These soft and chewy pecan snickerdoodles are laced with crunchy pecans and rolled in cinnamon sugar. They are pillowy and chewy in the middle with a bit of crunch around the edges and tons of brown sugar and cinnamon flavor.
Why You Will Love These Pecan Snickerdoodles
These pecan snickerdoodles are perfect from fall to winter. Make them for Thanksgiving or add them to you Christmas cookies platter.
You will love the cinnamon and brown sugar flavors. Chopped pecans add the perfect crunch to each bit.
Looking for a festive alternative to pecan pie? Bake these! This was inspired by my Pumpkin snickerdoodles ice cream sandwiches, as they are another festive twist on the classic cookies.
Ingredients
Here is a quick glance at some of the ingredients needed beyond basic pantry staples. Find a complete list with quantities in the full recipe to follow.
- Unsalted butter
- Granulated sugar
- Brown sugar
- Pecans
- Eggs
- All-purpose flour
- Ground Cinnamon
- Cream of tartar
See recipe card for quantities.
TOOLS AND EQUIPMENT
These are the primary tools you will need to bake these cookies:
- Mixing bowls
- Hand or stand mixer
- Cookie sheets or rimmed baking pans
- Mechanical cookie or ice cream scooper
- Parchment paper
- General kitchen tools (measuring spoons, cups, etc).
Steps for Making Pecan Snickerdoodles
- Preheat the oven
- Make the cookie dough
- Scoop into balls
- Roll in cinnamon sugar mixture
- Top with whole pecans
- Bake!
Hint: Use a mechanical cookie scoop for mess-free, pertly portioned balls of cookie dough.
Substitutions
Don't have all of the ingredients? Here's what to do:
- Ground Cinnamon - instead of cinnamon, try a different spice! Use equal amounts of pumpkin pie spice or cardamom.
- Pecans - if you don't have pecans, try walnuts
- Cream of tartar - if you don't have cream of tartar, reduce the baking soda to ¼ teaspoon and add ½ teaspoon baking powder.
I would not recommend removing the brown sugar. It adds a ton of flavor. Cookies made with all granulated sugar will spread more in the oven.
Recipe FAQ
You may freeze scooped cookie dough. Bake from frozen, adding an extra minute or two of bake time.
You can bake cookies without cream of tartar but they will be missing than signature tang of snickerdoodles. See substitutions above.
Store baked and cooled cookies at room temperature in an air-tight container or zip-top bag. The cookies will stay fresh for up to 4 days.
Yes! You can refrigerate the dough (scooped or in a bowl) for up to about 2 days. Take the dough out of the refrigerator while the oven preheats. Gently flatten the balls of dough before baking.
Top tip
Make sure the butter isn't too soft or melted when you start making the cookie dough. It should be easy to roll the dough into balls without being too sticky. If need be, chill the dough for 10 to 20 minutes, or until easier to handle.
Storage
Store baked and cooled cookies at room temperature in an air-tight container or zip-top bag. The cookies are best eaten within 4 days.
You may freeze scooped cookie dough. Bake from frozen, adding an extra minute or two of bake time.
Baked and cooled cookies can be stored in the freezer in an air-tight container or zip-top bag for up to 3 months.
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Recipe
Pecan Snickerdoodles
Ingredients
- 3 cups (375g) all-purpose flour
- 1 teaspoon cream of tartar
- 1 teaspoon baking soda
- 2 teaspoons cinnamon, divided
- ½ teaspoon salt
- 1 cup (227g) unsalted butter softened but not melted
- 1 ½ cups (300g) granulated sugar, divided
- ½ cup (100g) brown sugar
- 2 large eggs
- 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
- 1 cup (130g) chopped pecans
- whole pecans for topping
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350°F. Line two baking sheets with parchment paper and set aside.
- Whisk together the flour, 1 teaspoon cinnamon, baking soda, cream of tartar, and salt. Set aside.
- In a small bowl, stir together 1 teaspoon of cinnamon and ½ cup granulated sugar and set aside.
- Using an electric mixer (stand or hand mixer), mix the softened butter together with the granulated and brown sugars until combined. Add in the eggs and vanilla. Mix until combined.
- Stop the mixer and scrape down the sides and bottom of the bowl. In two additions, add in the half of the flour mixture at a time. Mix on low until incorporated then add in the remaining half. Mix until combined.
- Stir in the pecans.
- Use a large cookie scoop to portion the cookie dough into equal sizes (about 3 tablespoons each) and roll into balls.
- Roll the cookie dough balls in the cinnamon sugar mix and place on the prepared baking sheets, at least two inches apart. Place a whole pecan on tap then gently pat the dough balls down with the palm of your hand.
- Bake for about 10 minutes. The centers should be puffy and the edges just set and slightly browned around the edges. For a chewier center,rap the bottom of the baking sheet on the oven rack to encourage the cookies to flatten slightly.
- Allow cookies to cool on the baking sheet for 5 minutes before moving to a wire rack.
OliviaG
What a perfect recipe to kick off the fall season. These are unbelievably delicious!
Jennifer W
OMG I loved these so much. How do you come up with these???
Vicky
Anyone know why they're called Snickerdoodles. Just curious 😉
Jenn P
These are heavenly! 😍
stylesweet
Thank you so much! I hope you enjoy them =)
Jan Davidson
I'm trying to make ahead a freeze for my daughter's baby shower. When you freeze the raw dough, do you roll it in sugar before you freeze or just before you bake?
P.S. I have both of your cookbooks so I know this is going to be a good one.
stylesweet
Hi! Hmmm you could actually go either way. I have some in my freezer right now that are already rolled in the sugar mix. But I imagine doing it after would be okay too and might even be a bit more pronounced as the sugar may dissolve a bit while in the freezer. I do like to pat the dough balls down slightly before baking, so be sure to pull the dough out of the freeze while the oven preheats so they soften slightly. They baked cookies are pretty good after being frozen too. Thank you and happy baking!!
Gina
The pecans are a great fall touch. I can't wait to bake them again