Classic cinnamon sugar snickerdoodle cookies made with bold vanilla sugar. Crunchy on the outside with the perfect soft baked texture inside. Vegan and gluten-free, so almost everyone can enjoy!
Psssst: There is a really sweet giveaway at the end of this post that you don’t want to miss!
The other day I had a craving for sugar cookies. I almost never make sugar cookies, so it was weird. I asked Steve if he thought that sounded too plain. He thought about it for a second, and then, overly proud of himself for his creative contribution, he said “What about cinnamon sugar cookies???” Silly boy, those are snickerdoodles, and yes, they are awesome.
I have always been a huge snickerdoodle fan. Have you ever had those huge ones at Paradise Bakery? I can’t even handle them. I’m pretty sure they use something really awful like shortening to get the texture that perfect.
And can we talk about how my screen keeps yelling at me with that awful red squiggly line every time I type the word snickerdoodle? Snickerdoodle, snickerdoodle, snickerdoodle. I even googled it to make sure I wasn’t spelling it wrong. Get with the program, computer, and stop yelling at me!
At Healthy Living Summit, my BBFF {blog-best-friend-forever} Nicole gave all the girls in our room this amazing vanilla sugar. It was love at first site smell.
Such a simple idea, but a really easy way to take your baked goods to the next level, especially if you’re as vanilla bean obsessed as I am. More than anything–chocolate, peanut butter, even fro yo, I love all things vanilla bean. It’s such a distinct, clean flavor, and you don’t see it as often as you would think.
I thought a lot about what I wanted to use it for, and eventually decided snickerdoodles were the perfect vehicle–with the vanilla sugar baked inside and a crunchy, sweet cinnamon vanilla sugar coating, you get the most out of the vanilla flavor. These were some of the best cookies I’ve ever made, and everyone I gave them too was a huge fan. They have the same perfect texture as my chai snickerdoodles that I loved so much, with just the twist of extra vanilla flavor. They are definitely a must for your holiday cookie exchanges!
Classic cinnamon sugar snickerdoodle cookies made with bold vanilla sugar. Crunchy on the outside with the perfect soft baked texture inside. Vegan and gluten-free, so almost everyone can enjoy!
Ingredients
- 2 1/2 cups gluten-free baking blend (or 2 cups white whole wheat flour)
- 1 1/2 tsp baking soda
- dash salt
- 1/2 tsp cinnamon
- 1/2 cup apple butter
- 3/4 cup vanilla sugar
- 1/4 cup pure maple syrup
- 3 tbsp unsweetened vanilla almond milk
- 1 tbsp vanilla extract
- 1/4 cup vanilla sugar
- 2 tsp ground cinnamon
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350. Line 2 large baking sheets with parchment paper or silpat.
- In a medium bowl, whisk together flour, baking soda, salt and cinnamon. Set aside.
- In a large bowl, beat together apple butter, vanilla sugar, maple syrup, and almond milk until well combined. Add vanilla, then add dry ingredients and mix until well combined.
- In a wide, shallow bowl, combine remaining vanilla sugar and cinnamon for the coating. Lightly spray hands with nonstick spray, then roll dough into one inch balls. Roll in the sugar mixture to coat completely, then transfer to baking sheet. Repeat with remaining dough.
- Bake for 10-12 minutes, until the edges are lightly browned. They may look underdone, but do not over bake. They will set more as they cool. Let stand for 5-10 minutes, then transfer to a wire rack to cool completely.
Notes
If you do not have vanilla sugar, you can easily combine the seeds with 1/2 vanilla bean with your total 1 cup sugar before baking. Mix together thoroughly, then divide out your 1/4 cup for coating.
Giveaway details:
The giveaway will be open from Friday December 6th, 2013 until Wednesday December 11th, 2013 (@ 11:59pm EST). You must be 18 years old to enter and you must live in the USA. One winner will receive a $500 Amazon gift card.
Please check out my fellow healthy recipe blogging buddies that are also hosting! They all have amazing recipe, beautiful photos, and lots of greatness to share with you!
Healthy Seasonal Recipes | Running to the Kitchen | Yeah…imma eat that | The Adventures of MJ and Hungryman | Tasty Yummies | Real Food Whole Health | Texanerin Baking | Beard and Bonnet | With Food + Love | So…Let’s Hang Out | Healthy Green Kitchen
Ari, My husband loves Snickerdoodles (ther’s that squiggly line!) these sound like they’d be even better. Especially with a cup of coffee. Vanilla sugar sounds so good. Thanks for being such a helpful part of this healthy food blogger giveaway.
So now all I want is one of these cookies and a big mug of coffee. Thanks for that. 😉
snickerdoodles are MY FAVE! these look amazing!
Really?? Next time I make some, I’ll be sure to hit you up!
i love vanilla any and everything!! and i entered your great giveaway!! 🙂 🙂
Me too!!! I’ve always been a vanilla over chocolate person, although chocolate does keep creeping up on my list of loves. 🙂
Snickerdoodles are my mom favorite! I’m the only one who makes em like she likes 🙂
Really?? You’ll have to share your secret! 🙂
Love these! They look amazing …I must add to my collection , and my MIL is vegan and GF, so perfect! Cheers~
Awesome! I know there’s not a ton of great recipes out there for people who are both, so I try to contribute as much as possible. 🙂 Thanks Tiffany!
I’ve never tried snickerdoodles!
Oh girl, it is time!
So I never ate a snickerdoodle until last year. I know…crazy! I have a lot of snickerdoodling to make up for!! These look awesome 🙂
Gina @ Running to the Kitchen recently posted…Dark chocolate dipped orange macaroons ($500 Amazon gift card giveaway!)
Whaaaaat??? They were always one of my favorites! Now you can try them in all kinds of fancy varieties. 😉
What an awesome giveaway!! Love the delicious cookies, too.
Can’t let the holiday season pass without some snickerdoodles! The vanilla sugar sounds amazing!
Snickerdoodles are amazing! My mom always makes them at Christmas time!
Lol, I never know how to spell snickerdoodle either. I’d happily take a sugar cookie but I might push someone out of the way to get to one of these pretty cookies! Yum yum. 🙂
Awww thanks Tina! 🙂
I found I needed a lot more liquid to make a dough so I had to add probably another 3/4 cup almond milk. Also, should the instructions say to flatten the balls on the cookie sheet before baking? The balls don’t flatten out into the cookies shown in your photos.
Hi Lise, what type of flour were you using? This is a recipe I make over and over again, and they have always turned out great. Also, how are you measuring your flour? If you pack it in, you can end up using 2.5 times the amount called for in the recipe. Also all gluten-free flours work differently. I have tested the recipe with my blend as well as white wheat flour, but it could be that you are using something different. I did not have to press mine down or add extra liquid. Please let me know the answers to those questions–I’d love to help you get to the bottom of this!
The vanilla bean addition is such a great one! Thanks for creating this recipe combination!