Even better than the cookies, these Snickerdoodle Blondies are buttery, soft, and have that classic signature snickerdoodle tang! These cinnamon-sugar coated blondies may be the best way to eat Snickerdoodles yet. Recipe includes a how-to video!
This snickerdoodle blondie recipe is actually one of the first recipes I ever shared on the blog (scroll down to the bottom of the page for a link to the original so you can have a good laugh at my early photography attempts). It’s one of my favorites, too. An easy-breezy recipe that can be mixed up (without a mixer!) in less than 15 minutes and finished baking in under 30.
This recipe is the perfect marriage of my classic, buttery snickerdoodle cookies (only without the bother of dough-chilling or scooping) and my chewy blondie recipe. Subtly tangy, topped off with a generous shower of cinnamon and sugar, a tender, melt-in-your-mouth cookie crumb, I think you’re going to love these.
What Makes these Snickerdoodle Bars So Good…
Most of the ingredients we’re using are pretty standard ones you’ll be familiar with if you’ve made any of my other bar or cookie recipes. However, there are a two ingredients that are especially key here for the best snickerdoodle blondies.
Butter
No shortening, which so many old-fashioned cookie recipes use. We’re also melting our butter, which not only makes it easy to stir our batter together by hand (no mixer required), but also makes these snickerdoodle blondies especially soft and chewy and infuses every molecule with buttery flavor. As with many of my recipes, I opt to use unsalted butter and add salt so that we have full control over the flavor.
Cream of tartar
This is a big one. One of the questions I get asked most often about this recipe is “I don’t have cream of tartar, can I leave it out?”, to which I always say no, not really.
Technically you could leave it out and these bars would still turn out… They’d still have the same texture, softness and chewiness. Since we’re not baking cookies and our batter is contained in a baking pan, we don’t really need to worry about the chemical/leavening role that this ingredient typically plays in snickerdoodle cookies. However, not everything in baking is always about chemistry. The important role that the cream of tartar plays here is for taste. This ingredient provides a signature tang that makes these taste like actual snickerdoodles and not just sugar cookie bars. If you leave it out, you miss out on that classic flavor.
Then, of course, it goes without saying that a heavy topping of cinnamon and sugar is in order 👆🏻
Tips
- We’re using melted butter, but make sure to let it cool before you add your sugar to it. Butter that is too hot will melt your sugar, and you could end up with a greasy dough that doesn’t bake properly in the oven.
- I use a metal baking dish, a glass one would be fine but the bars may need to bake for longer.
- Snickerdoodle blondies should be stored at room temperature in an airtight container. They’ll stay fresh for at least 3 days.
- And, again, don’t leave out the cream of tartar (see notes above!).
Today’s recipe is really so simple to make that I don’t have much else to say here!
Enjoy!
More Bar Recipes to Try:
- Copycat Cosmic Brownies
- Chocolate Chip Cookie Bars
- Homemade Brownies
- Peanut Butter Blondies
- Gingerbread Cookie Bars
Let’s bake together! Head on over to my YouTube channel where I’ve already uploaded over 200 recipe videos that you can watch for free!
Snickerdoodle Blondies
Ingredients
- 1 cup (227 g) unsalted butter melted and cooled until no longer warm to the touch
- 2 cups (400 g) granulated sugar
- 2 Tablespoon (30 ml) milk
- 2 large eggs
- ½ teaspoon vanilla extract optional
- 2 ¾ cups (345 g) all-purpose flour
- 1 teaspoon baking powder
- ½ teaspoon cream of tartar
- ¾ teaspoon salt
Topping
- 3 Tablespoons granulated sugar
- 1 ½ teaspoon ground cinnamon
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350F (175C).
- Grease and flour (or line with parchment paper) a 13x9 pan. Set aside.
- In a large bowl, combine melted butter, sugar, and milk. Stir well.1 cup (227 g) unsalted butter, 2 cups (400 g) granulated sugar, 2 Tablespoon (30 ml) milk
- Add in eggs and vanilla extract and stir until combined.2 large eggs, ½ teaspoon vanilla extract
- In a separate bowl, combine flour, baking powder, cream of tartar and salt.2 ¾ cups (345 g) all-purpose flour, 1 teaspoon baking powder, ½ teaspoon cream of tartar, ¾ teaspoon salt
- Stir dry ingredients into butter mixture until combined.
- Spread batter evenly into prepared 13x9 pan and prepare topping.
Topping
- In a small bowl, whisk together granulated sugar and cinnamon. Sprinkle evenly over snickerdoodle blondie batter.3 Tablespoons granulated sugar, 1 ½ teaspoon ground cinnamon
- Bake on 350F (175C) for 25-28 minutes or toothpick inserted in center comes out clean or with moist crumbs (not wet batter).
Nutrition
Nutritional information is based on third-party calculations and should be considered an estimate only. Actual nutritional content will vary based upon brands used, measuring methods, cooking method, portion sizes, and more.
*This recipe was originally published in May of 2014 and has been updated to add more notes, a step-by-step video, a splash of vanilla extract, and new photos. Feel free to entertain yourself with some examples of my early photography from the original post.
April
I justade these. They are still in the oven. Followed recipe, but the batter is very cumbly.. will they still turn out? Is it supposed to be crumbly?
Sam
Hmm, it’s definitely not supposed to be crumbly… did you melt the butter (2 sticks of it)?
Samuel
I really want to make these but indont have cream of tatar…. is that … is there a substitute?
Sam
Hi Samuel! They should still turn out and be edible, but they won’t have that signature snickerdoodle flavor. They will be more like a sugar cookie bar. 🙂
Chelsea
These look delicious! I’m considering adding some (not a lot) cinnamon sweet bits to the mix. They’re flakes or bits of cinnamon sugar and butter that melt while baking. Do you think that would alter the flavor too much? Thanks! Can’t wait to try this recipe.
Sugar Spun Run
Hi, Chelsea! I honestly have never tried it. If you do, I’d LOVE to know how they turn out. I hope that you enjoy the snickerdoodle blondies. 🙂
Chelsea
Thank you! I’ll definitely let you know what happens. Ha! I’m hopeful they’ll be good. I’ve been looking for a good excuse to try them and this recipe sounds perfect for it. Trick will be to make sure there isn’t too much of them. Yum. Thanks!
Sugar Spun Run
Absolutely! I can’t wait to hear how they turn out. 🙂
Carol
Like just came across this recipe and your blog yesterday. The brownies are in the oven now and the smell is amazing! Yes, I rated the recipe w/o tasting because I make a blonde brownie with pecans and the proportion of ingredients, thickness of the batter and the ingredients themselves, tell me this recipe will be a hit! I won’t be able to taste because I am gluten free, but next time I make these, I will be making them gf with my cup 4 cup flour!
Question: do you let the brownies cool completely in the pan or on a cooling rack?
Thank you!
Sugar Spun Run
Thank you so much, Carol! I am so glad that they smell delicious. I hope that your family loves them. The answer to you question is that I usually allow my blondies to cool in the pan, but either method will be fine. 🙂
Susan Smith
These are easy to make and very good
Sugar Spun Run
Thank you, Susan! I am so glad that you enjoyed the Snickerdoodle Blondies. I hope that you give more of my recipes a try! Enjoy! 🙂
Pam
Super yummy!! I followed the recipe closely and I did not “pour” the batter in the pan, I pressed the dough in the pan😉Also, I needed to bake it longer than the recommended minutes. I think mine took closer to 35 to 40 minutes. No matter, they were great!
Sugar Spun Run
Hello, Pam! I am glad that you enjoyed the snickerdoodle blondies. 🙂
Brandi
My 9 year old son helped me make these. Wish I could share a picture of the result. Taste tested and approved! So yummy and easy.
Sam
I’m so glad everyone enjoyed the blondies so much, Brandi! Unfortunately, there isn’t an easy way to share pictures here, but if you can join my Facebook Group and share all of the pictures you want. I love seeing them. 🙂
Paul Randall
My son lives snickerdoodle cookies. I made these blondies and “forget about it!” I have to make these all the time.
Sam
I am so glad everyone enjoyed the snickerdoodle blondies. I like them over the cookies just because they are so much easier! 🙂
julie
Have you ever frozen these?
Sam
Hi Julie! I have not tried freezing them, but I don’t think you would have any issues doing so. 🙂
Yvonne
These are amazing!! I didn’t measure the butter, I just used 2 sticks melted as the video shows. My family has voted these our new camping treats instead of our usual “extra thick and fudgy” brownies! I love them as well because they are super easy to make, in fact I’ve memorized the recipe already and I’ve only made them twice. Lol.
Sam
Thank you so much, Yvonne! I am so glad you have enjoyed the snickerdoodle blondies so much! I hope you continue to enjoy them. 🙂
Beth
I made snickerdoodle bondies. Put them in a 9×13-in glass dish. Baked 8 minutes longer than the time said. and they still came up really in the center. Could that be because they were in a glass dish? Other than that they’re super my husband absolutely loves them
Sam
Hi Beth! Yes, I’ve found that dessert bars take longer in glass dishes so I think that is most likely the issue. Probably just needs a few more minutes next time. So glad to hear they were a success otherwise, though!
Mary Jo
Absolutely delicious! We LOVE snickerdoodles and this was so much easier to make! Thanks for the great recipe!
Sam
I am so glad you enjoyed the snickerdoodle blondies so much, Mary Jo! These are great for when you want a snickerdoodle but don’t really want to make cookies. 🙂
Amy
Hi, wondering if you forgot the vanilla? I added 1 tsp. . They are delicious, moist and so easy to make!
Sam
Nope, but there’s nothing wrong with adding it. Glad you enjoyed, Amy! 🙂
Sam
Hi Amy! You don’t need any vanilla here. 🙂
Tim
Mine came out almost completely uncooked after the 28 minutes. Any idea what I might have done wrong? I followed the recipe exactly. Is there an easy method to tell when they are done outside of the time since that didnt seem to work for me?
Sam
That’s very strange, was your oven completely preheated before you put the blondies in the oven?
Peggy Burse
Made as directed. The best and easiest ever!
Sam
So glad you enjoyed, Peggy! 🙂
Lesa
If you use parchment paper in the glass 9×13 baking pan then you don’t have to grease or flour the pan????
Sam
Hi Lesa! You should do one or the other. Doing both is just extra work. 🙂
Candi
These are delicious. I made them yesterday and my family devoured them.
Sam
I am so glad everyone enjoyed the snickerdoodle blondies, Candi! 🙂