Every Monday starts out the same. I wake up to gray skies, and by the time I park my car at the bus terminal, thick raindrops start to plop across the middle of my windshield. Those raindrops are more of a nuisance than a threat, forcing me to open my umbrella to walk to the loading area to avoid sitting on a bus for two hours in damp clothes. A mix of regular commuters and day-trippers board the bus and place themselves strategically around one another before we pull away at exactly 6:40am. It's at precisely this moment that I start to miss my bed.
To help me get over this severe case of the Mondays, I thought I'd share a recipe from my family vault that makes me happy every time I make it -- the recipe for my Grammy's Snickerdoodles.
One of the reasons why I love these Snickerdoodles is the fact that my grandmother labeled them as "Mom's old favorite" on the recipe card she wrote out for me. I have many fond memories of making batch after batch of these cookies with my mother in our kitchen, usually around the holidays.
Once the first batch was out of the oven, we'd each sneak a cookie off the tray to eat as a snack while the rest of the cookies baked. I'd put the whole thing in my mouth, burning my tongue and the roof of my mouth in the process, while Mom would take her time dunking the cookie into a tall glass of milk.
She'd shake her head as she reminded me of the last time I burned my mouth on a hot cookie, and then she'd hand me another one. "Eat this one a little slower, Michelle." She was the best.
My grandmother's recipe calls for shortening, but I used a combination of butter and margarine to yield a crisp cookie on the outside and a chewy cookie on the inside. If you want a harder cookie, then use more butter. Alternatively, if you want a softer cookie, then use more margarine. As long as the combination of the two equals a full cup, you'll be just fine.
Go on... I dare you to wait until the cookies have cooled before eating one. I bet you can't do it.
Grammy's Snickerdoodles - Makes 3-4 dozen
INGREDIENTS
- 1/2 cup unsalted butter, room temperature
- 1/2 cup margarine, room temperature
- 1 3/4 cup sugar, divided
- 2 eggs, room temperature
- 1 3/4 cups all-purpose flour
- 2 teaspoons cream of tartar
- 1 teaspoon baking soda
- 1/4 teaspoon salt
- 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
INSTRUCTIONS
- Preheat oven to 400°F.
- In a large bowl, cream together butter, margarine, and 1 1/2 cups sugar until well combined. Add eggs and beat to combine.
- In another bowl, combine flour, cream of tartar, baking soda, and salt.
- Gradually add dry ingredients to the wet ingredients, beating until just combined.
- In another bowl, combine remaining 1/4 cup sugar and ground cinnamon. Roll dough into walnut-size balls, and then roll in cinnamon sugar until lightly coated.
- Bake on lined baking sheets for 10 minutes. Remove from oven and let sit for 2 minutes before removing cookies to a wire rack to cool completely.
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