Gluten-Free Snickerdoodles

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These soft and chewy gluten-free Snickerdoodle cookies are the perfect holiday cookie. They channel sweet cinnamon-sugar notes and that signature tang that snickerdoodles are known for.

Cook Time8

Course: Dessert

Cuisine: American

Keyword: snickerdoodles

Servings: cookies

Calories: 114kcal

Author: Jenny Levine Finke

Equipment

1 electric stand mixer hand-held mixer
2 baking sheets
Parchment paper or silpat mats
bowls, spatulas, etc.
cookie scoop 1 1/2 tablespoon

Ingredients

6 tablespoons unsalted butter or 4 tablespoons vegan butter + 2 tablespoons palm shortening for a dairy-free option
¾ cup granulated sugar
1 large egg room temperature (or egg substitute - see notes)
¾ teaspoon vanilla extract
¼ teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon cream of tartar
½ teaspoon ground cinnamon
1½ cups Better Batter Gluten-Free Flour see notes for other options and tips

Topping

¼ cup white sugar
¾ teaspoon cinnamon

Instructions

Preheat the oven to 350° F. Line two baking sheets with parchment paper or silicone baking mats.
Cream the butter and sugar until well combined. Add the egg and vanilla extract and mix at medium speed until smooth.
Add the baking soda, cream of tartar, and cinnamon to the wet mixture and mix at low speed for 15 seconds, then add the Better Batter Gluten-Free Flour (please see notes if using Bob's Red Mill 1-to-1 Gluten-Free Flour because you'll use 1/4 cup less of it) and continue mixing at low speed for another 15 seconds before adjusting the speed to medium-high. Continue to mix until a malleable dough forms.
Scoop about 1½ tablespoons of dough, roll it into the ball, and place it on the baking sheet. You could use a 1½ tablespoon cookie scoop (if you have one) or your kitchen scale to ensure each dough ball weighs 29-30 grams. You'll have enough dough to make 18 cookies.
Combine 1/4 cup of sugar and 3/4 teaspoons of cinnamon in a small bowl. Roll each dough ball in the sugar-cinnamon mixture until they're all lightly coated. Place the dough back on the cookie sheet.
Chilling the Dough:
If using all butter, you may want to chill the dough in the refrigerator for one hour. This will deter the cookies from speading. Optional.
If using vegan butter + palm shortening, you can bake the cookies right away. The palm shortening will give the cookies more structure since shortening melts at a higher temperature than butter.
Bake the cookies for 8-10 minutes or until they spread and lose their doughy sheen. Remove them from the oven before they look fully done; they will continue to cook and set on the baking sheet. A slightly undercooked cookie will be soft and chewy.
Allow the cookies to rest on the baking sheet for 10 minutes before handling and eating.

Notes

Flour Matters: Better Batter Gluten-Free Flour is the best gluten-free flour for making cookies. You can use my coupon code GOODFORYOU for 30% off.

If you use Bob's Red Mill 1-to-1 Gluten-Free Flour, use 1/4 cup less flour. The popular flour blend absorbs a lot of moisture, meaning you'll need less of it to get the same results. I recommend adding 1 1/4 cup of flour, then add the remaining flour one tablespoon at a time until you have a scoopable dough you can roll in the cinnamon sugar coating.

Dairy-Free Options: Instead of using six tablespoons of butter, you could use four tablespoons of vegan butter plus two tablespoons of palm shortening. Better Batter Gluten-Free All-Purpose Flour and Bob's Red Mill 1-to-1 Gluten-Free Flour are both dairy-free.

Vegan Option: You'll need to make a few simple swaps for vegan snickerdoodes. First, use dairy-free butter. Second, swap out the egg for an egg replacer or a flax egg.

If you're using Bob's Red Mill's Egg Replacer, use three tablespoons of water instead of the two tablespoons as directed on the packaging.

Mix three tablespoons of warm water with one tablespoon of flaxseed meal to make a flax egg. Allow the mixture to sit for five minutes until it forms a gel.

Should You Chill Your Dough? Chilling your dough in the fridge for 1-2 hours before baking is optional. If you use all butter, consider chilling the cookies before baking since butter melts quickly and causes the cookies to spread.

However, if you're using part butter (or vegan butter) and part shortening, you can bake the cookies immediately because shortening melts at a higher temperature. This means the cookies won't spread as fast and furious.

Chilling the dough before baking generally results in softer and thicker cookies, which some people prefer. Of course, it's a matter of taste and preference.

Tip! Form the dough into balls, roll them in the cinnamon sugar mixture, then freeze them in a freezer-safe zip-top bag. You can then bake the cookies on demand as desired.

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