Time Travel Kitchen

A Salute to Snickerdoodles

The Snickerdoodles I made this week (using all butter, no shortening) are crinkly on the outside with a chewy center

Saying the word ‘Snickerdoodle’ makes the expression on my face morph into the sweet, smiling emoji (☺️) that usually only happens when I see pets or newborns.

It’s a happy, silly word and a favorite American cookie.

Snickerdoodles came on the scene in 1891 when a New York City ‘Cookery School’ teacher and columnist, Nellie Campbell Bedford, was working with the Cleveland Brothers Baking Powder Company in Albany, N.Y.

Nellie developed recipes to promote this ‘pure cream of tartar powder…free from alum, lime and other adulterants.’

Free From Adulterants

The original Snickerdoodle recipe was baked in a pan, sprinkled with cinnamon and used only butter in the recipe. After baking, it was cut into squares as a bar cookie.

But The Great Depression had home cooks turning to shortening for baking as butter was scarce and rationed.

The Snickerdoodle of the 1930’s became a round cookie and the use of shortening made it fluffier. Depending on your preference you can find recipes today that use either butter or shortening or a combination of the two.

Whichever recipe you choose, it is the Cream of Tartar that give Snickerdoodles their distinctive, tangy flavor and their texture, setting them apart from their cousin, the sugar cookie.

Nellie’s Original Recipe, 1892

As for the name? No one is sure if it’s just a made-up whimsical name or a corruption of the German word used for cinnamon buns, ‘Schneckennudln’ (snail noodles) which describe the look of the coiled dough of the delicious buns as they bake.

The Recipe I Made

The recipe I made is from Flapper Pie and a Blue Prairie Sky by Karlynn Johnston, aka The Kitchen Magpie. These cookies are so delicious and use only butter which is my preference. They are nice and crinkly with a chewy center.

Here’s the link:

The Kitchen Magpie Snickerdoodle Recipe

Finally, I saw a post this week from Food & Wine for seasonal Pumpkin Snickerdoodles that I thought you’d also enjoy. Here’s the link:

Pumpkin Snickerdoodles from Food & Wine

Have a great weekend!

Jolene

Sources and Credits:

Cookie photo: Jolene

Anthony Mastroianni, Here’s How Snickerdoodles May Have Got Their Name, Mashed, April, 2021

Anne Byrne, American Cookie, Rodale, 2018

Karlynn Johnston, Flapper Pie and a Blue Prairie Sky, Appetite by Random House, 2016

Pinterest

Maynard Historical Society

The Difference Between Snickerdoodles and Sugar Cookies, Huffpost, 2017

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