I'm going to tell you a secret.
Are you ready?
It's December 1st and I'm kind of freaking out.
Okay, that's not it (it totally is).
The secret is... I don't like gingersnaps.
And I'll eat a snickerdoodle if I have to, but I'll most likely glare at you the entire time and, I don't know, put some peanut butter on top of it or something.
... that's weird. I wouldn't really do that slash I kind of want to right now, don't judge me.
But I had to make these because 1. You can't not make gingersnaps or snickerdoodles at Christmas. It's like a thing.
2. I'm obsessed with taking two different cookie doughs and smashing them together. First with chocolate chip cookies, then chocolate and peanut butter, and now I'm messing with these two Christmas classics. But think how much prettier they'll look on a cookie tray!
And 3. I really, really just wanted to use the words 'gingerdoodles' and 'snickersnaps'.
It's the little things in life.
Or in this case, the big things... rolled in cinnamon and sugar and baked til crispy.
These take a little bit of extra time to put together since you're making two separate doughs, then rolling each in sugar (the gingersnaps) or cinnamon-sugar (the snickerdoodles) before rolling them into one giant cookie.
Here's some tips:
1. Make the doughs up the day before you want to bake them and chill them until you're ready to roll. Literally.
2. The snickerdoodle dough is crumblier and thicker than the gingersnap dough. Don't freak out! Soften it by kneading it in your hands a few times before rolling it into ball. It'll make it easier to combine with the gingersnaps.
3. If you want to save time, I totally support skipping the step where you roll each ball in a separate bowl of sugar. Just roll the combined dough ball in the cinnamon-and-sugar. It all gets swirled together anyway!
And, yes I am going to take every. single. picture. from now til New Year's in front of our Christmas tree.
Gingerdoodles (or snickersnaps, if you will)
Snickerdoodle Dough
1/2 cup shortening
3/4 cup granulated sugar
1 egg
1 tablespoon vanilla
1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon cream of tartar
1 tablespoon cinnamon + 3 tablespoons granulated sugar for rolling cookies in
Cream together shortening and sugar. Add egg and vanilla and mix well, until creamy. Add flour, baking soda, salt, and cream of tartar and mix until combined. Dough will be a little of crumbly, but it'll come together when you roll it into balls.
Combine cinnamon and 3 tablespoons of sugar in a small bowl and set aside for rolling dough in.
Gingersnap Dough
3/4 cup shortening
1 cup granulated sugar
1/4 cup molasses
1 egg
2 cups all-purpose flour
2 teaspoons baking soda
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon cinnamon
1 teaspoon cloves
1 teaspoon ginger
1/4 cup granulated sugar for rolling cookies in
Cream together shortening and sugar. Add molasses and egg and continue beating. Add flour, baking soda, salt, cinnamon, cloves, and ginger and mix until combined, scraping down the sides of the bowl as needed.
Put 1/4 cup sugar in a small bowl and set aside for rolling dough in.
Preheat oven to 350°F. Lightly grease baking sheets with no-stick cooking spray and set aside.
Roll a small amount of gingersnap dough into a ball and toss in granulated sugar. Roll a small amount of snickerdoodle dough in a ball and toss in cinnamon-sugar.
Place both doughs together and gently roll or squeeze together (it worked best if I kneaded the snickerdoodle dough in my hand a few times before rolling both doughs together since it's a thicker consistency).
Place on baking sheets and bake for 9-11 minutes. Remove from oven and allow to cool on baking sheets for 2 minutes before moving to cooling racks.
Source: A Year of Cookies.
