Recipe: Clementine Orange Snickerdoodles | Cooking On the Side (2024)

Cookies

Over the past few years there’s been a little sleeper of a cookie trend among the food blogs. It hasn’t come through in huge waves, like macarons or hasselback potatoes. Just an isolated post here and there…but over time it’s nearly evolved into a movement.

Food bloggers have been tinkering with snickerdoodles.

Snickerdoodles – the after school cookie jar favorite that I, until recently, only knew in its classic form: rolled in cinnamon sugar. Well, the realm of snickerdoodles has expanded greatly. Check out some of the incredible flavor variations people have come up with:

Someone needs to open an all-snickerdoodle bakery stat!

If a flavor tastes great with cinnamon and sugar, it’ll probably taste great in snickerdoodles. That’s the guiding thought I had in my head as I gazed at the big bowl of clementine oranges on my kitchen island. The next thing I knew, golden hued, citrus-scented Clementine Orange Snickerdoodles were emerging from the oven. Adding clementine zest and juice to the classic recipe I shared on the blog a while back gave the cookies just enough of a flavor twist to be complementary and interesting, not overpowering. Now to give some of these other variations a spin…

Recipe: Clementine Orange Snickerdoodles | Cooking On the Side (1)

Clementine Snickerdoodles

Adapted from the Snickerdoodles recipe on the back of the Gold Medal all-purpose flour package

Prep time: 20 minutes | Cook time: 30 minutes | Total time: 50 minutes

Yield: 5 dozen cookies

INGREDIENTS:

Cookies:

  • 1 1/2 cups sugar
  • Zest of 2 clementine oranges
  • 1 cup (2 sticks) unsalted butter, softened
  • 2 eggs
  • 2 tablespoons freshly squeezed clementine orange juice
  • 2 3/4 cups all-purpose flour
  • 2 teaspoons cream of tartar
  • 1 teaspoon baking soda
  • 1/4 teaspoon salt

Cinnamon Sugar Topping:

  • 3 tablespoons sugar
  • 1 tablespoon ground cinnamon

DIRECTIONS:

  1. Heat the oven to 400°F.
  2. Combine the sugar, butter, clementine zest, juice and eggs in a large bowl. Stir in the flour, cream of tartar, baking soda and salt.
  3. Shape the dough by rounded teaspoonfuls into balls. Combine the cinnamon sugar topping ingredients together in a small bowl; roll the balls in the mixture. Place the balls about 2 inches apart on an ungreased cookie sheet, lined with parchment.
  4. Bake the cookies until they’re set and golden, 8 to 10 minutes. Immediately remove them from the cookie sheet. Cool them completely on a wire rack.

You can, of course, always substitute other varieties of oranges in this recipe. If you use a navel orange or another that’s much larger than a clementine, you’ll probably only need the zest from one piece of fruit.

Cookies

14 Comments

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14 Comments

  1. What a nice twist on an old cookie favorite!

    Posted 2.15.12Reply

  2. Omg love the sound of this!

    Posted 2.15.12Reply

  3. Amy wrote:

    Snickerdoodles are my favorite cookie….I love them so much, I’ve converted them to a pie, muffins, pancakes… cinnamon and sugar. Sigh. Love your variation here, and I’ve also got my eye on the Chai, lemon, and spiced rum.

    Posted 2.15.12Reply

  4. Dying to try these since snickerdoodles are one of my favorite cookies.

    Posted 2.15.12Reply

  5. Colleen wrote:

    My mom’s sugar cookies have orange zest in them– they are tastier than many that I’ve tried. (I think it’s actually an old Better Homes & Gardens recipe.)

    So this seems like a naturally delicious combination– yum.

    Posted 2.15.12Reply

  6. Amanda wrote:

    Gorgeous cookies, Kathy! What fun flavor combos, I could definitely get in on this snickerdoodle craze 🙂

    Posted 2.15.12Reply

  7. Carolyn wrote:

    Snickerdoodles are popular, that is true. And I love your little flavour variation on them here.

    Posted 2.15.12Reply

  8. naomi wrote:

    Wow- I love how creative this snickerdoodle is. I can’t wait to try it, Kathy!

    Posted 2.15.12Reply

  9. Mike wrote:

    I remember my first snickerdoodle – it was after college, and my roommate’s mom sent him back to our apartment with some wonderful, chewy, delicious snickerdoodles. Changed my life. Thank you, thank you, thank you Mrs. Nudelman!

    Posted 2.15.12Reply

  10. Kalyn wrote:

    Oh my, delish!

    Posted 2.15.12Reply

  11. MK wrote:

    I baked these to the recipe and they all went flat 🙁
    Tasted delicious, though! 🙂

    Posted 3.25.13Reply

    • Kathy Strahs wrote:

      I’m sorry to hear they went flat on you! Sometimes that can happen if the leavening (in this case, baking soda) is past its prime. I’m glad they at least tasted good. 🙂

      Posted 3.25.13Reply

  12. Mary wrote:

    Does this really make 5 dozen cookies?

    Posted 8.26.20Reply

    • Kathy Strahs wrote:

      All depends on what size you make them!

      Posted 8.26.20Reply

Recipe: Clementine Orange Snickerdoodles | Cooking On the Side (2024)

FAQs

Why didn't my snickerdoodles crack? ›

Cracking occurs from several chemical reactions during the baking process. If some of your cookies aren't cracking, it could be because those dough balls were less round than others, the dough became too warm, your oven isn't heating evenly, or (most likely) the cinnamon sugar coating wasn't applied as thoroughly.

Why are my snickerdoodles so soft? ›

Slightly under-baking the snickerdoodles also guarantees a softer cookie.

Why are my snickerdoodles crunchy? ›

Granulated Sugar and Ground Cinnamon: These two are mixed together to create the classic cinnamon-sugar coating that snickerdoodles are known for. The sugar caramelizes slightly as the cookies bake, giving them a slightly crisp exterior.

Why did my snickerdoodles come out dry? ›

However they won't be particularly chewy and they should not spread out on the baking sheet that much. There are several reasons why the cookies may have become dry and crumbly but the two most likely are that either the cookies were baked for too long or too much flour was added to the dough.

How do you know if snickerdoodles are undercooked? ›

Visual cues
  1. Colour: Raw or undercooked cookies tend to have a pale appearance, lacking that golden or slightly browned hue that indicates they're fully baked. ...
  2. Texture: Touch the surface of the cookies gently. ...
  3. Spread: Raw or undercooked cookies may spread excessively during baking and have a flatter shape than desired.
Nov 25, 2023

How to tell when peanut butter cookies are done? ›

Unlike many other cookies, peanut butter biscuits only fully harden once they've been removed from the oven. Here's how to tell when peanut butter cookies are done: The tops of the cookies are a uniform light brown. They're soft to the touch but not moist or mushy.

How can you tell when a baked product is done baking? ›

The idea behind this test is you can insert a toothpick or paring knife into the center of the cake to see if the crumb has set. If the tester comes out clean, it's done. If it comes out gummy or with crumbs clinging to it, the cake needs more time in the oven.

How do you know when pan cookies are done? ›

For cake-like bars, test with a wooden pick inserted at the center of the pan. If it comes out with a few moist crumbs clinging to it, the cookies are done. Chewy (moister) bars will have a dull, rather than shiny, surface; a slight imprint will remain after touching the surface lightly with your fingertip.

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