Snickerdoodles

When my sister, Joan, and I visited Carrie in Boston last month we had the pleasure of stopping for breakfast at Flour in Cambridge. I had the legendary Sticky Bun and a fabulous latte. The Sticky Bun definitely lived up to the hype! YUM!

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Sticky Bun and Latte at Flour, Cambridge

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After returning home to Seattle, I found myself wishing I could try some of the other goodies at Flour. So what else could I do but buy Joanne Chang’s Flour cookbook?

I have looked through the book from cover to cover, and there are many recipes that I would like to try. Carrie has raved about the cookies at Flour, so I decided to start there.

Snickerdoodles have always been one of my favorites, and Joanne’s recipe looked great. How can you go wrong with butter, sugar, eggs, flour, and cinnamon?

The recipe is quite easy with a stand mixer. Joanne says you can do it with a hand mixer or a spoon, but you’ll have to cream the butter and sugar for 10 minutes instead of 5. She suggests chilling the dough overnight before baking the cookies. The dough was very easy to work with after an overnight chill. I realize it means planning ahead, but I recommend it.

The Snickerdoodles were a big hit! The recipe was well-written and easy to follow and the cookies were fantastic! I’m looking forward to trying some of the other cookies in the book.

Snickerdoodles!

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Snickerdoodles

(Adapted, barely, from Joanne Chang’s recipe in Flour)

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The original recipe calls for ½ cup sugar and ¼ cup cinnamon for coating the cookies. I found that half that amount was sufficient.

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(print the recipe)

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Makes about 30 cookies

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1 cup (2 sticks/228 grams) unsalted butter, at room temperature

1½ cups (300 grams) sugar, plus ¼ cup (50 grams) for coating

2 eggs

2½ cups (350 grams) unbleached all-purpose flour

1 teaspoon baking soda

¼ teaspoon kosher salt

2 teaspoons cream of tartar

2 Tablespoons (15 grams) ground cinnamon

 

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1. Cream together the butter and 1½ cups sugar. If using a stand mixer, cream them for 5 minutes on medium speed. If using a hand mixer or spoon, cream them for 10 minutes. Scrape the bowl with a spatula now and then to make sure everything is getting incorporated.

 butter and sugar

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Creamed butter and sugar

2. Add the eggs and mix for 2 or 3 minutes.

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 I like to put eggs in a small bowl before adding to the mixer so I can check for shell bits.

3. In a separate bowl, whisk together the flour, baking soda, salt, and cream of tartar. (Original recipe calls for sifting them together. I didn’t do that.)

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Flour, baking soda, salt, and cream of tartar

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4. Slowly add the flour mixture to the butter/sugar mixture. Beat just until it’s evenly mixed; don’t over-mix.

5. Put the dough in a bowl. Cover tightly with plastic wrap and refrigerate overnight.

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6. The next day, preheat the oven to 350˚.

7. Combine the ¼ cup sugar and 2 Tablespoons cinnamon in a small bowl.

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(This was 1/2 cup sugar and 1/4 cup cinnamon which was way too much!)

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8. Roll the dough into small balls. Roll each ball in the cinnamon/sugar mixture and put them about 3 inches apart on the baking sheet.

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9. Flatten them slightly with the palm of your hand.

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10. Bake for about 15 minutes. (Timing depends on a lot of factors. Check them after 12 minutes to see how they’re doing. They’re done when they’re slightly browned around the edges and still a bit soft in the center.)

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11. Let them cool on the baking sheet for about 5 minutes, and then remove to a wire rack to cool.

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