Desserts / Cookies, bars & fudge
Snickerdoodles with Cinnamon Sugar Crackle
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Soft centers, crinkled cinnamon-sugar tops, and a faint tang from the cream of tartar. Pull them while the middles are still puffy and soft, and let them finish on the pan. The first batch rarely makes it to the plate.
The short version
Cream butter and sugar, beat in the eggs and vanilla, stir in flour with cream of tartar and baking soda. Roll balls in cinnamon sugar and bake at 350°F for 12 to 14 minutes. Cool on the pan.
What makes ours better
why ours wins the argument at dinner
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Use cream of tartar with the baking soda. The pair reacts to lift the cookie and give it the tang and chew that define a snickerdoodle. Without the cream of tartar it's just a cinnamon sugar cookie.
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Add vanilla and a little extra salt. Vanilla rounds out the cinnamon, and a bit more salt keeps a very sugary cookie from tasting flat.
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Roll the balls thickly in cinnamon sugar. A generous coat bakes into the crackly, spiced crust. Press the ball into the sugar, not just over it.
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Pull them while the centers are puffy and soft. The tops crinkle and fall as they cool, and the middles stay tender. Wait for them to look done and they'll be crisp.
What you need
the stars of the show
- All-purpose flour2¾ cups
- Unsalted butter2 sticks
- Granulated sugar1½ cups
- Eggs2 large
- Vanilla extract2 teaspoons
- Ground cinnamon1 tablespoon
Cookies
Cinnamon sugar
tap each one as it goes in. no double-salting.
Steps
go slow. the good part can’t be rushed.
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Heat the oven, mix the coating
Set racks in the upper and lower thirds of the oven and heat to 350°F. Line two baking sheets with parchment. Stir the ¼ cup sugar and cinnamon together in a shallow bowl.
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Whisk the dry ingredients
In a medium bowl, whisk the flour, cream of tartar, baking soda and salt until evenly mixed.
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Cream the butter and sugar
In a large bowl, beat the butter and 1½ cups sugar with a mixer on medium for 3 minutes until pale and fluffy. Beat in the eggs one at a time, then the vanilla, until smooth.
About 3 min. Cook mode has a timer for this step.
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Add the flour
Add the flour mixture and stir on low until just combined. The dough will be soft and slightly tacky.
If the dough feels very soft after mixing, chill it 20 minutes so the balls hold their shape.
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Roll in cinnamon sugar
Roll the dough into 1¼-inch balls, about 2 tablespoons each. Roll each ball in the cinnamon sugar until fully coated, then set them 2¾ inches apart on the pans.
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Bake
Bake until the edges are light golden and the tops are crinkled, 12 to 14 minutes, switching the pans between racks and rotating them halfway. The centers will look puffy and slightly underdone.
They flatten and set as they cool. Resist the extra minute.
About 13 min. Cook mode has a timer for this step.
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Cool on the pan
Leave the cookies on the hot sheets for 3 minutes, then move them to a rack to cool.
Good to know
read this before somebody asks for seconds
- Cream of tartar is sold next to the spices. If you're out, don't substitute baking powder; the cookie will taste like a plain sugar cookie.
- For a thicker cookie, leave the balls round. For a thinner, crispier cookie, press them flat with your palm before baking.
- You can halve the recipe. Use 1 egg and halve everything else.
- Storage. Airtight at room temperature, 4 days. Frozen dough balls (before rolling in cinnamon sugar), 3 months; thaw 15 minutes, roll, and bake.
Questions, answered
asked and answered at the kitchen counter
What is cream of tartar and can I leave it out?
It's a powdered acid left over from winemaking. It gives snickerdoodles their tang and soft, chewy texture. Leaving it out gives you a different cookie, not a snickerdoodle.
Why didn't my snickerdoodles crinkle?
Usually the dough was too warm and spread flat, or the baking soda was old. Chill the dough for 20 minutes and check that your baking soda is fresh.
Why are my snickerdoodles flat?
The butter was too soft, the baking sheet was hot from a previous batch, or the dough was warm. Let the sheet cool between batches and chill the dough if needed.
How do I keep them soft?
Pull them at 12 minutes when the centers still look puffy, cool them on the pan, and store them airtight. A slice of bread in the container helps.
Can I use salted butter?
Yes, and reduce the kosher salt to ¼ teaspoon. Unsalted butter is better because it lets you control the salt.
From the table
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Published October 29, 2026.