One of R's housemates made some snickerdoodles that he wanted me to try. "Be brutally honest," he said as he handed me a cookie. It's almost as if he knew I would try to be kind even if I didn't like it. However, there was no need. I am not much of a sweets person, but I stood in their apartment and ate the entire cookie. The. Whole. Darn. Cookie. Then I asked him for the recipe.
I had to ask R a couple of times to get the recipe for me. Then it finally came in the form of a text. S is majoring in Astrophysics and is extremely precise; he makes notes every time he bakes a batch, including which rack of the oven he used. If you follow me, you'll know that I am less precise. But I knew that his recipe would be a great place to start.
I honestly had NO idea how many people love Snickerdoodles! I mean I know my mom likes them and D likes them. But when I made a few batches of this recipe and shared it around my circles, everyone gushes about how good they are. Everyone.
I only made one adaptation to S's recipe because I like my cookies a little less cake-y and a little more crispy. And I know a little bit about cookie chemistry. That is to say that the texture of a cookie depends on the balance of wet to dry. I changed the amount of granulated sugar and added in some brown sugar. So, here's my very slight adaptation to S's Snickerdoodles. No need to tinker too much with cookie perfection, right? I think I can say that I have mastered this favorite!
Snickerdoodles
Ingredients
makes 2 dozen 3-inch cookies
COOKIES
1 cup (2 sticks) butter (I use salted, but if you use unsalted add 1/4 teaspoon salt to the dough)
1 cup organic granulated sugar
1/4 cup organic brown sugar, lightly packed
2 eggs
1 teaspoon vanilla paste or extract
1 teaspoon baking soda
2 teaspoons cream of tartar
2-3/4 cup flour
TOPPING
1/2 cup organic granulated sugar
4 teaspoons ground cinnamon
Procedure
Preheat oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit. In a small mixing bowl, blend together the topping ingredients and set aside.
In a large mixing bowl, cream together the butter and sugars until lightened and fluffy. Beat in the eggs and vanilla.
Sift in the baking soda, cream of tartar, and flour. Use a wooden spoon to incorporate the dough into a ball.
Using a scoop, portion the dough into small balls. Roll the dough in the sugar-cinnamon mixture and place on a parchment paper-lined baking sheet about 2 inches apart.
Bake in the preheated oven for 9 to 11 minutes, depending on your preference of doneness. The cookies with spread. The centers should be nicely raised and the edges crisp. The cookies will harden as they cool.
One more funny story about these cookies. I had made a triple batch of these before Halloween. I sent them in care packages for my boys and their friends; I passed them around to friends and family here in town. Then I got a text from one of my best friends that read that her son liked the snickerdoodles and maybe I could make him some more. I responded readily, "Of course!"
Well, an hour later I get another text from her, saying that N wrote that text from her phone. So, he was smart enough to find my number in her phone and write about himself in the third person while requesting cookies. Pretty crafty, I say.
Now if my kids had done that, they would have gotten a lecture about truthfulness and not impersonating people. Blah blah blah. But, rules are different for aunties. So he got more snickerdoodles!
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