Snickerdoodles (America's Test Kitchen)

By zircon50

With their crinkly tops, slightly tangy flavor, and liberal dusting of cinnamon sugar, chewy snickerdoodles are a New England favorite. We quickly determined that cream of tartar is essential to these cookies. Not only is it responsible for their characteristic subtle tang, but, combined with baking soda, it creates a short-lived leavening effect that causes the cookies to rise and fall quickly while baking, leaving them with a distinctive crinkly appearance. Some traditional snickerdoodle recipes contain vegetable shortening, and with good reason: Unlike butter, shortening contains no water, so cookies made with shortening tend to hold their shape rather than spread out. We found that using equal amounts of shortening and butter gave us the best of both worlds—thick, nicely shaped cookies that were chewy and buttery-tasting. Vanilla proved to be a distraction, so we left it out. Rolling the balls of dough in cinnamon sugar—we liked a full tablespoon for warm spice flavor—imparted a spicy sweet crunch to the cookies. For the best results, we baked the cookies one sheet at a time and pulled them from the oven just as they were beginning to brown but were still soft and puffy in the middle. They continued to cook as they cooled on the baking sheet, and were perfectly done and chewy once cooled.

Ingredients

• 2 1/2 cups (12 1/2 ounces) all-purpose flour
• 2 teaspoons cream of tartar
• 1 teaspoon baking soda
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 8 tablespoons unsalted butter, softened
• 8 tablespoons vegetable shortening
• 1 1/2 cups (10 1/2 ounces) sugar, plus 1/4 cup for rolling
• 2 large eggs
• 1 tablespoon ground cinnamon

Preparation

Step 1

1. Adjust oven rack to middle position and heat oven to 375 degrees. Line 3 baking sheets with parchment paper. Whisk flour, cream of tartar, baking soda, and salt together in bowl.

2. Using stand mixer fitted with paddle, beat butter, shortening, and 1 1/2 cups sugar together on medium speed until light and fluffy, about 3 minutes. Beat in eggs, one at a time, until incorporated, about 30 seconds, scraping down bowl as needed.

3. Reduce speed to low and slowly add flour mixture until combined, about 30 seconds. Give dough final stir by hand to ensure that no flour pockets remain.

4. Combine remaining 1/4 cup sugar and cinnamon in shallow dish. Working with 2 tablespoons dough at a time, roll into balls, then roll in sugar to coat; measure and space 2 inches apart on prepared baking sheets. (Raw cookies can be frozen for up to 1 month; bake frozen cookies in 300-degree oven for 18 to 20 minutes.)

5. Bake cookies, 1 sheet at a time, with 8 cookies per sheet, until edges are just set and beginning to brown but centers are still soft, puffy, and cracked (cookies will look raw between cracks and seem underdone), 8-12 minutes, rotating sheet halfway through baking. Let cookies cool on sheet for 10 minutes, then transfer to wire rack and let cool completely before serving.