Snickerdoodles

Christmas cookie bonanza week has arrived! I hope you are as excited to make and eat these tasty morsels as I am to share them with you. :)

To kick off our week of cookies is the ever-classic Snickerdoodle.

Nothing says Christmas in my family quite like Snickerdoodles. Before we were even able to walk, we all knew how to roll balls of dough in cinnamon and sugar. 

These are so simple. If you don't know how to make these yet, it's about time.

When I was teaching, I loved to mix these up with my Kindergarteners. They allow the maximum amount of involvement with the least amount of stress. (It is not always easy to find baking projects that go smoothly with five year olds.) 

Although, you don't need to be young to make these -- they are great for the kid at heart too. Scrumptious pieces of raw dough can sneakily be rolled in the cinnamon and sugar, and popped surreptitiously into your mouth. Be sly. Be a cookie ninja.

Snickerdoodles

1/2 c. butter, softened

3/4 c. sugar

1 egg

2 c. flour

1 t. cream of tartar

1/2 t. baking soda

4 T. sugar

2 T. cinnamon

Preheat oven to 400 F. Grease a baking sheet.

Cream butter with sugar, until fluffy. Add egg and mix well.

Add flour, cream of tartar, and baking soda. Stir until just mixed together.

In a small bowl, mix together 4 T of sugar and cinnamon.

Make dough into 1/2 in. round balls. Roll in cinnamon and sugar mixture. Place on greased baking sheet. Bake approximately 8 minutes.

These are a bit tricky to bake just right. Once they puff up, press down on the center. If they indent easily, they are not done; if they retain their shape, they are finished. The bottoms begin to blacken once they are finished so it is important to remove them once they have achieved this stage.

Remove immediately from baking sheet and place on cooling rack.

Makes about 2 dozen. Easily doubled.