thistle & weeds

For me, when I’m freaking out (or sad, or angry, or frustrated, or on the verge of becoming a basket case) it helps to cook. Specifically, to bake and if it helps other people at the same time, all the better. (Can you tell I’m a two on the enneagram? Let me look after you and I’ll save my freak out for when no one can see. I’m working on this tendency to not look after myself, but I digress. Let’s get back to the topic, shall we?)

I’m not exactly ready to talk about why I’m on the verge of becoming a basket case – the internet still seems so impersonal – but making snickerdoodles sure did help.

What are snickerdoodles, you may ask? Well, I would love to tell you. They are a cookie, and I’m pretty sure they’re American so yes, it’s cookie and not biscuit. They are a basic chewy cookie but they are covered in cinnamon sugar and the first time I made them, my friend described them as ‘like biting into a unicorn.’

Oh, yes.

So when my housemate came up to me and complained that she was hungry and we had no cookies, there was really only one thing to do. Because not only are they amazing, snickerdoodles are really easy to make. They only take ten minutes in the oven and it’s a one-bowl recipe. Genius. You may, however, have to make a few trays because they spread out quite a bit.

And yes, this did help me to calm down. Especially once I’d taken a bite.

Snickerdoodles

adapted from Smitten Kitchen

250gm butter

1 3/4 cups sugar (plus more if needed)

2 large eggs

3 1/2 cups plain flour

3 teaspoons baking powder

1/4 teaspoon salt (only necessary if you use unsalted butter, which I did. Usually I use salted butter, which takes one ingredient out of the equation.)

2 tablespoons cinnamon (plus more if needed)

Preheat your oven to 200ºC and line a couple of baking trays with baking paper.

Cube the butter and heat it in the microwave for 30 seconds (this is because in my house, butter lives in the fridge. It melts about half the butter and makes it easier to beat. If your butter is already at room temperature, skip this, although if your room is under 15ºC then you’ll probably want to do this anyway.) Beat the butter and 1 1/2 cups sugar with an electric mixer (you can use a stand one, I only had a hand held) until light and fluffy, about two minutes. Beat in both eggs.

Scrape down the sides of the bowl and sift the flour, baking powder and salt in in two batches, folding it through until just incorporated after each batch. Beat with the electric mixer for about a minute, making sure all the dry ingredients are mixed in.

Combine the cinnamon and remaining sugar in a bowl. Using a tablespoon measure, scoop balls of the mixture and dump them in the cinnamon sugar; roll them around to coat the whole ball and place on the baking sheets. Place them pretty far apart; like I said, they spread out quite a bit. Place the trays in the oven and bake about ten minutes; if you have more than one tray, rotate them at the halfway mark.

When you remove these from the oven, try not to burn your fingers as you take them straight from the pan.

Thistle & Weeds from Sigh No More by Mumford and Sons; my new favourite album and right about where my mood is.