Snickerdoodles

I love snickerdoodles. I will admit that this batch came out a little off for 3 reasons-

1) I decided to experiment with the Splenda baking blend. If you are going to go through the trouble of baking, it may as well be the real deal. The splenda made the cookies overly sweet, and had none of the chewy qualities of baked sugar.

2) I didn't have any cream of tartar for that crackly finish.

3) I used margarine instead of butter. Margarine is usually about half the price of butter, and lasts way longer. As a college student, these two qualities make margarine slightly more attractive than butter. But, if you have the cash- Use real butter every time.

Here's the ideal recipe for Snickerdoodles (without my changes). I've made this recipe many times, and the cookies spread out into flaky, chewy, crisp cinnamon goodness- not the strange hockey pucks I got...Maybe the holiday season will prompt me to make these originals- if so, I'll be sure to take a picture for you.

Adapted from Joy:

For dough:

• 2 cups all purpose flour
• 2 tsp cream of tartar
• 1 tsp baking soda
• 1/4 tsp salt
• 2 sticks butter, unsalted, softened
• 1 1/2 c sugar
• 2 large eggs

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Sift together flour, cream of tartar, baking soda, and salt. In large bowl, beat butter and sugar on medium until fluffy. Add eggs and beat until well combined. Stir flour mixture into butter mixture until smooth. Pull off pieces of dough and roll into generous 1 1/4 inch balls. Roll in mixture of :

• 1/4 c sugar + 4 tsp cinnamon
  

Space on greased cookie sheet about 3 inches apart. Bake for 8 to 11 minutes.

Because it makes so many cookies, I rolled up the dough into balls, covered them in cinnamon-sugar, and froze them on a tray, then put them all in a freezer bag to bake whenever I feel the need for cookies! You can freeze most cookie doughs like this, or simply in a log to slice and bake.