UBS Virtual Cooking Class: Classic American Snickerdoodle Cookies & Cake

*Please note: This is an internal event for UBS employees only. This event is virtual. Please register using your UBS email address as this is an internal company event.*

Snickerdoodles

Stella Parks

Makes thirteen 5” cookies or twenty six 3 ½“ cookies

For the Cookies

• 2 1/3 cups unbleached, all-purpose flour
• 8 tablespoons unsalted butter (1 stick), room temperature but not melty
• 1/2 cup refined or virgin coconut oil, solid but creamy, about 70ºF
• 1 1/2 cups sugar
• 1 1/4 teaspoons kosher salt
• 1 teaspoon baking powder
• 1/8 tsp grate nutmeg
• 1 tablespoon vanilla extract
• 1 cold large egg

For the Cinnamon Sugar Topping

• 1/4 cup sugar
• 2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
• 2 teaspoons grated cinnamon (from 1 cinnamon stick)

1. Make sure oven rack is centered and preheat to 400ºF. Line 2 baking sheets with parchment paper and set aside.

2. Sift the flour into a medium bowl.

3. Place the butter, coconut oil, sugar, salt, baking powder and vanilla in the large bowl of the electric mixer. Mix on low speed to moisten and then turn mixer to medium and beat for about 5 minutes, until light and fluffy, scraping down the sides with a rubber spatula as necessary during the process. Add in the egg and beat until the mixture is smooth. Then turn the mixer to low speed and add the flour, mixing to form a stiff dough.

4. Now, either roll about 13 large balls (1/4 cup size) or about 24 smaller (2 tablespoon size) balls of dough and set aside on a plate or tray.

5. To make the topping: mix the sugar, and both cinnamons in a small bowl together. Roll each ball of dough into the cinnamon sugar mixture until fully coated. Place on the lined sheets about 2 inches apart. Flatten each ball into a 1/2 disk and sprinkle the tops of all of the cookies with the remaining cinnamon sugar.

6. Bake one sheet at a time for 6 minutes. Then rotate the baking sheet and lower the temp to 350ºF. Let bake for another 5-6 minutes, until cookies are firm around the edges but still puffy in the middle. You don’t want to overbake or these will lose their chewiness. Let cookies cool on the sheet on a wire rack another 10 minutes or so to firm up before you transfer them to the rack to finish cooling.

7. Bring the temp back to 400ºF before baking the second sheet of cookies. Store cookies in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 3 days.

8. You can definitely make the dough ahead of time, shape the cookies and then store them in an airtight container with wax paper between the layers. Take the cookies out and place them on the lined sheets for about an hour before you want to bake them, then follow the directions above.

Snip Doodles

Stella Parks

Makes 20 pieces, about 3” square

1 tbsp all purpose flour for dusting

1 recipe Snickerdoodle dough, prepared through the addition of the egg

1 cup / 8 oz milk (any percentage will do)

1. Adjust oven rack to middle position and preheat to 350 F. Lightly grease and aluminum baking sheet, dust with flour, and tap out the access.

2. Prepare the snickerdoodle dough according to the recipe, pausing after the egg. Mixing on low, sprinkle in a third of the flour, followed by a third of the milk, alternating between the two until fully incorporated and smooth. Fold once or twice with a flexible spatula to ensure that the batter is well mixed from the bottom up, and scrape onto the prepared baking sheet. Spread into a 15 x 11“ layer and dust with cinnamon sugar.

3. Bake until the cake is puffed and firm, about 15 minutes; the toothpick inserted into the center mar with a few crumbs attached. Cool for roughly 10 minutes to set the crumb, then “snip” into squares with a piece or knife. Serve warm. Wrapped tightly in foil, snickerdoodles will keep for up to three days at room temperature.

Vanilla Ice Cream makes a great addition to serving!

Host or Publisher UBS Weehawken