If you’ve been on the hunt for the perfect Snickerdoodle, your search ends here. These soft and chewy cookies are everything a Snickerdoodle should be—pillowy centers, crisp edges, and that signature tangy cinnamon-sugar coating that makes them absolutely irresistible. They’re easy to whip up and perfect for everything from holiday cookie plates to everyday sweet cravings. This classic recipe delivers bakery-style results with minimal effort, making it a must-save for your collection.
Want to make one giant Snickerdoodle? You’ve got to try this.
Ingredients & Equipment Needed
- sugar
- ground cinnamon
- all-purpose flour
- cream of tartar
- baking soda
- salt – if you’re using salted butter, you can omit this!
- butter
- vegetable shortening
- eggs
- beater blade – if you have a Kitchen Aid, one of these is a must!
How to Make Soft and Chewy Snickerdoodles
This is a simple overview of the recipe, you’ll find a full printable recipe below!
- Preheat oven to 375°F; line 2 baking sheets with parchment.
- Mix ¼ cup sugar with cinnamon in a shallow dish and set aside.
- Whisk together flour, cream of tartar, baking soda, and salt.
- Beat butter, shortening, and remaining 1½ cups sugar until light and fluffy (3–6 mins).
- Add eggs one at a time, beating well and scraping bowl as needed.
- On low speed, mix in dry ingredients until just combined; stir to ensure no flour remains. The dough is very soft; but whatever you do, don’t add more flour!
- Roll 2 tablespoons of dough into balls, coat in cinnamon sugar, and place 2 inches apart on baking sheets.
- Bake one sheet at a time for 10–12 mins, until edges are set but centers look slightly underdone.
- Cool on pan for 10 mins, then transfer to wire rack. Makes about 2 dozen large cookies.
Storage & Other Tips
- The dough is very soft; it’s supposed to be that way, don’t add more flour.
- These cookies spread quite a lot, so give them space.
- Cooking time here is pivotal; if you overcook these Snickerdoodles they will be “thin and crispy” instead of “soft and chewy”. The trick is to watch the edges first; they should be just set, but the centers should still look raw between all of those cinnamon cracks. The cookies will be pillowy and puffy looking while in the hot oven, and when they come out they’ll start to fall, which is what they’re supposed to do! That’s how they get those beautiful crackly tops. After they’ve cooled, they’ll flatten out even more and those slightly under-cooked centers become perfectly cooked and yield a soft, chewy, buttery, interior.
- Store in an airtight container for 3 – 5 days at room temperature, or freeze for 1 – 3 months.
Frequently Asked Questions
No. Shortening plays a key role in this cookie. Combined with the butter it gives optimal texture while allowing the flavor of the butter to come through. If you leave the shortening out, cookies will spread more, have a crispier texture, and lack chewiness.
Yes! Cream of tartar gives Snickerdoodles their signature tangy flavor and chewy texture. Substituting it will change the flavor and consistency. If you don’t like cream of tartar, then guess what? You don’t like Snickerdoodles! Make a sugar cookie instead.
That’s actually what you want! Pull them from the oven when the edges are set and the centers look slightly underdone—they’ll finish setting as they cool.
Technically yes. Scoop dough balls, freeze on a tray, then transfer to a bag. Bake straight from frozen—just add an extra minute or two. However, I always recommend cookie dough be baked fresh.
Yes, this recipe doubles well—just be sure not to overcrowd your mixing bowl and baking sheets.
Soft and Chewy Snickerdoodles
Equipment
Ingredients
- 1 ¾ cups sugar
- 1 tablespoon ground cinnamon
- 2 ½ cups all-purpose flour
- 2 teaspoons cream of tartar
- 1 teaspoon baking soda
- ½ teaspoon table salt omit if using salted butter
- 8 tablespoons unsalted butter 1 stick, softened to room temperature
- 8 tablespoons vegetable shortening
- 2 eggs large
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 375℉. Line 2 baking sheets with parchment paper. Combine ¼ cup sugar and cinnamon in shallow dish and set aside. Whisk flour, cream of tartar, baking soda, and salt together in medium bowl.
- Beat butter, shortening, and remaining 1 ½ cups sugar together on medium speed until light and fluffy, 3-6 minutes. Beat in eggs, one at a time, until incorporated, about 30 seconds, scraping down bowl as needed.
- Reduce speed of mixer to low and slowly add flour mixture until combined, about 30 seconds. Give dough final stir to ensure that no flour pockets remain.
- Working with 2 tablespoons of dough at a time, roll into balls. Working in batches, roll dough balls in cinnamon sugar mixture to coat and set on prepared baking sheet spaced 2 inches apart.
- Bake 1 sheet at a time until edges of cookies are set and just barely beginning to brown, but centers are still soft and puffy, about 10-12 minutes. The cookies should look raw between the cracks and seem underdone.
- Let cookies cool on baking sheet for 10 minutes, then transfer to a wire rack and let cool to room temperature.
Questions & Reviews
I started out making snickerdoodles in 1958 from a recipe I got out of Betty Crockers cooking book…the only difference I see in her recipe and yours is she used more flour (2 3/4 cups) and a 1/4 tsp of salt…I made these cookies and gave as gifts ,with the recipe attached to bow, to their teachers Over the years I found out I had been given the name of the snickerdoodle lady..lol But it was a compliment to me and to the Lady who put this recipe into the Cookbook …who was:Mrs.Ronald Anidinson..formerly Pat Roth of the Betty Crocker staff. Thought you would of like to know how far back this recipe has been traveling…that’s just when I got hold of it. You can add cocoa to this recipe if you love chocolate….I’m still baking them ….
I for one LOVE the taste of Cream Of Tartar. I’ve never spooned it out of the jar and fed it to myself, but i’ve considered it. I can’t imagine why anyone wouldn’t like it’s slightly metalic taste.
I’m going to make a batch of these babies for my Opthemologist neighbor who recently diagnosed pink eye and handed me drops for my infected daughter’s eyes late Saturday night. It was such a relief not to go to Instacare and then the late night pharmacy.
Thanks for the kind guesture idea.
By the way, I gave all my neighbors uncooked snickerdoodle balls for a Christmas gift this year, only I called them Sokoldoodles. Clever eh?
Well, thanks a lot. I’ve never been a fan of snickerdoodles, and now I’m going to have to try these. I need cookies around like a hole in the head.
On a more serious note, and referring back to your (very funny) FAQ, I don’t generally have veggie shortening around. (OK, go ahead and sigh.) But (and this will probably sound really strange) I do have lard. Any idea if lard would be a suitable substitute for shortening? I’ve often wondered, but have never had the courage to try it.
Honestly Wendy, I’ve never cooked with lard before so I’m not sure! The good thing about shortening is that it lasts a really long time, so you can get some and keep it in your pantry even if you don’t use it very often.
I used a lard / butter combination to make this recipe last night, and it came out absolutely perfect. I buy the Armor brand stuff in the big tub (ha ha), which you can use exactly the same way you’d use vegetable shortening (and like vegetable shortening, it also does not require refrigeration).
I love everything about this post, from the sweet man in the parking lot to the Q&A at the end. Plus, snickerdoodles were my favorite cookies from childhood (and the 2nd ones I learned to make on my own) cream of tartar and all!
Oh Thank You Thank You! I know exactly what you mean and how you feel taking your kids to the store! It’s almost always a a nightmare for me! I wanted to say thanks for this recipe. I lost my beloved snicker-doodles recipe and I have missed it so! And yes, there is NO substitution for the Cream of Tartar!
Thanks for sharing your grocery store experience with us! It brings back memories of all the simple but profound acts of kindness that have blessed my life. Thank you as well for the snicker doodle recipe. It’ll be the perfect treat to make with the kids on this looooong, snowy afternoon!
Oh! And loved the Q and A. Made me giggle through my tears 🙂
Loved, loved, LOVED the story about the parking-lot-gentleman and your FAQ’s were spot on! When my daughter & son were very young, we were caught in a torrential downpour of Biblical proportions in the grocery store parking lot! As I struggled to get my babies in their car seats and my groceries in the back before they were totally ruined, a gentleman appeared with not one, but two umbrellas that he used to shield me AND my cart full of groceries from the rain! It made a huge impact on me – so much so that I determined to raise my kids (especially the future gentleman) to try to think in that same way. Needless to say that I was brought to girly tears recently when my (now 21 year-old) son jumped out of his car in the store parking lot to help a woman who had fallen on a patch of black ice. (Thankfully I was still in the car so he didn’t get embarassed by my mooshiness! 🙂 Thanks for your wonderful blog and all of your great recipes…..oh, and for letting me stroll down memory lane here! 🙂
I’ve been looking for a good snickerdoodle recipe. They’re not my favorite, but I have some friends and family members that LOVE them. Thanks for the recipe! By the way, I love the photos! I want one of those little milk bottles!
Love the Q&A. Lol.
You’re also a genius for knowing that I’ve been wanting to try Snickerdoodles and was disappointed not to find a recipe in the OBB recipe index–which is the first place I look when I want to make something new. Your timing with this recipe is perfect for me.