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Ginger & Clove Snickerdoodles

5 from 1 vote
If you aren’t of the apple or pumpkin camps, think about making these easy and cozy cookies from chef Chetna Makan. They’re full of warm spices, and biting into one feels like sipping a nice cup of tea. I add cinnamon to her recipe because I find it rounds out the flavors. Otherwise, I follow her recipe pretty closely.
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Ingredients Equipment Method Notes

Ingredients
  

Finishing Sugar:
  • ½ tsp ground cardamom
  • 1/3 cup or 70 grams granulated sugar
For the Dough:
  • 2/3 cup or 130 grams granulated sugar
  • 1 stick 113 grams unsalted butter, softened
  • 1 large egg at room temperature
  • 1 cup plus 8 tablespoons 190 grams all-purpose flour
  • 1 teaspoon cream of tartar
  • 1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
  • 1/2 teaspoon ground cloves
  • ½ teaspoon cinnamon
  • 1/2 teaspoon ground ginger
  • 1/4 teaspoon baking soda

Equipment

  • Whisk or electric mixer
  • Spatula
  • Large Bowl
  • Medium
  • Small bowl

Method
 

To Make the Finishing Sugar:
  1. To make the finishing sugar, have your child help you dump the ingredients into a small bowl and help you mix them with a fork. Alternatively, you can put this in a small lidded container and have them shake it up to mix.
To Make the Dough:
  1. In the large bowl, beat together sugar and butter using an electric mixer on high or a whisk for 2 minutes or until light and creamy. Have your child use a spatula to help you scrape down the sides of the bowl, then add in the egg and beat til combined.
  2. In a medium bowl, add in the flour, cream of tartar, kosher salt, cloves, cinnamon, ginger, and baking soda. Have your child help you whisk it til combined.
  3. Add the dry ingredients to the butter mixture and either beat on medium or mix with a rubber spatula until everything is mixed and no dry spots remain.
To Bake:
  1. Divide the dough into 12 balls. You can do this by using a #40 cookie scoop (which is great fine motor practice for little hands!). If you don’t have a cookie scoop, you can eyeball making balls that are roughly 2 tablespoons large. Or if you’re precise like me, you can put some paper on your food scale and measure out 1.5oz balls. When I do this, my kids love helping me hit the buttons on the scale to zero it out between balls.
  2. Have your kids help roll the dough into balls (just like Play-Doh!) and then drop and roll it around in the sugar. My kids really enjoy this part!
  3. Place on two baking sheets lined with parchment paper. Fun tip: you can make parchment paper lay flat by crumpling it into a ball and then smoothing it out on the tray. My kids LOVE to do this.
  4. When placing the cookies, make sure to leave room for them to grow! Bake at 355°F for 10-15 min. They’re done when they’re slightly spread and golden at the edges. Leave them to cool in the pan for 10 minutes, then move to a cooling rack to finish cooling.

Notes

Vegan: These are already egg-free. You can make them vegan by using a non-dairy butter substitute. I’ve used Earth Balance buttery sticks with success. You could also use solid coconut oil here.
Gluten-Free: I haven’t tried myself to make them gluten-free, but I would recommend using a stronger all-purpose GF flour here because these cookies are delicate to begin with.
Tip: You won’t use all of the finishing sugar. I keep it in an airtight container and use it for future rounds of baking. These are so delicious and easy, I bet you’ll revisit them again!