Cinnamon Chip Chai-Spiced Snickerdoodles

December. The month of birthdays (mine), Christmas, and the annual debate about whether San Diego counts as winter. The cookbook is nearly done. Ninety recipes tested. Ten to go. The photographs are extraordinary — Ava has turned my base housing kitchen into something that looks both beautiful and real. Not staged. Not styled. Just food, on plates, in the kitchen where it was made. The publisher wants the manuscript by January 15th. That gives me six weeks to finish the last ten recipes, write the remaining headnotes, and do the final edit. It's tight. But 'tight' is my operating speed. I wrote my first book's final chapter at 3 AM. I wrote my second book's headnote about the pot roast in twenty minutes. The best work happens under pressure, the way the best fried chicken happens in hot oil. Christmas planning is underway. The tree goes up next weekend. The ornament collection grows: this year's addition is a tiny cookbook ornament that Ryan found at a craft fair. It's adorable. Hazel's preschool Christmas pageant is the 18th. She's playing a reindeer. The costume involves antlers and a red nose. She insisted on pink antlers. Miss Jenna compromised with pink glitter on regular antlers. The negotiation was fierce. Made gingerbread cookies tonight. Mom's recipe. The December starter. The cookie that says 'the holidays have begun.' December. Ten recipes. Pink antlers. The year ends.

Mom’s gingerbread recipe is the December starter — the one I always make first — but this year, with ten recipes left to test and a manuscript due January 15th, I found myself reaching for something that split the difference between comfort and the cookbook work still ahead of me. These Cinnamon Chip Chai-Spiced Snickerdoodles have that same warm, spiced soul as a classic gingerbread cookie, but with a depth from the chai that felt right for a December that’s asking a lot of me. Pink glitter antlers, a tree to decorate, and a kitchen still full of work — these are the cookies that kept me company.

Prep Time: 20 min | Cook Time: 12 min | Total Time: 32 min | Servings: 36 cookies

Ingredients

2 3/4 cups all-purpose flour
2 teaspoons cream of tartar
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon fine sea salt
1 1/2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
1 teaspoon ground cardamom
1/2 teaspoon ground ginger
1/4 teaspoon ground allspice
1/4 teaspoon ground cloves
1 cup (2 sticks) unsalted butter, at room temperature
1 1/2 cups granulated sugar, divided
2 large eggs
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
1 cup cinnamon chips

Instructions

Preheat the oven. Preheat your oven to 375°F. Line two large baking sheets with parchment paper and set aside.
Mix dry ingredients. In a medium bowl, whisk together the flour, cream of tartar, baking soda, salt, cinnamon, cardamom, ginger, allspice, and cloves. Set aside.
Cream butter and sugar. In a large bowl using a hand mixer or in a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, beat the butter and 1 1/4 cups of the sugar on medium-high speed until light and fluffy, about 3 minutes.
Add eggs and vanilla. Add the eggs one at a time, beating well after each addition, then mix in the vanilla extract.
Combine and fold. Reduce mixer speed to low and gradually add the flour mixture, mixing just until combined. Fold in the cinnamon chips with a spatula.
Make the rolling sugar. In a small bowl, stir together the remaining 1/4 cup granulated sugar with an extra 1/2 teaspoon cinnamon for rolling.
Shape the cookies. Scoop the dough by rounded tablespoons (about 1 1/2 inches in diameter), roll into balls, then roll each ball in the cinnamon sugar until fully coated. Place 2 inches apart on the prepared baking sheets.
Bake. Bake for 10 to 12 minutes, until the edges are just set and the centers look slightly underdone — they will firm up as they cool. Do not overbake.
Cool. Let the cookies cool on the baking sheet for 5 minutes before transferring to a wire rack to cool completely.

Nutrition (per serving)

Cinnamon Chip Chai-Spiced Snickerdoodles — The Cookie That Says the Holidays Have Begun