Soft and Chewy Snickerdoodle Cookies
The popular cinnamon-sugar soft and chewy sugar cookie recipe. A recipe that has been in the family for over 30 years!
This was one of the first cookie recipes I made as a kid. As I have shared before, I was fully obsessed with cookbooks as a little girl. My Mom collected church cookbooks and I would go straight to the cookie recipes and beg my Mom to let me whip up a batch. I made this snickerdoodle cookie recipe 30 years ago and it is still the best I have ever tasted.
This is such a popular Christmas cookie because I have yet to find anyone who doesn't love snickerdoodle cookies! When I used to teach a cooking school for kids, it was the first cookie I taught them to make because kids love them. Whenever I make these cookies, they disappear so darn fast!
So what makes a perfect snickerdoodle cookie?
A snickerdoodle cookie has to be soft and chewy. No hard hockey puck cookies here! It has to be rolled twice in cinnamon-sugar to ensure that it is completely coated. It also has to have the signature tang from the cream of tartar.
How to make the BEST Snickerdoodle Cookie:
- Start by creaming butter and sugar for 4-5 minutes. This is an important step as the butter coats the sugar crystals and creates a smooth texture. It also whips air into the cookie dough.
- Use Cream of Tartar as a leavening agent. It gives it the signature tangy flavor and chewy texture. A touch of baking soda helps the cookies to rise as well.
- Double roll the cookie balls into a cinnamon-sugar mixture. This helps to make sure the cookies are completely coated in cinnamon-sugar before baking.
- Bake just until the edges begin to become a light golden color. These snickerdoodle cookies need to be soft and chewy so watch carefully. If you want them to be flat, press the balls down in the center before placing in the oven.
- My favorite baking tools for perfect Snickerdoodle cookies -- light-colored baking sheets, parchment paper sheets, KitchenAid mixer.
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Check out some more of my most popular cookie recipes:
Levain Bakery Chocolate Chip Cookies
MJ's Top Secret Chocolate Chip Cookies
Lemon Sugar Cookies
Soft Chewy Sugar Cookies
Grandma Geri's Gingersnaps
Chocolate Mint Chip Cookies
Mrs. Claus Peppermint Bark Chocolate Cookies
The Best Snickerdoodle Cookie Recipe
Equipment
Ingredients
- 1 cup Unsalted Butter (softened)
- 1 ½ cups Sugar
- 2 large Eggs
- 2 teaspoons Vanilla
- 2 ¾ cup Flour
- 1 ½ teaspoon Cream of Tartar
- ½ teaspoon Baking Soda
- 1 teaspoon Salt
Cinnamon-Sugar Mixture:
- ¼ cup Sugar
- 1 ½ Tablespoons Cinnamon
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
- In a large mixing bowl, cream butter and sugar for 4-5 minutes until light and fluffy. Scrape the sides of the bowl and add the eggs and vanilla. Cream for 1-2 minutes longer.
- Stir in flour, cream of tartar, baking soda, and salt, just until combined.
- In a small bowl, stir together sugar and cinnamon.
- If time allows, wrap the dough and let refrigerate for 20-30 minutes. Roll into small balls until round and smooth. Drop into the cinnamon-sugar mixture and coat well. Using a spoon, coat for a second time, ensuring the cookie balls are completely covered. *To make flatter snickerdoodles, press down in the center of the ball before placing in the oven. This helps to keep them from puffing up in the middle. *
- Place on a parchment paper-lined baking sheet. Bake for 9-11 minutes. Let cool for several minutes on baking sheet before removing from the pan.
Video
I hope you love this snickerdoodle cookie recipe and it becomes a staple in your family for years! Happy Baking!
linda ann
just finished making a batch of your snickerdoodles. Great, easy to follow recipe. and turned out very good.
thank you!!
Val
I have some sweet cream unsalted butter. Is this okay to use ?
christi
this is what i used, they came out fine, but very airy, i might have over whipped. they seemingly melted in your mouth
Susan L. Stillman
I think the ratio of cinnamon to sugar is too high. Please adjust.
Corinna Hamel
I am about to make these for the first time so have been reading through comments to pick up any hints or tips. I too thought at first the cinnamon seemed to be too much but then thought about the overall recipe. It’s high on cinnamon because the cookie is already perfectly sugar-balanced. The cinnamon is the key to Snickerdoodles. It makes complete sense in my world that adding more sugar would just skimp on the spice and end up too sweet.
But as with any recipe, everyone has the freedom to adjust it to their own liking. That’s how your own copies that you keep in your own box come to have all those hints and tips and comments jotted on them that make them beautiful and nostalgic and “yours”.
I’ll be back later today with my take on the results. From the sounds of it, I may need to protect my computer from crumbs and cookie fingers while documenting it! Ha! Can’t wait!!
Corinna+Hamel
Uh, oh... these whipped up very well. It was difficult to resist eating way too much dough. A good judge of cookies always has to start with delicious dough, right?? Hands down fabulous. When it came time to roll in cinnamon sugar, I was excited to verify my theory above of lots of cinnamon. I wanted lots of it, so I quadrupled it. 1 cup of sugar and 6 Tablespoons of cinnamon. Very little if any of the sugar was able to grab on for the ride because Miss Cinnamon got a little spicy and unruly. They looked like burned toast with peeks of white trying to escape through the edges.
What did I do incorrectly? Yours are so beautifully coated with a delicate cinnamon glow...
But... they did taste delicious once the cinnamon attack subsided.
Betty
OMG. Adjust it yourself. Some people complain about EVERYTHING. Even a cookie recipe. A COOKIE recipe.
Julie
For real!
Amelia+Beltran
Oh no! I forgot to rate this recipe! Five star all the way!
Amelia Beltran
These are the best cookies I have ever made! I ask my family what type of cookies they want for dessert, and they ALWAYS reply "Your snickerdoodles!" . Thank you so much Modern Honey for making me seem like a great baker! I will always and forever use this recipe!
April Wilson Hamacher
I find that if the recipe list has you adding salt and baking soda, it means use All Purpose flour. You can still use the Self Rising flour, just leave out the salt and baking soda.
Stephenie
What flour do you use? All purpose or self rising.
Cady
I used all-purpose and they turned out great!
Samantha
I was looking for a recipe to use up some bread flour and I stumbled upon this one. I took another reviewer's recommendation and added some nutmeg to the cinnamon-sugar coating. The cookies were soft and tasted great.
Martie Webb
Baked them and ohhhhh they are like everyone said... amazing
I would like to know how to get the look though, mine just come out like normal cookies.
Davie Holifield
Did you roll in the cinnamon sugar?
Nathaniel
Hey (:
Is there any way to sub the eggs in this recipe?
I am vegan and would love to make them, but I'm not sure what the eggs do in this recipe.
Evie
Hi Nathaniel--there are ways to substitute eggs in cookie recipes! Some eggsamples (get it) are: unsweetened applesauce (replace 1 egg with 1/4 cup applesauce), and plain vanilla or soy yogurt (replace 1 egg with 1/4 cup yogurt). Hope this helped!
Mikala
mashed banana is a great vegan egg replacer! Google can tell you how much to use.
Mark
All my friends LOVE them. Now it's one of my deserts that everyone wants me to make at their going away or gathering party.
Violet
These are indeed some of the best snickerdoodles I have ever had. Definitely the best ones I’ve ever made myself. I ate about 4 of them the first day I baked them, and I’m the one person in my family who usually avoids sugar like the plague. I really appreciated the easy to follow recipe and tips - my cookies turned out perfectly. I will be making more of these!! Thanks SO much for sharing—you’ve made my family very happy!
Jay
I made these and everyone loved them, so they were quite excellent. My only challenge was after baking for 11 minutes and letting them sit on the baking sheet for 10 minutes, they were too soft. When I tried to move them to the cooling rack, they just fell apart. For my second batch, I baked for 13-14 minutes and they were perfect. Still came out quite soft, and remained soft 4 days later when I packed the remaining cookies for my daughter to take to work.
Cady
I baked mine for about 17 minutes and they turned out to be the perfect texture! Not too soft, but not too hard.
Kate
Best snickerdoodle recipe ever! So easy and soooo yummy.
Sierra Chang
This is SO good you have to try !!!! ????????????????????????????????????☺️☺️☺️
Ford
My husband is gluten free so I swapped the flour straight across with Pillsbury Gluten Free APFB. And let me tell you, THEY WERE DEVINE! Thank you for a perfect recipe! Finally a gluten free dessert we can actually ENJOY together.
Jane
These are so good! and so easy! first time making snickerdoodles and everyone loved them THANK YOU!
Jacque
My husband is gluten free so I swapped the flour straight across with Pillsbury Gluten Free APFB. And let me tell you, THEY WERE DEVINE! Thank you for a perfect recipe! Finally a gluten free dessert we can actually ENJOY together.
Juanita
My daughter is GF as well, is the flour the only thing you changed? I'd like to make her home-made instead of boxed.
person
GOODNESSS.... littarly the second i took a bite of this cookie, i was in heaven!! i dipped mine in milk (dont judge) and it was soooooo goood!! BEST THING EVER!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! good good good good
Sierra+Chang
Yes!
person
GOODNESSS.... littarly the second i took a bite of this cookie, i was in heaven!! i dipped mine in milk (dont judge) and it was soooooo goood!! BEST THING EVER!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
ReNee’C
It is 11:27 pm in Kansas City on Monday, August 31, and I just took the last batch of cookies out of the oven. I’ve eaten 6 of these cookies!!!! This is NOT good...LOL. They are soooooo DELICIOUS - WOW!
Thanks so much for this recipe. It is definitely my go to for Snickerdoodle Cookies!
Jae
I’m in Kansas City, MO as well and I’m literally about to put these in the oven at 1:15am but I have no parchment paper???? HELP!
Jackie Price
I’m in KC too! Can we all just get together and have a baking party? Haha.
Patrice
Yesssssss!!!
Evie
Haha, I may be a bit late, but you CAN substitute parchment paper! Just grease the cookie pan with whatever you like: cooking spray, butter + flour, etc. Remember though that you may not have the EXACT same results with substituted ingredients, so be flexible 🙂