These classic chewy snickerdoodle cookies are soft and loaded with the perfect hint of cinnamon. Rolled in cinnamon and sugar for that iconic snickerdoodle look! A dash of cream of tartar makes these snickerdoodle cookies incredibly light and airy! Plan on 30 minutes of chilling before baking these cookies, you can also chill the dough overnight or freeze for later!
Have extra cookies? Make my Snickerdoodle Cookie Sandwiches or spice things up with these Chai Spice Snickerdoodles! Find all of my cookie recipes here as well as all of my dessert recipes for more inspiration!
Why You Will Love Them
- Gooey center and crispy edges: these chewy cookies have slightly crisp edges and a nice gooey center. The cinnamon sugar gives extra flavor and the iconic snickerdoodle color!
- Short chill time: luckily these cookies only require a short chill time, all you need is 30 minutes and these are ready to go in the oven. Don’t skimp on chilling, it helps the butter set up so the cookies don’t spread to thin.
- Simple ingredients: these cookies are made with mostly pantry ingredients you already have on hand like all-purpose flour, granulated sugar, salt, baking soda, and cinnamon. Softened butter, eggs, and vanilla are also common ingredients. Make sure to grab some cream of tartar.
- Easy to make: mix up dough with a stand or hand mixer, chill, and scoop. No special equipment or methods and these are freezer friendly whether they are baked or unbaked!
What Are Snickerdoodles
Snickerdoodles are a type of classic cookie made with cinnamon and sugar. They are soft and chewy and have a slightly tangy flavor due to the addition of cream of tartar. The dough is scooped into balls and then coated in a cinnamon and sugar mixture before baking. Great on their own or as sandwich cookies.
Key Ingredients
This cookie recipe is made with simple pantry ingredients and a few other common staples, see below for substitutions:
- Unsalted Butter: if using salted butter, omit adding more salt later in the recipe. Do not substitute margarine.
- Granulated white sugar: I do not recommend swapping any other type of sugar for this recipe. Other sugars can impact the dough differently and change how the cookie bakes and rises.
- Whole eggs: I like fresh pasture raised farm eggs if available, but any kind will work for this cookie. Let your eggs come to room temperature for this recipe, this helps the eggs incorporate better.
- Pure vanilla extract: use homemade or store-bought vanilla extract, almond extract can be added for additional flavor is desired.
- All-purpose flour: no substitution here, other types of flour will change the texture and affect baking differently.
- Cinnamon: ground cinnamon adds the perfect hint of spice and combined with the sugar creates the cinnamon sugar mixture the cookies are rolled in for their classic look.
- Baking soda: make sure your baking soda is fresh and not expired, after a couple months it will start to lose it’s potency.
- Cream of Tartar: this helps give the cookies a chewy, cakey texture. It is a classic addition to snickerdoodles.
How To Make The Snickerdoodles
Let’s talk a little about how to make these Classic Chewy Snickerdoodle Cookies (The printable instructions are in the recipe card below.)
Quick overview:
- Cream butter and sugar, add in eggs and vanilla.
- Mix in dry ingredients, scoop, chill, roll in cinnamon sugar.
- Bake and enjoy.
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Line a sheet pan with parchment paper and set aside.
- Using a stand mixer fitted with a paddle attachment, or an electric hand mixer cream butter and sugar in a large bowl 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.
- In a small mixing bowl combine the flour, cream of tartar, baking soda, cinnamon, and salt. With the mixer on low slowly add the dry ingredients into the wet ingredients and mix until fully incorporated.
- Cover and chill the dough for 30 minutes, or overnight if needed. Using a measuring spoon or a portion scoop, scoop even amounts of dough, about 1 oz. Use your hands to roll into smooth balls.
5. In a small mixing bowl combine the sugar and cinnamon. Roll each cookie into the sugar mixture. Arrange 2-3 inches apart on the prepared sheet pan.
6. Bake for 8-11 minutes until slightly golden brown, the cookies will still be soft. Allow to cool 3-5 minutes on the cookie sheet before transferring to a wire rack to cool completely.
Tips for Perfect Cookies
- Use a round cookie cutter or round lid to gently scoot warm cookies into perfect circles.
- Allow dough to chill this lets the fat set up so cookies do not spread too thin.
- If chilling dough overnight allow to come to room temperature before scooping for easier scooping. Or scoop dough prior to chilling overnight and allow to come to room temperature before baking.
- Do not overcrowd baking sheets allow ample space for these cookies to spread and not stick together. If the pan is overcrowded cookies with not turn out as intended.
- Start with less time and add baking time as needed so cookies stay chewy, I always recommend taking cookies out before you think they are done, they will continue to cook on the baking sheet.
More Delicious Cookie Recipes
If you like these chewy snickerdoodle cookies, you’ll be sure to love these other homemade cookies. From funfetti, to Nutella, to classic oatmeal – the choices are endless! View all my Cookie Recipes for more inspiration.
- Easy Soft & Chewy Oatmeal Raisin Cookies – with hints of cinnamon these are loaded with chewy raisins!
- Nutella (Chocolate Hazelnut) Oatmeal Cookies Recipe – full of gooey, rich chocolate flavor!
- Classic Snickerdoodle Cookies – a soft and chewy cookies rolled in cinnamon sugar!
- Oatmeal Chocolate Chunk Cookies – chewy and decadent studded with oats and chocolate.
- One Bowl Soft Funfetti Cookies – soft cookies studded with fun sprinkles.
Tools I Recommend
- Portion Scoops – my go to for getting even sized cookies that bake perfectly each time!
- USA Pan Half Sheet Pan – my go-to sheet pans, these are truly non-stick and clean up nicely.
- Rubber Spatula – a must have! I like these because they don’t come apart so I don’t have to worry about water getting inside the spatula and causing mold.
- Pyrex Mixing Bowl Set – I love this set of nesting bowls. I use them for everything, Pyrex glass does not break easily so you can trust on these bowls for years, plus they come in 3 useful sizes and can be stacked!
Recipe FAQs
Yes, chilling cookie dough allows the fat to set up so the cookie doesn’t spread too thin. This dough only needs to chill for half an hour, if you do not chill this dough – the cookies could spread to thin or into each other.
Leftover cookies can be cooled completely, transferred to a airtight zip top bag or glass container and kept at room temperature for 4-5 days. See below instructions for freezing cookie dough.
Cream of tartar is essential for giving Snickerdoodles their distinct flavor and texture. It reacts with the baking soda to create the chewy, soft texture while helping to stop the sugar from crystalizing.
You Can Freeze This Cookie Dough
Simply make the cookie dough according to the recipe, scoop even sized amounts of dough onto a sheet pan and place in the freezer until hard. Transfer the cookie dough to an airtight container or freezer bag labeled with the date, type of cookie, and baking instructions (or reference back to this post for baking directions!). Keep in your freezer stash for 3-4 months. Remove desired cookie dough when needed, thaw, bake, and enjoy! You may even want to make a double batch!
Classic Chewy Snickerdoodle Cookies
Equipment
Ingredients
For the Snickerdoodle Dough
- 1 cup Unsalted Butter, softened
- 1 1/2 cups Granulated sugar
- 2 whole Eggs, room temperature
- 2 tsps Vanilla Extract
- 2 1/2 cups All-purpose Flour
- 1 1/2 tsp Cream of Tartar
- 1 tsp Baking Soda
- 1 tsp Salt
- 1 tsp Cinnamon
For the Cinnamon Sugar Mixture
- 3 tbsps Granulated sugar
- 1 tbsp Cinnamon
Instructions
- Using a stand mixer fitted with a paddle attachment, or an electric hand mixer cream butter and sugar in a large bowl 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.1 cup Unsalted Butter, 1 1/2 cups Granulated sugar, 2 whole Eggs, 2 tsps Vanilla Extract
- In a small mixing bowl combine the flour, cream of tartar, baking soda, cinnamon, and salt. With the mixer on low slowly add the dry ingredients into the wet ingredients and mix until fully incorporated.2 1/2 cups All-purpose Flour, 1 1/2 tsp Cream of Tartar, 1 tsp Baking Soda, 1 tsp Salt, 1 tsp Cinnamon
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Line a sheet pan with parchment paper and set aside.
- Cover and chill the dough for 30 minutes, or overnight if needed. Using a measuring spoon or a portion scoop, scoop even amounts of dough, about 1 oz. Use your hands to roll into smooth balls.
- In a small mixing bowl combine the sugar and cinnamon. Roll each cookie into the sugar mixture. Arrange 2-3 inches apart on the prepared sheet pan.3 tbsps Granulated sugar, 1 tbsp Cinnamon
- Bake for 8-11 minutes until slightly golden brown, the cookies will still be soft. Allow to cool 3-5 minutes on the cookie sheet before transferring to a wire rack to cool completely.
Notes
Nutrition
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