Chai Snickerdoodles

5 from 2 votes

These easy Chai Snickerdoodle Cookies are the most delicious sweet treat! Trade the classic cinnamon sugar coating for a sweet chai spice mixture. They’re a lovely treat to enjoy during the cooler months or anytime you crave some coziness.

A flat lay of spiced cookies with a bite taken from one. The cookies are surrounded by cinnamon sticks, star anise, cloves, and cardamom pods on a white surface.

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About these Chai Snickerdoodles

Sugar and spice and everything nice — that’s exactly what chai snickerdoodle cookies are made of. This lovely little fall inspired treat is the best twist on a classic snickerdoodle.

Ever since I first tried snickerdoodles, they have been one of my favorite cookies to make. The dough is a simple and they’re always a really quick recipe. There’s something nice about the repetition of rolling them in cinnamon sugar before baking them too.

Plus, these cookies make the whole house smell incredible as it bakes. Served warm fresh from the oven, they’re soft, chewy and absolutely heavenly. You’re going to love these amazing chai snickerdoodles!

These cookies make for an excellent tea biscuit, or serve them with an autumn spice latte. With a warm and spicy sugar mixture coating the outside, these are truly the perfect fall cookie.

More chai recipes: Chai MuffinsChai Old-Fashioned CocktailChai Syrup

Why you’ll love this recipe

What’s not to love about a chewy cookie covered in a delicious, sugary chai spice mix:

  • These are perfect for cookie swaps and bake sales! They’re just unique enough that people will find them very intriguing.
  • Chai snickerdoodles take the number one spot for cozy cookies. The warming spices are just too delicious to resist.
  • Believe it or not, this cookie recipe comes together in under 30 minutes. You can have warm, fresh cookies in no time at all!
A blue tin filled with snickerdoodle cookies. Various spices, including star anise and cinnamon sticks, are scattered around the tin.

Tools & equipment

To make chai snickerdoodles, you will need just a few basic kitchen items. Make sure you’ve got a large baking sheet or two, as well as parchment paper to line the sheet pans.

You will also need mixing bowls, measuring cups and spoons, and a stand mixer or hand mixer. A cookie scoop is optional, but could help you form all the dough balls!

Several round cookies, one with a bite taken out, are topped with star anise and surrounded by cinnamon sticks and cardamom pods on a white surface.

Ingredients

You’ll need ingredients to make the cookie dough as well as ingredients for the chai spice blend that will coat the cookies.

Here’s a list of everything to grab in order to make the best snickerdoodles ever:

  • flour
  • cream of tartar
  • baking soda
  • salt
  • butter
  • white sugar
  • eggs

Sugar and chai spice mixture

Classic snickerdoodles call for cinnamon sugar, but this spice mixture is the part that makes them “chai.”

  • white sugar
  • ground cardamom
  • cinnamon
  • ground ginger
  • ground black pepper

Substitutions & variations

Gluten-free: Make these cookies gluten free by substituting an all-purpose gluten-free flour mixture.

Spices: Feel free to adjust the chai spice mixture as you prefer! Spices like cloves and allspice would be yummy, and you can omit the black pepper if you don’t like that flavor profile. You can also add some other spices to regular cinnamon sugar if that’s what you have on hand.

Sugar: To reduce the amount of refined sugar in this recipe, you can try coconut sugar or maple sugar. (I’ve not made it this way, but I have no reason to see why it wouldn’t yield similar results!)

Snickerdoodle bars: Use the spice mix on other snickerdoodle variations like snickerdoodle bars.

A tin filled with several sugar cookies, some topped with star anise, cardamom pods, and cinnamon sticks. Additional spices are scattered around the cookies.

Instructions

Follow these easy peasy instructions to make the best chai spice cookies:

  1. Preheat your oven to 400ºF (204°C) and then line a baking sheet with parchment paper.
  2. Stir together dry ingredients in a medium bowl and set aside. In a small bowl, stir together all the chai ingredients until well-combined.
  3. Fit a stand mixer with the paddle attachment, and then cream butter and sugar until white and fluffy. Beat in eggs one at a time, then add the dry ingredients to the wet ingredients in batches.
  4. Scoop out the dough and shape into evenly-sized, small balls. Then roll the balls in sugar and chai spice mixture.
  5. Place the dough balls 2 inches apart on the lined cookie sheet and bake for 8 to 10 minutes.
  6. Let sit for one minute on the cookie sheet, then transfer to a wire tack to cool. Serve immediately or store in an airtight container up to one week.
Freshly baked cookies cooling on a wire rack, surrounded by cinnamon sticks, star anise, and cardamom pods on a white surface.

Tips & tricks

With these few simple tips, you can guarantee that your cookies turn out great every single time:

  • If you don’t have a stand mixer, you can use an electric hand mixer to beat together the butter and sugar. Either way, make sure that the butter is softened before mixing.
  • Use a cookie scoop in order to ensure all cookie dough balls are the same size! It’s also a great way to make forming the cookies much more easy.
  • Allow your eggs to come to room temperature before mixing them with the other ingredients. They’ll mix in much more easily than cold eggs.

Food & drink pairings 

Pair these warm and chewy chai snickerdoodles with cozy drinks like a cinnamon latte or smooth french press coffee.

They’d be so good with spiced holiday drinks like pumpkin eggnog or apple cider mimosas too.

I love to put these on a dessert platter with other sweet treat like candied pecans and spiced rum balls. They’re also a delicious treat alongside a savory snack of charcuterie board favorites or after a bowl of Indian butter chicken for dinner.

A tin filled with round, lightly browned cookies. The cookies are accented with whole spices, including star anise, cloves, cardamom pods, and cinnamon sticks.

FAQ

What is snickerdoodle seasoning made of?

Traditionally, snickerdoodles are coated in a mixture of cinnamon and sugar. However, it’s fun when the cookies are coated in a sugar and spice mixture, such as chai spices, giving them a delicious and warming fall flavor.

Why is cream of tartar used in snickerdoodles?

Cream of tartar helps to give snickerdoodles that classic chewy texture and also makes them spread more quickly to make a more thin cookie. It’s an essential ingredient to make the best snickerdoodles.

Several large, round snickerdoodle cookies cooling on a wire rack, with spices like cinnamon sticks, star anise, and cardamom pods scattered nearby.

— Did you make this recipe? —

Please leave a ★★★★★ review or comment below.

A tin filled with round, lightly browned cookies. The cookies are accented with whole spices, including star anise, cloves, cardamom pods, and cinnamon sticks.

Chai Snickerdoodles

Yield: 36 cookies
Prep Time: 15 minutes
Cook Time: 10 minutes
Total Time: 25 minutes
These warming chai snickerdoodles are wonderful to include in your fall baking rotation. They're easy to make and don't take long at all!
5 from 2 votes
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ingredients

For the cookies

instructions

  • Pre-heat oven to 400°F (20°C). Line a baking sheet with parchment paper.
  • Stir together dry ingredients in a medium bowl and set aside. In a small bowl, make the Sugar & Spice mixture by stirring together all the ingredients until well-combined.
  • In a mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, cream butter and sugar until white and fluffy. Beat in eggs one at a time. In batches, blend in dry ingredients.
  • Shape dough into evenly-sized, small balls. Roll balls in Sugar & Spice mixture. Place 2 inches apart on the lined cookie sheet. Bake 8 to 10 minutes. Let sit one minute, then cool on a wire rack. Store in an airtight container up to one week.

notes

To make chai spice, combine the following: 
  • 1 ½ teaspoon ground cardamom
  • 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
  • ½ teaspoon ground ginger
  • 1 big pinch freshly-cracked black pepper

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nutrition information

Yield: 36 cookies

amount per serving:

Serving: 1cookie Calories: 122kcal Carbohydrates: 17g Protein: 1g Fat: 5g Saturated Fat: 3g Polyunsaturated Fat: 0.3g Monounsaturated Fat: 1g Trans Fat: 0.2g Cholesterol: 23mg Sodium: 91mg Potassium: 44mg Fiber: 0.3g Sugar: 10g Vitamin A: 171IU Vitamin C: 0.04mg Calcium: 6mg Iron: 1mg
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