Snickerdoodles!!!!!

That's what the text from my little brother said when I asked him what kind of cookies he wanted in his finals package this year.  You see, I'm a nice big sister, who stocks her siblings with food when they need it the most... never mind that the food I send tends to be the kind that will pack on the pounds while you're spending hours sitting at a library desk cramming.  He's a growing boy, right?  In need of sugar and caffeine.  Usually I send a couple dozen chocolate chip cookies spiked with espresso, but this year I thought to ask him what he wanted before starting my holiday cookie extravaganza.

Bad idea.  Snickerdoodles?  I've never been a fan - eating several store-bought varieties of snickerdoodles  rife with the overpowering taste of cream of tarter or just plain crumbly will do that to you.  And a cookie without chocolate? Blasphemy! Let me tell you, Sally and I were sorely tempted to add chocolate chips to this cookie.  Or even cocoa powder.  But we resisted, and by the time we finished mixing (and tasting) the dough, we had revised our opinions completely. 

These are without a doubt the best non-chocolate cookies I have ever had.  Soft, cake-like, cinammony with just a hint of sour cream of tarter at the end... these are very very good.  So good that I sent every single one off to my brother (and forgot to get a picture!).

Snickerdoodles
adapted from here
Ingredients
2 3/4 cups all-purpose flour
2 teaspoons cream of tartar
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/4 teaspoon salt
16 tablespoons (2 stick or 8 ounces) unsalted butter, at room temperature
1 3/4 cups sugar, plus more if needed
2 tablespoons ground cinnamon, plus more if needed
2 large eggs
Directions
1. Preheat the oven to 400°.
2. Sift together flour, cream of tartar, baking soda, and salt; set aside. Cream butter and 1 1/2 cups sugar until light and fluffy. Add eggs, and beat to combine.
3. Add dry ingredients, and beat to combine.
4. In a small bowl, combine remaining 1/4 cup sugar and the ground cinnamon. Form 1 1/2 inch balls of dough, and roll in cinnamon sugar. Place about two inches apart on the prepared baking sheets. Bake until the cookies are set in center and begin to crack (they will not brown), about 10 minutes, rotating the baking sheets after five minutes.  Make sure you watch the oven - these burn easily!