Brown Butter Snickerdoodles

Nutty brown butter combines with sweet cinnamon sugar in these chewy brown butter snickerdoodles for a slightly more grown-up version of the classic cookie.

Snickerdoodles always feel like a childhood classic to me. The sweet cinnamon-sugar flavor is pretty much always a hit with kids. Plus, they’re easy to make, so they’re a good recipe to make with kiddos.

In fact, Stephie remembers snickerdoodles being one of the first things she baked with her mom as a kid (after classic rice krispie treats, of course!). 

I still love classic snickerdoodle cookies, but sometimes I want to make something that feels just a bit more fancy. Maybe a bit more grown up. But still with all of the nostalgia of the original.

That’s when this brown butter snickerdoodle recipe comes in.

Why you’ll love these brown butter snickerdoodles

Brown butter is one of my favorite ways to take a classic recipe and make it just a little more special. 

If you’ve tried my brown butter chocolate chip cookies, brown butter rice krispie treats, or brown butter banana bread, you’ll know what I mean. Even chocolate chipless cookies benefit from a little brown butter treatment. 

Brown butter has a nutty flavor that pairs perfectly with the cinnamon-sugar base of these snickerdoodles. You get all of the chewy texture, sweetness, and slight tang of the original with an added hint of nuttiness from the brown butter.

This might be my new favorite way to make snickerdoodles.

And considering how fast my friends and neighbors devoured these, I think they would agree.

Why is cream of tartar important in this recipe?

Like all good snickerdoodle recipes, these brown butter snickerdoodles call for cream of tartar in the ingredients.

Cream of tartar is the acidic byproduct of winemaking. It is white and powdery and looks a bit like baking powder.

There are actually a lot of uses for cream of tartar, but in cookies it helps prevent the sugars from crystalizing, giving you soft and chewy cookies.

The acidity of cream of tartar also gives snickerdoodles their tangy flavor! (Just like when we add buttermilk to recipes like Texas sheet cake or buttermilk pancakes.)

To make true snickerdoodles, you really do have to use cream of tartar. You can find it in the spice aisle of any grocery store. 

Vinegar or lemon juice can be substituted for the acidity, but these cookies will not have the same texture without the cream of tartar.

How to make my brown butter snickerdoodles

Even though this recipe adds the process of browning butter to the original snickerdoodle recipe, I promise that these are still pretty easy cookies to make.

Ingredients you’ll need

If you’ve made my easy snickerdoodle cookies, you will recognize this ingredient list. That’s because it is actually the same!

This recipe is a great example of how tweaking the method just a bit can change the final product.

You’ll need:

• 1 cup unsalted butter
• 1 1/2 cups granulated sugar
• 2 large eggs
• 2 3/4 cups all-purpose flour
• 1 teaspoon baking soda
• 2 teaspoons cream of tartar
• ½ teaspoon fine sea salt

Don’t worry about softening the butter before you start baking. Since we’re going to brown the butter, it can be cold from the fridge! 

Make sure you know how to measure flour correctly so that your brown butter snickerdoodles turn out perfect every time.

For the cinnamon-sugar coating on the outside of the cookies, you will also need:

• ½ cup granulated sugar
• 2 teaspoons ground cinnamon

Making these snickerdoodles

The first step to making these cookies is to brown the butter.

If you have never done this before, I have a whole post on how to brown butter that walks you through the process in detail. But here’s a summary:

Melt the butter in a saucepan or skillet over medium heat, stirring or swirling frequently. Once the butter has melted, keep cooking it, stirring or swirling frequently.

The butter will sputter, then eventually foam, then subside. You’ll see brown specks form at the bottom of the pan and the butter will start to smell nutty.

As soon as it is your desired color, immediately take it off the heat and pour it into a bowl to stop the cooking.

Now place the browned butter in the refrigerator for 30-45 minutes. You want the butter to be solid, but still soft enough to cream with the sugar.

Use a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment or an electric hand mixer to cream the butter and sugar until well blended, then beat in the eggs. 

In a separate bowl, whisk together the flour, baking soda, cream of tartar, and salt. Slowly add the dry ingredients to the butter mixture until just combined.

In a small bowl, mix the cinnamon and sugar for rolling. Portion the dough into 1.5-tablespoon scoops; roll them into balls with your hands and then roll the cookie dough balls in the cinnamon-sugar mixture. 

Place the cookies on baking sheets lined with parchment paper. Make sure to leave about 2 inches between each cookie.

Bake the brown butter snickerdoodles at 350°F for 12-14 minutes. They should be lightly golden but still soft. 

Let the cookies cool on the baking sheets for about 5 minutes before transferring them to a wire rack to finish cooling.

FAQs