These brown butter snickerdoodles are sugar-crusted, soft and chewy, and scented with toasty, caramely notes thanks to the brown butter, vanilla, and brown sugar. It’s a one-bowl job that yields a truly irresistible and festive holiday cookie.

Just baked brown butter snickerdoodles on a sheet pan. - 1

This brown butter snickerdoodle recipe comes from Jesse Szewczyk’s Cookies: The New Classics . I have never met a snickerdoodle I didn’t like, but these are especially endearing: the browned butter gives them a nuttiness, a trait absent in traditional snickerdoodles, and the splash of Bourbon enhances the caramelly brown sugar and vanilla notes — not unlike how the presence of coffee in chocolatey baked goods will heighten the chocolate flavor without imparting a hint of coffee.

What’s more, because you brown the butter, you don’t have to soften it, and because brown butter is a liquid fat, you don’t have to bust out your stand mixer to make the dough! Win-win. After you brown the butter, this essentially is a one-bowl job.

Note: You can replace the bourbon with vanilla, and the cookies will still be delicious and equally irresistibly nutty and toasty thanks to that magical brown butter. My kids gobble these up, and I have no doubt Santa will appreciate your brown-buttered, bourbon-spiked (or not!) take on this Christmas classic, too.

How to Make Brown Butter Snickerdoodles, Step by Step

Gather your ingredients:

The ingredients to make brown butter snickerdoodles on a counter top. - 2

The first step is to brown the butter: Place two sticks of butter in a saucepan and begin melting it over medium heat.

Two sticks of butter in a sauce pan on the stovetop. - 3 Butter melting in a sauce pan on the stovetop. - 4

Watch it closely! This takes just about 3 to 4 minutes total, and during that time, the butter will bubble up, and the bubbles will transform from big to small. When the hue of the butter darkens slightly, remove it from the heat and transfer it immediately to a heatproof bowl.

Butter browning in a sauce pan on the stovetop. - 5 Brown butter in a bowl on a stovetop. - 6

The brown butter needs to cool for 20 minutes. While it cools, whisk together the dry ingredients.

A bowl filled with the dry ingredients to make snickerdoodles. - 7 The dry ingredients whisked together to make snickerdoodles. - 8

Then add the cooled butter, the whisked eggs, the vanilla, and the bourbon, if using.

A bowl filled with the ingredients to make brown butter snickerdoodles, unmixed. - 9

Mix until you have a cohesive dough ball.

The dough to make snickerdoodles all mixed together. - 10

Divide the dough into 2-tablespoon or 50-gram portions.

A portioned 50-gram snickerdoodle dough ball. - 11 Portioned snickerdoodle dough. - 12

Roll each portion into a ball, dip into a bowl of cinnamon and sugar; then transfer to a plate or tray.

A bowl of cinnamon and sugar. - 13 Rolled snickerdoodle dough balls. - 14

Bake 8 balls at a time.

Unbaked brown butter snickerdoodles on a sheet pan. - 15

The balls will puff up as they bake…

Just baked brown butter snickerdoodles on a sheet pan. - 16

… then collapse as they cool.

Just baked brown butter snickerdoodles on a sheet pan. - 17 Just baked brown butter snickerdoodles on a sheet pan. - 18

They are truly irresistible.

Just baked brown butter snickerdoodles on a plate. - 19

Description

These brown butter snickerdoodles are sugar-crusted, soft and chewy, and scented with toasty notes of brown sugar, bourbon, and vanilla. The bourbon absolutely can be omitted — I’ve made them without it — and the cookies are still divine.

As with all baking, for best results use a scale to measure the ingredients.

Adapted from Jesse Szewczyk’s Cookies: The New Classics

Jesse’s notes:

  • Any whiskey or dark, spiced rum can be used in place of the bourbon.

  • If you’d like to omit the bourbon, simply use 1 tablespoon of vanilla total.

  • The dough can be made ahead and stored in the fridge several days before baking. If too firm to scoop, let it sit at room temperature for 15 minutes. (I like to portion the softened dough; then stash the dough balls in the fridge.)

  • The cookies will keep in an airtight container for up to 1 week.

  • 16 tablespoons ( 226 g ) unsalted butter

  • 2.5 cups ( 320 g ) all-purpose flour

  • 2 teaspoons ( 10 g ) cream of tartar

  • 1 teaspoon ( 6 g ) baking soda

  • 1 teaspoon ( 4 g ) kosher salt

  • 1.25 cups ( 250 g ) granulated sugar, divided

  • 0.5 cup ( 100 g ) brown sugar

  • 2 eggs, beaten

  • 2 tablespoons ( 30 ml) bourbon, optional, see notes

  • 1 teaspoon ( 5 ml) vanilla extract

  • 1 tablespoon ( 10 g ) cinnamon

  1. In a small saucepan over medium heat, melt the butter. Continue cooking, until the butter foams and then darkens in color slightly and is very fragrant, 3 to 4 minutes. Transfer the butter immediately to a heatproof bowl, and let it cool at room temperature for 20 minutes.
  2. Heat the oven to 350ºF. Line a sheet pan with parchment paper. As the butter is cooling, combine the flour, cream of tartar, baking soda, salt, 1 cup (200 g) of the sugar, and the brown sugar in a large bowl.
  3. Add the cooled brown butter, the beaten eggs, the vanilla, and bourbon. Stir with a spatula until you have a cohesive dough.
  4. In a small bowl, combine the remaining 1/4 cup (50 g) sugar and the cinnamon.
  5. Using a medium 1.75-inch (#40) scoop (which is about 2 tablespoons) portion the dough into balls. Note: I use a digital scale and portion the dough into 50 gram balls — not necessary, but I love knowing the balls all weigh the same and so in turn will bake the same.
  6. Roll the dough balls in the cinnamon and sugar and transfer 8 to the prepared sheet pan. (NOTE: Some commenters have had trouble with the cookies spreading. If you are worried about spreading, consider chilling the portioned dough balls for 1 to 3 hours or even longer before baking. I often portion cookie dough balls, transfer them to an airtight container, and chill for 24 hours.) Bake for 8 to 11 minutes — dough balls will puff up and they will look not completely cooked, but you should remove them anyway — they’ll collapse and continue to cook as they cool. I do find that overcooking snickerdoodles renders them more light and cake-like and less chewy. Remove the pan from the oven. Let the cookies cool slightly on the baking sheets; then transfer to a wire rack to cool completely.
  7. Repeat with the other dough balls or transfer them to an airtight container and store in the fridge for up to one week.
  • Prep Time: 20 minutes
  • Cook Time: 10 minutes
  • Category: Cookies
  • Method: Oven
  • Cuisine: American

Description

These brown butter snickerdoodles are sugar-crusted, soft and chewy, and scented with toasty notes of brown sugar, bourbon, and vanilla. The bourbon absolutely can be omitted — I’ve made them without it — and the cookies are still divine.

As with all baking, for best results use a scale to measure the ingredients.

Adapted from Jesse Szewczyk’s Cookies: The New Classics

Jesse’s notes:

  • Any whiskey or dark, spiced rum can be used in place of the bourbon.

  • If you’d like to omit the bourbon, simply use 1 tablespoon of vanilla total.

  • The dough can be made ahead and stored in the fridge several days before baking. If too firm to scoop, let it sit at room temperature for 15 minutes. (I like to portion the softened dough; then stash the dough balls in the fridge.)

  • The cookies will keep in an airtight container for up to 1 week.

  • 16 tablespoons ( 226 g ) unsalted butter

  • 2.5 cups ( 320 g ) all-purpose flour

  • 2 teaspoons ( 10 g ) cream of tartar

  • 1 teaspoon ( 6 g ) baking soda

  • 1 teaspoon ( 4 g ) kosher salt

  • 1.25 cups ( 250 g ) granulated sugar, divided

  • 0.5 cup ( 100 g ) brown sugar

  • 2 eggs, beaten

  • 2 tablespoons ( 30 ml) bourbon, optional, see notes

  • 1 teaspoon ( 5 ml) vanilla extract

  • 1 tablespoon ( 10 g ) cinnamon

  1. In a small saucepan over medium heat, melt the butter. Continue cooking, until the butter foams and then darkens in color slightly and is very fragrant, 3 to 4 minutes. Transfer the butter immediately to a heatproof bowl, and let it cool at room temperature for 20 minutes.
  2. Heat the oven to 350ºF. Line a sheet pan with parchment paper. As the butter is cooling, combine the flour, cream of tartar, baking soda, salt, 1 cup (200 g) of the sugar, and the brown sugar in a large bowl.
  3. Add the cooled brown butter, the beaten eggs, the vanilla, and bourbon. Stir with a spatula until you have a cohesive dough.
  4. In a small bowl, combine the remaining 1/4 cup (50 g) sugar and the cinnamon.
  5. Using a medium 1.75-inch (#40) scoop (which is about 2 tablespoons) portion the dough into balls. Note: I use a digital scale and portion the dough into 50 gram balls — not necessary, but I love knowing the balls all weigh the same and so in turn will bake the same.
  6. Roll the dough balls in the cinnamon and sugar and transfer 8 to the prepared sheet pan. (NOTE: Some commenters have had trouble with the cookies spreading. If you are worried about spreading, consider chilling the portioned dough balls for 1 to 3 hours or even longer before baking. I often portion cookie dough balls, transfer them to an airtight container, and chill for 24 hours.) Bake for 8 to 11 minutes — dough balls will puff up and they will look not completely cooked, but you should remove them anyway — they’ll collapse and continue to cook as they cool. I do find that overcooking snickerdoodles renders them more light and cake-like and less chewy. Remove the pan from the oven. Let the cookies cool slightly on the baking sheets; then transfer to a wire rack to cool completely.
  7. Repeat with the other dough balls or transfer them to an airtight container and store in the fridge for up to one week.
  • Prep Time: 20 minutes
  • Cook Time: 10 minutes
  • Category: Cookies
  • Method: Oven
  • Cuisine: American

Find it online : https://alexandracooks.com/2021/12/10/brown-butter-bourbon-snickerdoodles/

Brown Butter Snickerdoodles - 20 A brown sugar glazed ham emerging from the oven. - 21

Friends, have you ordered your ham ? On Tuesday I received a somewhat frantic text from my lovely neighbor asking if it was risky to order a ham with a scheduled delivery date between 12/22 and 12/24 if she was planning to cook it ON Christmas Eve?

Risk it! I wrote. And then I immediately ordered the ham I had also forgotten to order. Phew, thank goodness for neighbors.

Friends, I just jumped on the Dakin Farms website , and it’s not too late to order a ham for Christmas — the delivery window is still 12/22 and 12/24. I can’t say enough good things about Dakin Farms hams, and I cannot say enough good things about the ham-cooking process. There’s none of that anticipatory mental baggage that arrives with the turkey: How do I brine this thing again? How do I cook it? Will it be good this year?

With a ham, there’s no brining and there’s really no cooking — it’s already cooked! And if you buy a good ham, it’s going to be good. And if you serve it with my grandmother’s mustard sauce on the side, well, it just doesn’t get much better than that.

I’ve included all of my favorite Christmas Eve, Morning, and Dinner recipes below. This post is very similar to last year’s but I’ve added a few 2021 favorites including this simple baked ham recipe , these creamy (no cream) buttermilk mashed potatoes , this sweet potato casserole , and this tangerine spritz — perhaps the easiest, most festive cocktail one could make. The below recipes are organized as follows:

  • Christmas Eve

  • Drinks

  • Breakfast (Sweet)

  • Breakfast Savory)

  • Dinner

  • Salads

  • Soup

  • Potatoes

  • Dessert

  • Bread

PS: If you are entertaining and need some idea for appetizers and other nibbles, this post might be helpful.

PPS: If you’re looking for Christmas Cookie ideas, check out this post.

Christmas Eve

A bowl of steamed mussels aside bread. - 22 A bowl of steamed mussels aside bread. - 23

Balthazar’s Simple Moules Marinière (Mussels)

A pile of homemade oven fries. - 24 A pile of homemade oven fries. - 25

Crispy, Homemade Oven-Baked French Fries

To me, nothing is more Christmas Eve-y than mussels , a meal my mother often served for the occasion. Of course, there’s no better companion for mussels than good bread. My mother’s peasant bread is an excellent choice as is this simple sourdough boule . These oven fries are something the whole family loves, and they’re a great match for mussels as well.

A simple salad dressed in a citrus-shallot vinaigrette makes it a meal.

If mussels aren’t your thing, I can’t say enough about this lasagna , which has been in the rotation a lot in recent weeks:

Butternut Squash Lasagna

A full pan of butternut squash lasagna. - 26

One snowy Thanksgiving in Vermont, this butternut squash lasagna, brought to the feast by a vegetarian friend of my aunt’s, stole the show. The recipe comes from Gourme t magazine, and it’s something guaranteed to please both carnivores and vegetarians alike.

As with the mussels, a simple salad dressed in a citrus-shallot vinaigrette is the perfect accompaniment.

Glogg

The ingredients to make glogg, a spiced wine. - 27

Christmas is not Christmas, at least when I’m with my parents, without Glogg . This is my stepfather’s specialty, something the whole family looks forward to as soon as the holiday season approaches.

“Glogg,” if you are unfamiliar, derives from a Scandinavian word meaning “to glow” or “to warm,” which is just what this hot beverage is meant to do: warm you up, get you glowing. Coming from a land where the sun shines seldom in a long winter season, glogg is meant to work immediately, which is exactly what it does.

In a sort of two-pronged attack, glogg enters the system: as vapors swirl off the hot liquid up into the nose making their way to the brain, the liquid itself — a mixture of red wine, port, and brandy — pours through the bloodstream. This is potent stuff, bone-warming, rosy-cheek inducing, party-starting stuff. It’s impossible not to belt out the Christmas carols with a glass of glogg in hand.

We love serving glogg as a pre-dinner drink sitting by the fire with a few snacks — cheese, crackers, nuts — on hand.

Tangerine Spritz

Two glasses of a Tangerine spritz. - 28

This tangerine spritz recipe , from David Lebovitz’s Drinking French , calls for three ingredients: tangerines (or clementines), sparkling wine, and Campari. It’s like a spritz meets mimosa — and I think it’s a perfect winter holiday cocktail: so pretty! so festive! so citrusy! yay!

Breakfast (Sweet)

Brioche Cinnamon Buns

Prep these buns on Christmas Eve. Rise to frosted brioche bliss. And to very happy humans.

Brown Butter Snickerdoodles - 29

Two cranberry-studded favorites:

Each of these can be prepped ahead as well. The unbaked scones can be stashed in the fridge (or freezer) the night before baking; the batter for the cranberry buttermilk breakfast cake can also be stashed in the fridge.

Overhead shot of just-baked cranberry orange buttermilk breakfast cake. - 30 Overhead shot of just-baked cranberry orange buttermilk breakfast cake. - 31

Cranberry & Orange Buttermilk Breakfast Cake

Overnight French Toast

This is the easiest French toast you will ever make, and I believe it’s one of the best, too. It’s crisp on the exterior and custardy on the interior. It emerges from the oven piping hot, ready for syrup, fruit, powdered sugar, or all three.

Brown Butter Snickerdoodles - 32

Breakfast (Savory)

slice of sausage, spinach and egg casserole - 33 slice of sausage, spinach and egg casserole - 34

Sausage, Egg, and Cheese Casserole with Spinach

A piece of bread topped with baked (shirred) eggs. - 35 A piece of bread topped with baked (shirred) eggs. - 36

Herb and Gruyère-Topped Baked (Shirred) Egg

Croque madame — croque monsieur topped with a poached egg — on a cutting board. - 37 Croque madame — croque monsieur topped with a poached egg — on a cutting board. - 38

How to Make Croque Monsieur and Croque Madame

A bowl of freshly baked steel cut oatmeal with almonds. - 39 A bowl of freshly baked steel cut oatmeal with almonds. - 40

Baked Steel Cut Oatmeal

Dinner

A brown sugar glazed ham emerging from the oven. - 41 A brown sugar glazed ham emerging from the oven. - 42

Simple Baked Ham Recipe with Brown Sugar Glaze

Brown Butter Snickerdoodles - 43 Brown Butter Snickerdoodles - 44

How To Dry Brine and Roast A Turkey

I am 95% convinced I love ham because of the sauce: my grandmother’s mustard sauce . Friends, it’s so good.

Gramma's mustard sauce in a Weck jar. - 45 The best and easiest recipe for rack of lamb. It takes five minutes to prepare. It's foolproof. And if you enjoy gnawing on bones as if they were lollipops, this recipe is for you. Make it. // alexandracooks.com - 46 The best and easiest recipe for rack of lamb. It takes five minutes to prepare. It's foolproof. And if you enjoy gnawing on bones as if they were lollipops, this recipe is for you. Make it. // alexandracooks.com - 47

Easiest Rack of Lamb

broiled lamb chops with Nigella Lawson's mint sauce - 48 broiled lamb chops with Nigella Lawson's mint sauce - 49

Broiled Lamb Chops with Nigella’s Mint Sauce & Roasted Asparagus

A platter of roast chicken with dates and artichoke hearts. - 50 A platter of roast chicken with dates and artichoke hearts. - 51

Spatchcocked Roast Chicken with Dates & Artichoke Hearts

A plate of Dorie Greenspan's oven-roasted spatchcocked chicken with za'atar and lemon. - 52 A plate of Dorie Greenspan's oven-roasted spatchcocked chicken with za'atar and lemon. - 53

Spatchcock Chicken Recipe with Za’atar & Lemon

A plate of pan-seared Duck breasts with port wine sauce and roasted grapes. - 54 A plate of pan-seared Duck breasts with port wine sauce and roasted grapes. - 55

Perfect Pan-Seared Duck Breasts with Port Wine Sauce

A duck leg confit standing up on a plate supported by a mound of salad greens. - 56 A duck leg confit standing up on a plate supported by a mound of salad greens. - 57

Duck Leg Confit: 3 Hours, 3 Ingredients

Salads

This time of year, I love this variation of my favorite shallot vinaigrette: citrus-shallot vinaigrette. In this version, the shallots soak in both vinegar and fresh-squeezed orange juice, the addition of which makes the dressing a little fresher, a little brighter, and a little lighter. It’s so nice this time of year.

I’ve been using it to dress very simple salads: Boston lettuce tossed with endive, arugula, or whatever looks good at my grocery store. If you’re looking for a heartier salad, here are a few more ideas:

Soup

A bowl of potato leek soup. - 58 A bowl of potato leek soup. - 59

Simple Homemade Potato Leek Soup

A bowl of split pea and ham soup topped with olive oil croutons. - 60 A bowl of split pea and ham soup topped with olive oil croutons. - 61

Split Pea and Ham (or not!) Soup

An overhead shot of a bowl of cream of celery soup with walnut salsa. - 62 An overhead shot of a bowl of cream of celery soup with walnut salsa. - 63

Cream of Celery Soup with Walnut-Currant Salsa

A bowl of Slow cooker butternut squash soup with apple and coconut milk. - 64 A bowl of Slow cooker butternut squash soup with apple and coconut milk. - 65

Slow-Cooker Butternut Squash and Apple Soup

Bowls of butternut squash and cider soup aside herbed flatbreads. - 66 Bowls of butternut squash and cider soup aside herbed flatbreads. - 67

Butternut Squash and Apple Cider Soup

Potatoes

Just-baked potato gratin in its baking dish. - 68 Just-baked potato gratin in its baking dish. - 69

Alice Waters’s Potato Gratin

A bowl of herby buttermilk mashed potatoes. - 70 A bowl of herby buttermilk mashed potatoes. - 71

Creamy (No-Cream) Buttermilk Mashed Potatoes

Classic Sweet Potato Casserole

Just-baked sweet potato casserole. - 72

This sweet potato casserole is an old family recipe, one I brought back for this past Thanksgiving, where it was wildly well received.

Dessert

A parbaked pie crust. - 73 A parbaked pie crust. - 74

How to Parbake Pie Crust + Foolproof Flaky Pie Dough

Brown Butter Snickerdoodles - 75 Brown Butter Snickerdoodles - 76

Homemade Bourbon Pecan Pie (No Corn Syrup)

A half-eaten slice of lemon-ricotta cheesecake - 77 A half-eaten slice of lemon-ricotta cheesecake - 78

Lemon-Ricotta Cheesecake

How to Make Tiramisu - 79 How to Make Tiramisu - 80

Tiramisu

A slice of almond torte on a plate. - 81 A slice of almond torte on a plate. - 82

Chez Panisse Almond Torte

Just-baked Torta Caprese. - 83 Just-baked Torta Caprese. - 84

Flourless Chocolate-Almond Cake (Torta Caprese)

A slice of orange and olive oil cake. - 85 A slice of orange and olive oil cake. - 86

Orange and Olive Oil Cake

Bread

Tender and flaky, these buttermilk cheddar biscuits are the perfect vessel for housing slices of ham or turkey or roast beef, handfuls of arugula, and a slathering of mustard sauce, a must-have recipe if you're making ham this holiday season. // alexandracooks.com - 87 Tender and flaky, these buttermilk cheddar biscuits are the perfect vessel for housing slices of ham or turkey or roast beef, handfuls of arugula, and a slathering of mustard sauce, a must-have recipe if you're making ham this holiday season. // alexandracooks.com - 88

Cheddar Biscuits

Garlicky brioche pull-apart rolls. - 89

These brioche dinner rolls are the same as these brioche hamburger buns but here they are made in pull-apart form and, out of the oven, they are brushed with an herby, garlicky butter. If you portion the dough into 12 balls, as pictured above, the buns will be quite large, but they’re perfect for leftover ham sandwiches … decisions decisions.