Snickerdoodle cookies with a twist! Soft, cocoa-based cookies with warm notes of cinnamon and sugar make for a fun twist on a classic — these chocolate snickerdoodles are sure to be a new favorite!
The photos & text in this post have been updated, but the recipe is the same!
Are you tired of the Christmas music yet? The holiday shopping? The cold weather? The holiday baking?
Some of it I could do without (I’m looking at you, way-crowded shopping center and frosted windshield), but I’m trying to soak up every last bit of holiday cheer that I can in these 9 (!?) days we have left before Christmas. At home, I’ve got Trans Siberian Orchestra on full blast and there are plenty more cookie recipes coming your way in the next few posts.
Today’s cookie recipe is actually from last year — these chocolate snickerdoodles were a huge hit everywhere I took them, but the photos that I had taken didn’t do them justice.
It was time for a reshoot (or maybe just an excuse to re-make one of my favorite cookies).
Ever since I learned that I could sub out the shortening that my mom’s snickerdoodle recipe called for and use butter instead, Snickerdoodles have been my favorite cookies to make every year (there are very few occasions where shortening has any business being in cookies, and Snickerdoodles are not one of them).
I thought I’d shake things up a bit by adding cocoa into the mix.
Chocolate and cinnamon aren’t an everyday flavor pairing (at least not in my world), but they complement each other in an unexpected way; it’s a cozy, slightly spiced, warming taste, crackly outsides with rich chocolate interiors. It’s like a cup of hot cocoa on a snowy Christmas night; they’re festive and cozy and just all around delicious.
I never really considered a cookie as something that could be particularly cozy, but I’ve said it twice now so it must be true, at least when it comes to chocolate snickerdoodles.
Since the chocolate taste is pretty pronounced in these chocolate snickerdoodles (duh), I didn’t want the cinnamon flavoring to be lost in the final product. Half teaspoon of ground cinnamon is sprinkled into the dough in addition to being rolled over the outside.
As I mentioned, I originally published this recipe a year ago, and while I didn’t make any fundamental changes to the recipe, I did add in an optional step where you chill the dough balls for a second time after you’ve rolled them in cinnamon/sugar/cocoa powder.
This isn’t necessary for a great final product, but I like to do it because allowing the dough time to sit with the sugar coating encourages a nice classic crackle in your baked chocolate snickerdoodles.
Enjoy!
Chocolate Snickerdoodles
Ingredients
- 1 cup butter softened
- 1 cup sugar (200g)
- ½ cup light brown sugar tightly packed (100g)
- 2 large eggs
- 2 ¾ cups all-purpose flour (326g)
- ¼ cup cocoa powder (25g)
- 1 ½ tsp cream of tartar
- 1 tsp baking soda
- ½ tsp ground cinnamon
- ½ tsp salt
For rolling
- 3 Tbsp sugar
- 1 ½ tsp ground cinnamon
- ¾ tsp cocoa powder
Instructions
- In KitchenAid or with electric mixer cream butter.
- Add sugars and beat until light and fluffy.
- Add eggs, one at a time, beating until combined and pausing after each addition to scrape down sides of bowl.
- In separate, medium-sized bowl whisk together flour, cocoa powder, cream of tartar, baking soda, cinnamon and salt.
- With mixer on low speed, gradually add flour mixture to butter mixture, pausing occasionally to scrape down sides of bowl.
- Once all ingredients are incorporated, transfer bowl to refrigerator and chill 30 minutes.
- In small bowl, whisk together sugar, ground cinnamon and cocoa powder for rolling.
- Once dough has finished chilling, remove from refrigerator and roll into 1- 1 ½" balls.
- Roll in sugar/cinnamon/cocoa powder mixture until coated in mixture and place on a parchment paper-lined baking sheet, spacing about 2" apart (do not ever put cookie dough on a hot/too-warm pan, the cookies will spread too thin when baking if you do).
- Place pan in refrigerator (or freezer!) and chill sugar/cinnamon/cocoa coated dough balls for another 30 minutes (this step is optional & can be skipped if you're impatient -- you can jump right to placing them in the oven. However, doing this step will give you nicer, more pronounced crackles in your cookies, if you're into that sort of thing)
- While dough is chilling, preheat oven to 350F.
- Once dough has finished chilling, bake on 350F for 10 minutes.
- Remove from oven and allow to cool 5-10 minutes on cookie sheet before transferring to wire rack to cool completely.
Nutrition
Originally published 11/30/15 — text & photographs updated 12/16/16
Robin
Hi Sam,
I got a request today for cookies and you are my go to when I am looking for something new and different! Todays trick was finding something I could whip up with ingredients on hand given we are social distancing and avoiding the grocery store. These chocolate snickerdoodles were the winner. I am wondering if the butter called for is intended to be salted or unsalted.
Thanks for all of your delicious recipes.
I hope you and yours are healthy and well.
Sugar Spun Run
Thank you so much, Robin! I typically use unsalted butter (unless indicated) for all of my recipes. This allows me to really control the taste. If you only have salted butter on hand, that is ok. You will just omit the salt. I hope that you enjoy the cookies. 🙂
Stacy
I was wanting to add a little cayenne to them to spice them up a little. Would you know how much to add and if I should add it to the cookie or the rolling mixture? They are sooooo good!!!
Sugar Spun Run
Hi, Stacy! I have not added cayenne pepper to this recipe so I am not certain how much to add without trying it myself. I do use cayenne pepper in my soft ginger snap cookies and use 1/8 tsp. You may just need to add little by little until you get the desired level of heat. Keep me posted on how they turn out! 🙂
Stacy
Thank you!!
Caryl
Can you make these cookies 🍪 sugar free? Replace the sugar with Splenda and the light brown sugar with light brown sugar Splenda blend. Would that work? Can you let me know?
Sam
Unfortunately I’m not familiar with sugar free baking so I can’t say for sure how they would turn out, I’m sorry Caryl! If you try them I’d love to know how they turn out for you.
Jillian
I just finished making them for Valentine’s day. I think the recipe is very tasty. Only thing I’m wondering next time is I may add a little bit of vanilla extract. I will see what my boyfriend says tomorrow. He is pretty blunt and will tell me the truth! If he ends up falling in love with him I will add that to my comment. He will be the real test. Thanks for sharing! Great idea.
Sam
Hi Jillian! Adding vanilla extract would be fine. Hope your boyfriend loved them! 🙂
Jenine
I do not have cream of tartar. Can I substitute it with something else?
Sam
Hi, Jenine! Unfortunately, I do not have a good substitute for the cream of tartar. It adds that signature snickerdoodle flavor.
Tori
This recipe is AMAZING! So soft and tasty. I did the chill steps and got the perfect “crack” on the top of my cookies.
Sam
I am so glad you enjoyed them, Tori! ☺️
Nancy
Hi Sam!
I have made other cookies with the secret ingredient in them (maple syrup) – do you think the Chocolate Snickerdoodles would benefit from this little flavoring?
Thanks for all the great recipes- I have gone cookie “crazy”.
Keep up the great work!
Nancy
Sam
I think it would make them too soft and they would spread too much.
Susan Young
Can I make these without the cinnamon?
kelly
I just made these cookies last night. My husband isnt a cookie person so I am left eating cookies…Yikes. But these cookies are wonderful and he even loved them! Such a wonderful flavor and the hint of cinnamon with the chocolate is outstanding. Thank you for a special cookie recipe! It makes alot of cookies and I enjoyed making them. They turned out just like the picture. Soft inside with just a bit of crunch on the outside. Outstanding flavor and they look so pretty! Merry Christmas:)
Sam
Kelly I’m so glad that both you and your husband enjoyed the cookies! These are one of my favorites, too, thank you so much for coming back and commenting how you liked them! Merry Christmas!! 🙂
Steph
These are the best, we like them better than regular snickerdoodles!
Mary Frances
I’ve always loved snickerdoodles, and I’ve heard of chocolate versions but I never take the plunge. This holiday season I may have to change that, these look too good!
Sam
I bet you would love them, Mary Frances! Thanks so much! 🙂
Denise @ Sweet Peas & Saffron
These look like my kind of cookies! I am a total cookie snob when it comes to that chewy texture and these guys definitely look like they are nice and chewy! YUM!
Sam
They are so perfectly chewy, I bet you would love them! Thanks, Denise! 🙂
Medha @ Whisk & Shout
These snickerdoodles look amazing! Chocolate and cinnamon are such a great combination 🙂
Sam
Thanks, Medha!!
Amanda
I love chocolate and cinnamon together! It always gives chocolate a nice little kick.
Sam
It really does! Thanks, Amanda!
Marsha | Marsha's Baking Addiction
A chocolate version of snickerdoodles – yum! These look so soft, chewy and delicious!
Sam
Thanks, Marsha!!