Toffee Chip Snickerdoodles

Toffee Chip Snickerdoodles - made dough May 25, 2015 from The Essential Chocolate Chip Cookbook by Elinor Klivans

I have mixed emotions about this recipe. On the one hand, I like chocolate chips and toffee bits as much as the next cookie-crazed person. On the other hand, it seems wrong to violate the sanctity of the purist snickerdoodle by adding “stuff” to it. Snickerdoodles are supposed to be vanilla butter cookies rolled in cinnamon sugar. That’s what makes them a snickerdoodle. Adding toffee chips and chocolate chips – well, doesn’t that just make it a toffee chocolate chip cookie?

But I’ll try (almost) any recipe once to prove myself right or wrong or indifferent so I went with it. The dough was a bit soft when I finished mixing it so I did what I always did – scooped into dough balls and froze them. That was supposed to help them bake up thicker.

Unfortunately that little trick didn’t work as well as it normally does and these spread thinner than I cared for, even on the convection setting of my oven which tells me either my butter was too soft (unlikely since I beat it straight from the refrigerator) or there wasn’t enough dry ingredients called for in the recipe to give it enough structure. As for the taste, as I expected, despite the traditional rolling in cinnamon sugar, this was more like a toffee chocolate chip vanilla cookie than a true snickerdoodle. It still tasted good but if you’re seeing a more traditional snickerdoodle recipe, I suggest trying my favorite one instead: Soft & ThickSnickerdoodles.

2 1/2 cups all-purpose flour

2 teaspoons cream of tartar
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 1/2 cups sugar
1 cup (2 sticks) unsalted butter
2 large eggs
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1/4 teaspoon almond extract
1 cup (6 ounces) semisweet chocolate chips
2/3 cup (4 ounces) chocolate toffee bits, such as Heath or finely crushed chocolate-covered toffee

Coating
1/2 cup granulated sugar
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon

1. Sift the flour, cream of tartar, baking soda and salt into a medium bowl and set aside.
2. In a large bowl, using an electric mixer on medium speed, beat the butter and 1 1/2 cups sugar until smoothly blended, about 1 minute. Add the eggs, vanilla and almond extracts and mix until blended, about 1 minute.
3. On low speed, add the flour mixture, mixing just until incorporated. Stir in the chocolate chips and toffee bits until evenly distributed. The dough will be soft.
4. Scoop into golf-ball-size dough balls and chill or freeze, covered, for several hours or overnight. 
5. When ready to bake: preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Line 2 or 3 baking sheets with parchment paper.
6. In a small bowl, stir together 1/2 cup of the sugar and the cinnamon. Roll each cookie dough ball in the cinnamon sugar mixture (thaw for 5-10 minutes before rolling).
7. Place the cookies evenly spaced on the cookie sheet, 2-3 inches apart. Bake until the edges are golden but the centers are still pale, 12-14 minutes. Cool on baking sheet for 5 minutes then transfer cookies to wire rack to cool completely.