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There’s something magical about a classic snickerdoodle—the warm, sweet cinnamon flavor paired with soft, buttery dough makes it a favorite recipe in many households. This recipe takes the snickerdoodle cookie to the next level, thanks to the addition of cream cheese, with a thick, chewy texture. These chewy snickerdoodles are rolled in a cinnamon-sugar mixture for that signature, slightly crunchy coating.
If you are a fan of this classic cookie, then you should also check out my White Chocolate Snickerdoodle Bars and my Snickerdoodle Bars with Brown Sugar Frosting.
The Chemistry of Snickerdoodles
The secret to a great snickerdoodle cookie lies in the cream of tartar. It gives snickerdoodles their signature tangy flavor and helps create soft, chewy cookies with a puffy texture. Combined with baking soda, the cream of tartar acts as a leavening agent, ensuring the cookies rise properly. Adding cream cheese to the dough also helps create a rich, chewy texture, while using a mix of brown sugar and granulated sugar gives the cookies both sweetness and moisture.
What is in snickerdoodles?
All-purpose Flour
Builds structure as it absorbs liquids and expands. All-purpose flour falls in the middle of bread flour (high in gluten) and cake flour (low in gluten). It’s exactly what it is named, all-purpose, the most universal flour that can be used in most baked goods.
Baking Soda
Elevates the pH level of your batter or dough. It increases the spread in your treat and encourages browning, which gives the crispy outside and soft inside texture that everyone loves. Baking soda needs both an acid and a liquid to react. Things that will activate your baking soda are: vinegar, fruit juice, molasses, brown sugar, tartar, buttermilk and sour cream. Baking soda only reacts once, which is right when it’s mixed into your batter or dough. The soda creates little air bubbles all throughout your treat. When the air bubbles get heated up in the oven, they expand.
Cream of Tartar
Stabilizes the egg whites, ensuring they hold their structure when whipped.
Cinnamon
A seasoning that adds a nice spice to your treat.
Fine Sea Salt
Enhances flavor, adds balance, masks any bitter flavors. Salt is the most powerful and oldest preservative. Always make sure to use fine sea salt so it melts down at the right speed in the heat of the oven. If you use larger granule salt, it will not melt down fully when baked and will leave salt crystals throughout your treat, making it crunch like you dropped it into sand. All of my favorite salts are from Redmond and I have a discount code for you to get 15% off.
Unsalted Butter
It is always important to use unsalted butter when baking. If you use salted butter, you have no way of knowing how much salt you are adding to your dough or batter and it will result in an overly salted treat.
Butter adds fats to your dough or batter which helps with moistness, flavor and texture. Butter melts at body temperature, which creates a ‘melt in your mouth’ sensation.
When baking with butter, the temperature is important. If the butter is too warm, your treat will melt too fast and overspread in the oven, leaving you with a greasy, flat mess. If your butter is too cold, it will have the opposite problem and not melt down enough, leaving your treat too thick.
Cream cheese
Provides a unique, tangy flavor. When baked it adds moisture to your treat.
Granulated Sugar
Adds sweetness, provides a caramelized flavor and crisp texture. Sugar assists with rising when creamed with butter. It helps add moisture to your treat and helps it evenly spread as it melts into a liquid in the heat of the oven. Sugar also helps with naturally preserving your baked treat.
Brown Sugar
Is granulated sugar with a little molasses mixed in. Molasses is a somewhat smoky flavored natural sweetener, which makes brown sugar a bit sweeter than granulated sugar. Brown sugar draws more moisture into your treat, keeping it softer for longer. It’s also more acidic, which means it will help activate your baking soda.
Eggs
Adds both a protein (egg whites) and fat (egg yolks). The egg whites help with rising because, when foamed, little air pockets get trapped inside the egg white mixture. The water content in egg whites encourages steam while baking, which helps with gluten formation, resulting in nice and thick treats. Egg yolks have emulsifying properties that bring batters and doughs together and help them from collapsing. Unless otherwise specified, always use large eggs.
Vanilla Extract
When using pure vanilla extract, as opposed to imitation flavoring, it will add the deep rich flavor that everybody wants in a treat.
Cinnamon Sugar
This classic combination creates the signature coating for snickerdoodles, adding a sweet, slightly crunchy exterior.
Step One: Start by creaming your room temperature butter, cream cheese, and granulated sugar together. This takes two whole minutes.
Step Two: Add the remaining wet ingredients (eggs and vanilla).
Step Three: Fold until combined.
Step Four: Add the dry ingredients (all-purpose flour, baking soda, cream of tartar and salt)
Step Five: Fold until a batter forms.
Step Six: Using a large cookie scoop, scoop the cookie dough into the cinnamon and sugar. Roll to cover, then place on a light-metal-colored cookie sheet lined with parchment paper.
Step Six: Repeat until all the dough is in cookie dough balls.
Step Seven: Bake for 10 minutes, cool, and serve.
How to Store Homemade Snickerdoodles
Store your chewy snickerdoodles in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 5 days. If you need to store them longer, freeze the dough or baked cookies for up to 3 months.
The cookie dough can be made ahead and refrigerated for up to 3 hours before baking. You can also freeze the cookie dough balls and bake them directly from the freezer; add an extra minute or two to the baking time.
Serving Suggestions
These cookies are perfect served warm with a glass of milk or hot chocolate. For a fun twist, serve them as a part of a cookie sandwich with a creamy filling like peanut butter or frosting.
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Why make snickerdoodles?
These thick snickerdoodle cookies are a perfect treat for any occasion. They’re an excellent choice for holiday baking, cookie swaps, or even as an after-school snack. The combination of warm cinnamon and the soft-baked texture makes them an irresistible treat year-round.
These thick snickerdoodle cookies are soft, pillowy, and full of cinnamon-sugar flavor. The cream cheese adds a slight tang, making them even more irresistible. With their chewy texture, these cookies are perfect for anyone who loves soft-baked cookies. Plus, they’re made with basic ingredients you likely already have in your pantry, so that you can whip them up anytime a cookie craving strikes. They also store well in an airtight container, making them perfect for sharing or gifting.
Enjoy baking these classic Snickerdoodle cookies with their signature cinnamon-sugar hug and soft, chewy center. Whether baking for family, friends, or just for yourself, these cookies are guaranteed to satisfy your sweet tooth and become a family favorite!
FAQs
What makes a snickerdoodle different from a sugar cookie?
The primary difference is the addition of cream of tartar, which gives snickerdoodles their signature tangy flavor. Snickerdoodles are also rolled in a cinnamon-sugar mixture, whereas sugar cookies typically aren’t.
Why are my snickerdoodles flat?
If your cookies turn out flat, you may have not added enough flour or the dough was too warm. Be sure to measure the flour correctly and chill the dough if necessary to keep the cookies from spreading too much during baking.
Can I add chocolate chips to snickerdoodles?
Yes! For a fun twist, you can add chocolate chips to your snickerdoodle cookie dough, creating a chocolate chip snickerdoodle variation that’s just as delicious.
How do I store snickerdoodles?
You can store your snickerdoodles in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 5 days. For more extended storage, you can freeze the dough or baked cookies for up to 3 months.
Recipes You May Love
- Big, Soft and Chewy Peanut Butter Chocolate Chip Cookies
- Soft and Chewy Maple Brown Sugar Cookies
- Snickerdoodle Bars with Brown Sugar Frosting Recipe
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Thick Snickerdoodles
Ingredients
- 3 cup all-purpose flour
- 1 tsp baking soda
- 2 tsp cream of tartar
- 1 tsp cinnamon
- 1/2 tsp fine sea salt
- 1 cup unsalted butter
- 4 ounces cream cheese
- 1 cup granulated sugar
- 1/2 cup brown sugar
- 2 eggs
- 1 1/2 tsp vanilla extract
- cinnamon and sugar mix
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350 degrees
- In the bowl of a standing mixer add the butter and cream cheese, mix until softened.
- Add the granulated sugar and brown sugar and mix until combined. Turn the mixer on high and whip until light and fluffy.
- Stir in the eggs and vanilla extract.
- Pour the dry ingredients into the bowl: flour, baking soda, tartar, cinnamon and salt. Mix on slow until the dough forms.
- Scoop with a large cookie scoop into a bowl of cinnamon and sugar mix, roll until the dough is covered.
- Place the covered cookie dough onto light metal cookie sheets lined with parchment paper.
- Bake for 9-10 minutes
- Remove and allow them to set on the pan for 5-10 minutes before removing.
Nutrition
Have you tried this recipe?
I’d love to see it! Follow @_mrs.madi_ on Instagram and tag your photos with #mrsmadi.
Erin Nelson
I love snickerdoodles and these are next level! Like little clouds dusted in cinnamon sugar. I can’t wait to make them again!
Madison Reid
I am so happy to hear that you love them as much as I do! Thank you for taking the time to rate and review my recipe!