FFWD Card Exchange - Snickerdoodles

Happy Boxing Day!  I hope that you all had a wonderful Christmas day celebrating with family and friends.

Today's French Friday with Dorie is special - not only is it the last FFWD for 2014, but it is also our Card Cookie Exchange Day.  For our card exchange this year, Doristas also exchanged a cookie or cocktail recipe, which other Doristas could make.  I have really enjoyed the card exchange - below is my collection of cards so far:    

I chose to make Snickerdoodles, from a recipe supplied by Tricia.  I chose these because I have never made Snickerdoodles before, and I loved the name.  (We do not have Snickerdoodles in Australia.)

Snickerdoodles are buttery cookies rolled in cinnamon sugar.  They are crisp on the edges but soft in the middle.  While my Snickerdoodles did not turn out textbook pretty, they smelt fabulous in the oven and they sure tasted amazing.  I ate two straight off the bat and had to put the rest away before I ate any more.  This cookie recipe is a definite keeper!

Tricia's recipe for Snickerdoodles comes from Lee Bailey's Country Desserts.  (Wow, just look at the cover for this book - I want a slice of whatever that cake is on the cover.) The recipe is as follows:

2 3/4 cups flour
2 tsp cream of tartar
1 tsp baking soda
1/4 tsp salt
2 sticks unsalted butter, softened
1 1/2 cups sugar, plus 1/4 cup sugar mixed with 1 tsp cinnamon
2 eggs

Whisk together flour, cream of tartar, soda, and salt and sift again.

In separate bowl or stand mixer, cream together butter and 1 1/2 cups sugar until light and fluffy. Add in eggs, mixing well after each addition.

Add the dry ingredients in four parts, mixing well after each addition. Cover and chill for at least an hour.  (In my case, it should have been longer - the cookies spread like wildfire in the oven.)

Preheat oven to 400 degrees Fahrenheit/ gas mark 6. Roll dough into walnut-sized balls, and roll in cinnamon sugar mixture. Place the balls two inches apart on cookie sheet that has been greased or lined with baling paper.

Bake the cookies for 8-10 minutes until cookies are done, but still soft. Let cool for a few minutes, then transfer to cooling rack.

Makes 3 dozen.

To see what the other Doristas made, visit the LYL section of the FFWD website.

I leave you with an image of the magnificent Christmas tree in the foyer of my building at work:

This tree is so beautiful that people walk in from off the street just to see it, and take photos with their children posing in front of it.  (They also come to admire the magnificent heritage foyer itself.) 

The last word comes from this sign in the window of Gewurzhaus in the Block Arcade: