A classic snickerdoodle recipe with a rich, nutty flavor from browned butter and a perfect chewy texture.
33 minutes
A classic snickerdoodle recipe with a rich, nutty flavor from browned butter and a perfect chewy texture.
Cream Of Tartar
teaspoons
teaspoons
teaspoons
0 oz
Cream Cheese, cut into 3 pieces
0 oz
Unsalted Butter, melted and browned
tablespoons
cups
each
teaspoons
tablespoons
1. Preheat Oven
Adjust your oven rack to the middle position and preheat the oven to 350°F. Line two rimless baking sheets with parchment paper and set them aside.
2. Mix Dry Ingredients
Whisk together the all-purpose flour, cream of tartar, baking soda, and table salt in a bowl, then set it aside.
3. Brown Butter
Place 1.5 cups of sugar and the cream cheese in a large heatproof bowl. Meanwhile, melt the butter in an 8-inch skillet over medium heat. Keep cooking the butter until the milk solids turn the color of milk chocolate and you smell a toasty aroma, which should take about 3 to 5 minutes. Scrape the browned butter into the bowl with the sugar and cream cheese, then stir and mash the mixture with a rubber spatula until combined.
4. Combine Wet Ingredients
Whisk in the vegetable oil, large egg, and vanilla extract until the mixture is smooth.
5. Form Dough
Stir the flour mixture into the wet ingredients using a rubber spatula until a soft, homogeneous dough forms.
6. Prepare Cinnamon Sugar
In a shallow dish, mix the remaining ⅓ cup of sugar with the ground cinnamon.
7. Form and Coat Dough Balls
Divide the dough into 24 pieces, each about 2 tablespoons. Roll each piece into a ball and then roll the balls in the cinnamon-sugar mixture, ensuring they are well-coated. Place the balls on the prepared baking sheets, spacing them evenly.
8. Flatten Dough Balls
Using the bottom of a drinking glass, flatten the dough balls into disks about 2 inches wide and ½ inch thick.
9. Bake Cookies
Bake the cookies, one sheet at a time, for 11 to 13 minutes, rotating the sheet halfway through. The cookies should be puffed and covered with small cracks when they are done. They might look slightly underbaked between the cracks, but this will give them the perfect texture once they cool.
10. Cool Cookies
Let the cookies cool on the baking sheet for 5 minutes before transferring them to a wire rack to cool completely.
Sprinkle flaky sea salt over the cookies just before baking. The salt will highlight the sweet caramel and buttery flavors, creating a perfect sweet-savory balance.
Fold chocolate chips into the dough before baking for a delightful twist on the classic chocolate chip cookie.
Fold in chunks of dark chocolate or chocolate chips into the dough for a chocolatey variation. The bittersweet chocolate will contrast nicely with the sweet cinnamon-sugar coating.
Incorporate additional warm spices such as nutmeg, cardamom, or ginger into the cinnamon-sugar mixture to create a more complex flavor profile.
Use the seeds of a vanilla bean in addition to, or in place of, vanilla extract in the dough. This will introduce a more intense and pure vanilla flavor.
Cook the butter over medium heat, watching carefully as it transitions from golden to a rich hazelnut brown. Look for small browned bits at the bottom of the pan and a nutty aroma. These bits add incredible depth of flavor to your cookies. Cool the butter to room temperature before using it in the dough to prevent melting the sugars prematurely.
Remove snickerdoodles when they are just barely set in the center and golden around the edges. They will continue to cook from residual heat once taken out of the oven.
A combination of white and brown sugars is ideal. The molasses in the brown sugar adds moisture and a deeper flavor, while the white sugar provides crisp edges. Cream the sugars with the cooled brown butter until the mixture is light and fluffy to incorporate air and ensure a soft interior.
Use a kitchen scale to weigh your flour and other ingredients for consistent results. Too much flour can make your cookies cakey, while too little can make them spread too thin.
Ingredients should be at room temperature for even mixing. Chill the dough for at least 30 minutes to help solidify the fat, which helps the cookies maintain their shape and texture when baked.
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