickerdoodles come out cakey? ›

Using too much flour will make your cookies too cakey, so try reducing the flour amount by two tablespoons. Avoid using cake flour instead; try a mix of all-purpose flour and bread flour for a more dense and chewy texture.

Keep Reading ›

Why do my Snickerdoodle cookies get hard? ›

Snickerdoodles might turn out hard if they are overbaked or if the dough is too dry. Be sure to keep an eye on them as they bake – when the edges are set but the centers are still soft and puffy, they are done. Also, make sure you're not adding too much flour.