Happy Mother's Day!

Happy Mother's Day to all the fabulous moms who read my blog! And to all of those who do not, I am still thinking of you :D

Before I share what I made for Mother's Day, I have short story to share with all of you: last year, our best friends' baby was due on Mother's Day weekend. Their son's birthday was actually Mother's Day last year (May 7th). Anyway, we watched their daughter for them while they were busy at the hospital. Keith's parents were coming over for dinner, and Daisy (name changed to protect identity) and I decided it would be fun to bake something for them to celebrate. She helped me make my famous Snickerdoodles.

THIS year, my girlfriend came over to work on a project we had due for our seminar class. We finished it much earlier than we anticipated, so I asked her to help me make my Mother's Day treat to split up among Keith's mom and my family. So, on that day, May 8th, she and I made my famous Snickerdoodles.

That's right, folks. I made them two years in a row for Mother's Day, and I did not even do it intentionally. I didn't even realize it until after she and I had them in the oven. I had wanted to bake them anyway, but she had never had them before and wanted to try them. Christy is an avid baker herself and could not help but drool over the smell and the crispiness that came out of the oven:

Now, I am a firm believer that TRUE Snickerdoodle cookies have cream of tartar in them. However, if you do not have cream of tartar (the only reason I do is for this recipe), substitute baking powder for BOTH cream of tartar and baking soda. When baking soda and cream of tartar are mixed together, they basically create baking powder. I've been told this does not necessarily do anything to the taste of the cookie, but I'm not really sure about that. Snickerdoodles have a distinct sweet and cinnamon-y flavor to them that sugar cookies and shortbread cookies do not imitate. My recipe is below:

Snickerdoodles

1 ½ cups sugar

½ cup butter softened

½ cup shortening

2 eggs

2 teaspoons vanilla extract

2 ¾ cups all-purpose flour

2 teaspoons cream of tartar

1 teaspoon baking soda

¼ teaspoon salt

¼ cup sugar

2 teaspoons ground cinnamon

1.     Heat oven to 400 F.

2.     Cream together 1 ½ cups sugar, butter, shortening, eggs and vanilla in large bowl. Blend in flour, cream of tartar, baking soda and salt

3.     Shape dough into balls. Mix ¼ cup sugar and the cinnamon. Roll balls in cinnamon-sugar mixture. Place 2 inches apart on ungreased cookie sheet.

4.     Baking 8 to 10 minutes or until set. Remove to wire rack.

*Modifications: less butter; 2 ¼ cup flour 

Because I make these so often, I have figured out what works and what doesn't. Feel free to use less butter because it tastes the same with about 2 tablespoons less. Also, I never try to pack all the flour in because then I feel like they get too floury. You may not find that's the case, but see what you think. You can always add more flour, but you cannot take it away. Start with my modification and the rest a little at a time; the dough shouldn't be too sticky or too shiny, or else it is difficult to roll into balls. 

Now, you can present the cookie in two ways:

1. Leave them as balls on the cookie sheet.

2. Press down on the balls with the spoon.

Leaving the Snickerdoodles as balls makes them softer and smaller. By pressing down with the spoon, they become flatter and crispier, which is how my family prefers their cookies:

Some people say that a cookie is a cookie and it does not matter if it's soft or crisp because they all taste the same. I disagree. Soft cookies and crisp cookies are two different experiences. Because this recipe makes about two dozen cookies, make one try with the round balls and then flatten the other one to see which one you like better. 

Either way, Snickerdoodles are a fabulous treat for lunch boxes, desserts, or holidays.

Happy Mother's Day, and enjoy the recipe!