Soft Snickerdoodles

Today is the first day of spring! It was really fantastic weather here today, but looks like it will be the last warm day for a while - I did enjoy soaking up the sun tremendously. And you have to say, don't these snickerdoodles look like little suns? Okay, maybe I'm stretching it a bit, but they are pretty delicious I have to say. I had never had snickerdoodles so I didn't know what to expect. I'm sure every American has fond memories of this cookie, but I was a blank slate! I found that snickerdoodles are somewhat cake-like, with a huge dose of vanilla and cinnamon for extra warmth. I guess that's where my sun analogy came from! 

Anyhow, this is Edd Kimber's recipe for Snickerdoodles. You might remember Edd from the first season of the Great British Bake Off, which he won. I bought his book "Say it with Cake" a while back, but before these snickerdoodles I had never baked from it. It's a great baking book when you've just started out in baking. There are some classic recipes in there with a bit of a twist (like Raspberry Ripple Choux Buns). It isn't very technical, but the directions are very clear. Speaking of the Bake Off, I signed up for the Dutch version last summer! I still haven't heard back from them, but I saw they were holding auditions so I don't know if I will. It would be so exciting to audition! The Bake Off was what got me into baking (for real) in the first place so it would be an honor to participate. Fingers crossed!

Recipe Snickerdoodles 

Big, sunny, soft cookies with a big punch of vanilla and a cinnamon sugar topping

Makes: 12 big cookies

Tools: 2 baking sheets lined with baking parchment 

Ingredients:

Cookie Dough:

160gr unsalted butter, at room temperature

200gr caster sugar

50gr light brown sugar

1 large egg

1/2 tsp vanilla extract

175gr plain flour

1 tsp baking powder

Cinnamon Coating:

50gr caster sugar

1 1/2 tsp ground cinnamon

1. Preheat the oven to 180C/360F. 

2. Beat the butter and the sugars together with an electric mixer until light and fluffy. This will take around 5 minutes.

3. Add the egg and vanilla, a little at a time, beating well after each addition. Mix the flour and baking powder in a separate bowl, the beat into the batter in three additions until just combined.

4. Divide the cookie dough in 12 equal-sized balls. In a bowl, mix the cinnamon and sugar. Roll each ball in the cinnamon sugar to coat. Place them on the baking sheet, spaced 5 cm apart. Bake for 10-12 minutes, or until the cookies are golden around the edges but still soft in the middle. When baked, leave the cookies on the baking sheets to firm up for a few minutes, then transfer to a wire rack to cool completely.

Source: Say it with Cake