Vanilla Bean Snickerdoodles

Kitty FloridoAugust 28, 2012

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Snickerdoodles. The name is funny. How can you go wrong with Snickerdoodles? As all cookies, Snickerdoodles start with butter, sugar and flour, but by the end you toss them with cinnamon sugar. Snickerdoodles are characterized by a cracked surface and can be crisp or soft depending on preference. Baked in an oven, these cookies are crispy on the outside and soft and gooey on the inside.

With different origin stories, this is what we could piece together: snickerdoodles are probably German in origin, and that the name is a corruption of the German word Schneckennudeln, some kind of pastry. Or that comes from the german word Schnecke “snicker” comes from the German word Schnecke, which describes a snail shape. But the best one so far, is that the name has no particular meaning or purpose and is simply a whimsically named cookie that originated from a New England tradition of fanciful cookie names. Honestly, the last one is the one I like to believe. The name is funny and brings back warm and fuzzy memories… so why not go with that name origin? What do you think?

Now, on to some recipe notes. Since my Joy Cookbook is still on its way, I got this recipe from the Shugary Sweets site. I made a few annotations from the original post. The most important, is that you need to leave enough space between the cookies to spread. This recipe is very much like chocolate chip cookies. You get the idea, they spread out to bake. I ended up placing three cookies per sheet and baking two sheets at the time. All of the cookies came out delicious! Definitely looking forward to my Joy cookbook to arrive.

Kitty

Vanilla Bean Snickerdoodles

Recipe from Joy the Baker
Yields: 5 dozen small cookies or 2½ regular sized cookies

Ingredients:
1 cup butter, softened
1 ½ cup sugar
2 eggs
1 ½ teaspoons vanilla beans
2 ¾ cup flour
2 teaspoons cream of tartar
1 teaspoon baking soda
¼ teaspoon kosher salt

For the Topping:
⅓ cup sugar
2 teaspoons cinnamon

Directions:

In mixing bowl, beat butter and sugar until thoroughly combined about 3 minutes. Add eggs, one at a time, beating for one minute between additions. Beat in vanilla beans.
Scrape down sides of bowl and add in flour, cream of tartar, baking soda and salt. Mix until just combined. Cover dough and refrigerate for at least 30 minutes.
Preheat oven to 350 degrees. In small bowl mix together the cinnamon and sugar. Scoop dough by large tablespoons and roll in cinnamon sugar mixture. Place on parchment paper lined baking sheets, several inches apart. If possible, just have three or four cookies per sheet.
Bake for 13-15 minutes, until edges are slightly browned. For smaller cookies, bake 12-14 minutes.
Allow cookies to set on cookie sheet about ten minutes before removing to wire rack to cool. Enjoy!