Brown Butter Snickerdoodles

5 from 1 vote

Brown butter snickerdoodles are soft, buttery, and perfectly chewy, making them the ultimate holiday cookie.

Total Time45

Course: Dessert, Holiday Baking

Cuisine: American

Servings: Cookies

Calories: 137kcal

Author: Jessica

Preheat the oven to 350°F.
In a medium-sized mixing bowl sift together the flour, cream of tartar, baking soda, cinnamon, nutmeg and salt. Set aside.
In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with a paddle attachment, add the sugar, brown butter, and egg. Beat on medium-high speed for 2 minutes until light and fluffy. Add vanilla extract and beat until just combined. Add the dry ingredients to the mixing bowl and mix on low speed until no dry bits remain. Be careful to not overmix the cookie dough.
In a small, shallow bowl add the sugar and cinnamon for the cinnamon sugar topping, and stir together. Using a cookie scoop, scoop out the cookie dough (approx. 1- 1½ tablespoons each), and roll each cookie into a ball. Roll each cookie dough ball in the cinnamon sugar until it is completely coated. Place on a baking sheet, leaving 2"-3" in between each cookie. Bake for 10-12 minutes until the cookies are just set and still soft in the center. Transfer the cookies immediately to a cooling rack and let cool completely.

To make brown butter:

In a small saucepan, melt the butter and bring it to a boil over medium-low heat. Watch the butter continuously and stir regularly, cook the butter until it is a deep caramel brown color, this should take around 5 minutes.
Promptly transfer the butter to a coffee cup or a jar and let it cool to room temperature before using it in this cookie recipe. To speed up cooling time, place it in the refrigerator for 15-20 minutes.

Use real butter for this recipe, margarine can not be substituted.
If you prefer to not use brown butter, use regular butter softened to room temperature.
Do not overbake these cookies. Bake cookies until they are just set and very lightly browned on the bottoms. Transfer them to a cooling rack to stop the cooking process.
A hand mixer or a good old-fashioned wooden spoon and whisk can be used instead of a stand mixer for this recipe if preferred.
Store cookies in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 5 days, or freeze in a resealable ziptop bag for up to 3 months.