These snickerdoodles come out chewy in the center with a thin, crackly cinnamon-sugar crust — the kind of cookie that disappears fast. The recipe uses both butter and shortening, which is the practical reason they stay soft for days instead of turning cakey or hard. If you’ve got 30 minutes and a mixing bowl, you can make 24 of them from scratch.
Smart swaps
- Cream of tartar: This is the one ingredient worth tracking down — it’s what gives snickerdoodles their slight tang and chewy texture. It’s in the baking aisle near the spices. Don’t swap it for extra baking powder; the result will taste like a plain sugar cookie.
- Vegetable shortening: If you don’t have shortening, you can use all butter (1 cup total), but the cookies will spread a little more and crisp up faster at the edges. Still good, just slightly different.
- Cinnamon: Pre-ground from a jar works fine. Freshly ground is more fragrant, but skip the extra step unless you already have whole cinnamon sticks on hand — it’s not worth the effort for this recipe.
Before you start
Two things matter most here. First, make sure your butter is genuinely softened — not melted, not cold from the fridge. Press a finger into it; it should give easily but still hold its shape. Cold butter won’t cream properly with the sugar, and you’ll end up with a dense, greasy dough. Second, stop mixing the moment the flour disappears into the wet ingredients. Overworking the dough develops gluten, which makes cookies tough instead of tender. A few flour streaks are fine — they’ll incorporate when you scoop and roll the dough balls.
If something goes sideways
- Dough is too sticky to roll into balls: Refrigerate it for 20–30 minutes. Room-temperature dough gets soft quickly, especially in a warm kitchen. Work in small batches and keep the rest chilled.
- Cookies spread into flat puddles: Your butter was probably too warm or even slightly melted. Next batch, chill the shaped dough balls for 15 minutes before baking.
- Cookies came out puffy and cakey instead of chewy: Check that you measured the flour correctly — spooning flour directly from the bag and packing it compacts it. Spoon flour into the measuring cup and level it off instead.
- Cinnamon-sugar coating looks pale after baking: The coating darkens as the cookie cools, so don’t judge it straight from the oven. If it still looks sparse, you didn’t use enough — roll generously so the whole surface is coated.
- Cookies are hard the next day: They were overbaked. Pull them at 9 minutes even if the centers look underdone; carryover heat finishes the job while they cool on the pan.
Make-ahead notes
Baked cookies keep well in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 5 days — they actually get a little chewier on day two. If you want to get ahead, roll the dough balls and coat them in cinnamon sugar, then freeze them on a baking sheet until solid and transfer to a zip-top bag; they’ll keep frozen for up to 3 months. Bake straight from frozen at 375°F and add 2–3 minutes to the bake time. You can also refrigerate the unrolled dough (tightly wrapped) for up to 48 hours before shaping.
Classic Snickerdoodles
Ingredients
Main Ingredients
- 2.75 cups all-purpose flour preferably organic
- 2 tsp cream of tartar ensures signature tang
- 1 tsp baking soda
- 0.5 tsp salt fine sea salt
- 1.5 cups sugar granulated
- 0.5 cup unsalted butter softened
- 0.5 cup vegetable shortening
- 2 large eggs preferably free-range
Cinnamon Sugar Coating
- 3 tbsp sugar
- 1 tbsp ground cinnamon freshly ground
Instructions
- Preheat your oven to 190°C (375°F) and line two baking sheets with parchment paper.
- In a medium bowl, whisk together the flour, cream of tartar, baking soda, and salt.
- In a large bowl, beat the softened butter, shortening, and sugar until light and fluffy. This should take about 3 minutes on medium speed.
- Add the eggs one at a time, mixing well after each addition. Ensure the mixture is fully combined and creamy.
- Gradually add the dry ingredients to the wet mixture, mixing until just combined. Do not overmix to keep the cookies tender.
- In a small bowl, combine the remaining sugar with the cinnamon for the coating.
- Shape the dough into small balls, roughly the size of an unshelled walnut, and roll each ball in the cinnamon sugar mixture.
- Place the coated dough balls on the prepared baking sheets, leaving about 2 inches between them to allow for spreading.
- Bake for 9-11 minutes, until the edges are just set and the cookies have a slight golden color. They may appear soft in the center but will firm up as they cool.
- Allow the cookies to cool on the baking sheet for 5 minutes before transferring them to a wire rack to cool completely.
Notes
Nutrition
Your questions, answered
Can I skip the cream of tartar?
No — or at least, not without changing what the cookie is. Cream of tartar is what makes a snickerdoodle tangy and chewy rather than just a cinnamon sugar cookie. If you genuinely can’t find it, use 2 teaspoons of baking powder in place of both the cream of tartar and baking soda, but know the flavor and texture will be noticeably different.
How do I know when the cookies are done if the centers still look raw?
Pull them when the edges are just set and the surface has cracked — the centers will look underdone, and that’s correct. They firm up as they cool on the pan, so leaving them in longer to look ‘done’ will make them hard once they cool.
My dough seems really soft. Did I do something wrong?
Probably not. This dough is softer than most cookie doughs because of the shortening and the amount of sugar. If it’s too soft to roll, it just needs 20–30 minutes in the fridge — don’t add more flour, which will make the cookies dry.
Can I make these without a stand mixer or hand mixer?
Yes, but your butter needs to be very soft. Beat the butter, shortening, and sugar together by hand with a wooden spoon for about 4–5 minutes until the mixture looks pale and fluffy — it takes more effort than a mixer but works fine.
If you liked this one
- Classic Soft Sugar Cookies
- Fluffy Cinnamoroll Milk Bread Cinnamon Rolls
- Melt-in-Your-Mouth Scottish Shortbread Cookies
- Creamy Cinnamon Horchata
