(brown butter rye)

Snickerdoodles!

I’m a little slow to be joining the snickerdoodle fan club. (Thanks for having me, even after the condescending judgements I’ve made against what yes, I once considered a pretty boring cookie option.) So much of what I love about baking is the “sharing treats with the people I love” part. And finding myself living with someone that considers the snickerdoodle their favorite cookie…means I’ve made more than a few batches over the last few years. But my other favorite part of baking…is eating things that I think are really delicious. So I’ve been messing around with my snickerdoodle recipe to make it something I can get excited about. And ta-da! I think I’ve done it. This is a subtle variation on my classic cookies base but the small adjustments add up to a snickerdoodle that is simple, comforting, delicious…and not at all boring. (I just ate four of them to check and be sure.)

Note: I love these with rye flour and the nuttiness of that flour is part of what kicks them up from ok to totally delicious. (Same with using browned butter instead of boring ol’ butter.) But I’ve also made and loved these with spelt flour. Play around with whatever flours you have on hand or enjoy in other baked goods!

This recipe uses browned butter, and you’re going to need to let that cool before proceeding with the rest of the recipe. So do that first — then measure everything else out or go for a walk while it cools. If you’re inpatient and don’t want to wait, you can use it when it’s still melty — you’ll just end up with a touch greasier and denser cookie. It’s worth the wait to let it cool but I understand if you just need a damn cookie asap.

 

Directions: 

Brown the butter (see here or here for how to if you’re new to the delightful world of browning butter) and set aside to cool. (See note above.)

Measure dry ingredients (flours, spices, baking powder, salt) into medium bowl & whisk together. Set aside. Combine and set aside the cinnamon & sugar for coating the cookies.

Combine remaining sugars & cooled butter in bowl of stand mixer & beat with paddle attachment until well combined. Should get nice and fluffy and lightened.

Add eggs, one at a time, scraping the bowl in between. Mix in vanilla. 

Add dry ingredients to mixer bowl, scraping down & mixing slowly until just combined. 

Scoop cookies and roll in cinnamon & sugar. I like to press a little flat when I arrange them on lined baking sheets and then add another sprinkle of sugar.

Bake at 350’ for about 10-12 minutes depending on size of cookie & preference. Rotate the pans about halfway through. You’re going for a nice golden brown on the bottom of the cookie, but still pale on top and edges. (Also- I’ve found baking a higher altitude here in ABQ, I’ve been increasing my baking times a bit, so I’m about 12 minutes for small cookies and 14 or 15 for bigger cookies.)

Ingredient list & notes: 

Cinnamon - Sugar (for rolling):

¾ c sugar

1 T cinnamon (or whatever ratio you like!)

Cookie Dough:

8 oz butter

1 c brown sugar (not packed, just loose scoop)

2/3 c powdered sugar

2/3 c white sugar

2 eggs

1 tsp vanilla

2 ½ c all-purpose flour

1 c rye flour (you can play around with different flours or different ratios of rye to all-purpose!)

1 T cinnamon, ground

2 tsp baking powder

¾ tsp baking soda

2 tsp salt (coarse, kosher)